Explore how illustrations add to a story. Young learners will look at picture books to see how the pictures tell the story. They create illustrations to go with a chosen story, and then flip the activity so they have to write a story to...

What do Robert Downey Jr., Basil Rathbone, Jeremy Brett, Fritz Weaver, Roger Moore, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Daffy Duck have in common? Why, it’s elementary, my dear Watson! They all have portrayed Sherlock Holmes. Literary detectives...

Explore the structure of narrative writing with this fun, collaborative lesson plan. Start by reading aloud a short story, asking small groups of learners to fill in key events on a large story board prepared on the class whiteboard....

In this language arts worksheet, students examine a detailed picture of a school and playground with 17 hidden pictures. Students locate the objects that are hidden by reading a story with highlighted words that give clues about what to...

Students investigate inferences. They define inference, view a Powerpoint presentation, answer questions about a picture book, and identify clues throughout the story as examples of inferences.

Students discuss the cycle of growing wheat, and then plant their own in foil pans. After the wheat grows for a couple of weeks, students participate in a story retelling activity reinforcing the concepts of the process.

Cut magazine pictures into three sections, having your youngsters piece the pictures back together. With this fun activity, they discover the importance of sequencing a story. Then they use a fun template (shaped like a burger) to write...

Immaculate, accumulation, dissipation. Vocabulary drawn from chapter 16 of James McBride's memoir, The Color of Water, can prove to be challenge for readers. To help kids understand the meaning of these words and what they add to the...

Third graders compose two or more simple sentences in response to a picture. They construct sentences and produce captions with 3 or more sentences that extend the subject/verb pattern. They demonstrate age appropriate correct use of...

Students use transitions to connect the beginning, middle and end of their writing. In this lesson on drafting a story, students use a graphic organizer sandwich to put pictures back together and recognize a specific order.

Students investigate the concept of capitalization by reading relevant text and finding supporting details and facts.  For this capitalization lesson, students read chapter seven in Working With Words and share predictions about the...

Fifth graders use general knowledge to make educated guesses about the habitat and survival strategies of animals from Australia, Antarctica and Africa. They research to confirm and check ideas and group animals in a variety of ways.

Students practice composing sentences that pertain to the description of a picture. They use critical observation skills in order to derive the best details. The sentences are required to follow the correct subject and verb pattern.

Students practice using new vocabulary by putting a picture with the new word. They also write the definitions of the new words. They use the pictures to create a clue in which others can practice the new words.

Pupils recognize and identify words with hard and soft g sounds. They also categorize words beginning with the letter g by their sound. The folk tale Jack and the Beanstalk is read and then students are asked to name words in the story...

Students choose famous person to research online, use at least two different sources to find information, prepare rough drafts and document sources, meet in groups for peer feedback, review with teacher, and turn in final report.

Fourth graders recall lizards from the text and report their important traits. The teacher adds the information to the map. They watch the map expand while it organizes all of the lizards and their characteristics.

Students write a story about robots. In this creative writing lesson, students read a story about robots, make their own robot, and write a story about their robot. In addition, the lesson plan suggests taking photos of the robots to add...

Compare and contrast the characters in John Boyne's The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. Using a Venn diagram, kids write in different traits to describe each person, and note their shared characteristics in the middle section.

Ninth graders create a scavenger hunt with clues related to a building they have researched. Working in small groups, they use the internet and traditional resources to find information pertaining to a historical building. Students use...

Students greet individuals in forms that are appropriate for certain relationships, the time of day, and specific holidays and occasions. They discuss the differences in forms of address for age, rank, and greetings, listen to the clues...

Third graders identify words that are related with 80% accuracy. Given a list of four vocabulary words, 3rd graders identify specific relationships between three of the four words. They also identify which of the four words are not...

Fourth graders predict constellations each month. In this astronomy instructional activity, 4th graders are presented with two constellations every month, and guess what they are as clues are given.

Students explore the formation of clouds and different cloud types. Students simulate a cloud formation within a bottle.