Words can be a powerful tool in the hands of a poet. Class members examine a poem written by Ross Gay in response to the death of Eric Garner and a news report of the same death. They then read an article about the death of Tamir Rice...

Pupils participate in a drama circle to read Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream aloud. They work with partners to discuss Shakespeare's use of language and analyze how specific lines of dialogue within the play help propel the...

Scholars continue reading the Greek myth "Pyramus and Thisbe," analyzing why it was written into Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. Next, they complete a Venn diagram to compare the two texts.

Scholars read additional pages in Unbroken to discover more about Louie's character. Readers use turn-and-talk strategies to discuss character traits that describe Louie. They then answer text-dependent questions and cite evidence to...

How do incidents in A Mighty Long Way provoke the author, Carlotta Walls LaNier, to make certain decisions that shape her story? Scholars engage in a close reading of the memoir, analyzing events in US history and Carlotta's personal...

What's the connection? Scholars complete a close reading of Brown v. Board of Education and identify connections to Carlotta in A Mighty Long Way. Classmates learn new vocabulary, answer text-dependent questions, and complete a...

How can a persuasive speech help inspire social change? Scholars read along as they listen to the first half of César Chávez's 1984 speech, "Commonwealth Club Address." Next, pupils use graphic organizers to analyze one of Chávez's...

Scholars explore the question of whether labor unions are the agents of change as they continue reading César Chávez's 1984 speech, "Address to the Commonwealth Club of California." They discuss rhetoric in Chávez's speech and discover...

Reader, writer, illustrator ... scholars wear many hats! Pupils become experts in recommending books to their classmates as they write reviews of their independent reading books. Next, after finishing the second draft of their children's...

Calling all researchers! Using the resource, scholars continue conducting independent Internet research about a chosen research question. As they browse the web in search of articles to answer their questions, pupils paraphrase their...

True or false? Scholars read chapter four of World without Fish and explore the idea of a myth. They discuss in triads the meaning of the myth of nature’s bounty. Learners annotate the text on sticky notes and then answer...

It's a process. Scholars read to understand the process Meg Lowman uses for pressing specimens. Learners work in groups to define vocabulary and create a list of the steps used. They then carry out the steps using provided materials. 

It's time to slow down and learn about sloths! Scholars read the first few questions of an interview with a sloth canopy researcher, looking for the gist. Next, they create a glossary in the back of their journals to add new scientific...

Scholars look at cause-and-effect relationships while doing a close read of the 1936 Olympics on pages 16-19 of Promises to Keep. They complete a cause-and-effect note catcher and add their ideas to an anchor chart. Readers then...

Using the thought-provoking resource, scholars continue researching opposing points of view about the Mary River Project proposal. They read an informational text, watch a video, and record the gist of the text and video in their...

Second graders are introduced to the concept of fluency and are shown how a fluency chart is used. They listen to two sentences; one read with the fluency and the other with disfluent reading. They work in pairs to time each other while...

Students use fluency checklists in this activity to improve oral reading ability. The teacher models fluent and timed reading while reading the story "Fuzz and the Buzz." The students work with a partner to time each others oral...

Students examine how reading with expression makes stories more interesting by listening to a reading in monotone and one with expression. Reading in pairs, they practice with passages of Judith Voirst's, Alexander and the Terrible,...

Students review basic reading decoding. Given books at their independent reading level, they read independently and with several different partners to increase reading fluency. They see how many more words per minute they can read after...

Students practice reading fluency and reading with expression. They develop reading fluency using timed reading. Students read "Arthur's Reading Race" and record how far they read in one minute. They repeat the reading in order to see...

Students explore reading with fluency. They use repeated reading in order to improve their reading fluency. Students read "Frog and Toad are Friends." They discuss why it is important to read with fluency and explore what reading with...

Students increase fluency through repeated reading exercises. In groups, they practice reading sentences prior to reading the book, "Jane and Bob." Individually, students read parts to the teacher who notes expression, smoothness, and...

Sixth graders read a given passage silently. The student then reads the same passage orally to a partner. The partner records the number of words pronounced incorrectly. The student then sets goals to increase oral reading speed and...

Students observe and demonstrate various strategies for improving their reading fluency. They observe the teacher demonstrating how to read words they are having trouble with, then in pairs take turns timing each other reading the book...