Could you go without your cell phone for 48 hours? Pose this question to your class and then read the article provided here. Pupils mark the text and and complete a graphic organizer that requires the use of textual evidence.

If you build it they can come. After reading a short article about the impact of western expansion, middle schoolers cite evidence from the article to explain how this expansion forced changes in transportation.

Close up your unit of study with an examination of one of the guiding or essential questions as it relates to what your class has studied and other research. Class members first write down the question. Then they note down information...

Readers of O! Pioneers are asked to cite evidence from a paragraph of Willa Cather's novel to support an analysis of Alexandra Bergson, the personal qualities she possesses, and how these qualities will help the Bergson family after her...

Have you ever cheated on a test? What about copied someone else's homework? After reading Colleen Wenke's essay "Too Much Pressure," class members use the provided reading comprehension questions to focus their analysis of important...

Show your class what poem the famous line "How do I love thee? Let me count the ways" comes from. Class members read Elizabeth Barrett Browning's poem and respond to one question with a short paragraph. The question asks learners to use...

After reading a very brief excerpt from Frederick Douglass' autobiography, learners cite textual evidence to support a main idea of the primary source about Douglass' humiliating experience with slavery. This is a brief exercise that...

Expect great things from this reading comprehension exercise that asks readers to cite evidence from the provided passages of Great Expectations to support the inference that Charles Dickens' Miss Havisham, and her room, are indeed strange.

Perfect for a unit on characterization and simple enough to use with any text. Your class will practice the Common Core standard of citing textual evidence to support their analysis by first making an assertion about a character from a...

Prepare for a research project or just use this worksheet on its own. Class members choose a topic, write a big question about it, and note down information they find about it. The final product is a longer written assignment in the...

Invite your learners to research three different websites that pertain to a topic focused on in your syllabus. Learners fill out a chart by answering questions about each site. Then, they compare how useful the sites are to one...

Rain gauges, thermometers, and wind vanes. After reading a short article about weather forecasting, readers identify the tools meteorologists use to predict the weather.

Introduce your class to the personal essay with this worksheet. Learners identify the subject of an essay and then record examples from the essay that represent the author's thoughts and feelings regarding the subject. While this...

Write what you know, sound advice for any writer and something many famous authors are known to have done. Use these materials to explore how Shakespeare's life influenced his plays. This resource is packed with readings, video segments,...

An effective lesson plan truly can make all the difference. Seventh graders read, analyze, and annotate Robert Frost's "The Road Not Taken" before writing an essay about what they believe to be the theme of the iconic poem.

Check in on the development of your fifth graders' reading and writing skills with this Common Core-designed assessment. Given a series of six reading passages ranging from narrative stories to informational texts, young...

Making inferences is a skill that goes beyond the comprehension of written text. In this simple exercise, young learners are provided with a photograph and asked to answer a series of inference questions using only on the...

Although designed for a foods lab, the information in this resource might be just the thing for your own recipe notebook. Illustrated, step-by-step directions for making the perfect omelet, egg-citing puzzles, games, and even...

Does your ELA class need some practice with the specific skills outlined in the Common Core standards? Then this is the perfect resource for you! One in a series of connected lessons that cover the standards for reading literature,...

What is thunder? After reading a short article about extreme weather, middle schoolers must use information in the text to explain this weather phenomenon.

All the Common Core standards are important, but they all build off the ability to cite textual evidence to support analysis. See how to scaffold this standard into three steps of development, along with assessment ideas with the ideas...

How do researchers narrow their searches so that they get the most useful and accurate information available? This essential question is at the heart of the activities suggested by a research skills worksheet. Tips include how to craft...

From A to Z, learners define, draw, and find examples of specific reading focus skills in an alphabetized reading vocabulary packet. Words include dialogue, theme, text structure, genre, paraphrase, and many more.

Coyotes in Chicago? Yip. Middle schoolers demonstrate their ability to identify details that support the idea that coyotes are adaptable creatures.