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The Iditarod Race Compared with the Movie, Iron Will
Feel the freezing rush of an Alaskan sled dog race in this reading lesson plan. Using research about the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, seventh graders compare and contrast the depiction in the movie Iron Will. The lesson plan lasts for...
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The Good, the Bad, and the Goofy
Upper elementary learners read about jobs on a cattle drive and the lives of cowboy during U.S. Westward Expansion. They create a "Help Wanted" poster for one of the jobs. After reading primary source accounts of cowboys, they write...
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Let's Discuss Current Events
Investigate articles from the daily news and share opinions with classmates. Using current events, learners view a news program without sound and predict what news is being discussed by analyzing the visuals. Then they read news articles...
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Text Features of Fiction, Poetry, Drama: Story Matrix
How do novels differ from plays? Explore with your class the text features of fiction and drama by reading The Hidden One: Native American Legend and then performing a reader’s theater script based on the story. Class members create a...
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Go Free or Die: Figurative Language
Figures of speech, sensory details, and academic language are all targeted while reading Chapter Two of J. Ferris’ Go Free or Die. First, learners engage in an exercise to practice describing with detail. Then, partners use a...
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'Me Fail English? That's Unpossible' : Studying Literature with "The Simpsons"
Does your class love The Simpsons? It might seem dated, but with reruns constantly popping up on television, this show still holds the attention of most of your learners. Play the opening sequence of an episode, and brainstorm any...
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Indiana Applied Skills Assessment Sample
In this Applied Skills Assessment worksheet, 5th graders complete a sample state assessment for Language Arts and Mathematics for 5th graders. They read a writing prompt and complete a writing activity that follows, answer various types...
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Exploring the Sky: Reading Maria's Comet
Discover the science behind astronomy. After reading the book Maria's Comet, which is about a young woman who breaks new ground by becoming a female astronomer, young learners practice reading comprehension with...
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Reading and Writing about the Solar System
A superb interdisciplinary approach highlights this instructional activity which incorporates space science knowledge and narrative skills. After reading The Magic School Bus, two excellent poems, and watching a video, all about our...
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"The Chase" Reading Questions
"The Chase," a chapter from Annie Dillard's autobiography, details an iceball project the narrator and her friends used to play. After your class reads the chapter, give them this reading assessment. Provided here are five short-answer...
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MUD-A Walk
Students investigate their tracks to determine the number of footsteps it takes to travel the entire length of their bodies. Then they determine the taller of two children and the shorter of two children with their tracks. Students also...
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Teach Text Structure for Nonfiction
Students explore the patterns of text structure to anticipate the kind of information that a reading might present. The lesson examines some of the components of reading writing and using nonfiction.
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Comparing Cultures
Students examine the nature of culture, and compare/contrast various cultures and their artifacts and ceremonies. They develop a class list of artifacts, complete a worksheet, and create a poster or diorama describing an object that is...
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Compare and Contrast
In this compare/contrast worksheet, students read a sentence about 2 different items, then write how those 2 items are the same. One example is completed for students.
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King Arthur and his Knights
Fourth graders examine the myths of King Arthur. They compare/contrast versions of the story, The Sword in the Stone, write a letter, identify and analyze characters, sequence events, and write observations and answer questions in a...
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Take Your Time
Your class examines the ways that they spend time by evaluating their own schedules. They create a peer research survey to gather information about their various habits. They analyze the data and compare/contrast the activities of...
Fluence Learning
Writing About Informational Text: Music and the Brain
Even if you've never picked up a musical instrument, chances are that music has directly impacted your mental and emotional development. Sixth graders engage in a reading activity in which they read two articles on the impact of music on...
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Mapping the Mediasphere
Students compare/contrast the media messages they see in two different communities in their city. They list the elements of art and the principles of design in the photographs they have taken in those two different communities. They...
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Comparing Sea Horses and Knights
Students investigate sea horses and knights. In this marine biology lesson, students read the book How to Hide an Octopus and discuss the purpose of camoflage. Students research knights and sea horses and record their research on...
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Rain Forest Babies: comprehension skills
In this comprehension skills worksheet, 2nd graders read the book Rain Forest Babies and complete comprehension activities. Students complete 5 activities including note taking, compare and contrast, and personal opinion.
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At Play Long Ago and Today: comprehension skills
In this comprehension skills learning exercise, learners read the book At Play Long Ago and Today and complete comprehension activities. Students complete 5 activities including note taking, compare and contrast, predicting, and...
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Comparing Tales through Performance
Students compare and contrast versions of The Three Little Pigs. In this fairy tale lesson, students read 3 versions of the fairy tale and dramatize them in order to analyze the similarities and differences.
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The Similarities and Differences of Setting
Sixth graders identify components of the setting in science fiction text. In this compare and contrast settings lesson plan, 6th graders read Only You Can Save Mankind and identify similarities and differences between science...
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Comparing Fiction and Nonfiction
Fifth graders compare and contrast an informational article with a fictional story. They read the story "The Contest" as a class, and discuss the different types of literature genres. Next, they complete a vocabulary worksheet and a...