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Photographic Memories
Explore how photographs can represent a whole story to a viewer. Middle schoolers work on narrative writing techniques in this lesson, focusing on photographs from the New York Times to write first-person descriptive narratives....
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Theatrical Economics
Read then role-play the characters from story of If You Give A Pig a Pancake. Young actors use improvisation and characterization to create the characters from the story. They will also write and role play original version of the...
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Short Vowels
Learners will create a list of short vowel sound words and participate in computer phonics activities to practice. They will read an interactive storybook online. Next, they will complete words in order to better understand short vowel...
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The Hatfield and McCoy Feud
Fourth graders investigate the Hatfield and McCoy feud. In this Hatfield and McCoy feud activity, 4th graders examine factors that caused the feud. Students also locate on a map where the feud took place, make a timeline of the main...
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From My Point of View
Second graders read a story from an online picture book. After reading the story, they pretend to be Gilbert, one of the main characters and create a narrative to accompany the illustrations. They compare their narrative with that of...
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Getting to Know You
Students demonstrate the concept of friendship. In this character education lesson, students read the book Best Friends and discuss what friendship means. Students create a picture book about their likes and dislikes.
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I Spy Poetry
Explore the components of rhythm and form through a reading of Jean Marzollo's I Spy books. After discussing Marzollo’s format, the class agrees upon a theme for a class book and topics that fit with that theme. Pupils write a poem,...
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Author's Corner
Second graders read a picture book at a Web site about a bunny who solves a problem and becomes friends with a squirrel. Students then discuss story with classmates, brainstorm ideas for their own stories about friendship, and read the...
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Hero Holiday and Portfolio Completed
Middle schoolers summarize the unit on heroes and present picture books to younger students. In this hero instructional activity, middle schoolers compile their portfolios, in which they have presented heroic characteristics of...
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Talented Fingerprints
First graders create a book about their interests and talents. In this lesson on personal differences, 1st graders share what makes them unique and who they are.
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Language Arts: Scavenger Word Hunt
Participate in a scavenger hunt to find objects beginning with a particular letter sound and take digital photos of them with your scholars. Using software, they find word pictures beginning with particular letters and locate picture...
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Explore your Culture through Storytelling
Explore the cultural heritage through of your class through reading, writing, and speaking exercises. They create illustrated mini-books that express their unique cultural and personal experiences. They share their stores with the class...
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We Thank You, Veteran!
Fifth graders use information from videos, picture books, and relatives' military backgrounds to write a short or extended message of gratitude on a greeting card for local veterans.
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Declaration of Independence and the Constitution
Fifth graders read a rewritten version of the Declaration of Independence, create a set of pictures illustrating the Preamble of the Constitution and create a version of the Declaration of Independence in the form of a song, a poem,...
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Digital Photography and Landforms
Fifth graders create a picture book of local landforms using digital cameras. They also illustrate two vocabulary terms by hand and locate pictures of other geography vocabulary terms in magazines. Students take picture-taking field...
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Hand Print Adjective Booklet
Young scholars practice using adjectives by describing animals, pictures or insects. In this language arts lesson, students collaborate to brainstorm a list of adjectives which they turn into an adjective booklet. Young...
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"Ing" Words as Descriptors
This clever lesson has your students listen to story about bugs, work together to brainstorm list of "ing" words that describe bugs, create t-chart of words, choose words to place in poem template to create class poem about bugs, and use...
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Intro to 9/11
Students brainstorm facts that they can recall about 9/11 using a word web of the 5w's/ They create a book in pairs of 9/11 making a page for one fact they comprehend and one thing that they wonder about. Students listen to songs about...
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Stories of Life in Canada
Students examine Canadian history through William Kurelek's artwork. In this art analysis lesson plan, students discuss the ideas expressed in the picture book A Prairie Boy's Winter and A Prairie Boy's Summer. Students view the film...
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Rain Forest Animals
Students create a book about animal species found only in the Amazon rain forest. They find one species to represent each letter of the alphabet, and write each name on a different piece of paper. They illustrate each page with an...
Virginia Department of Education
Weather Patterns and Seasonal Changes
Get your class outside to observe their surroundings with a lesson highlighting weather patterns and seasonal changes. First, learners take a weather walk to survey how the weather affects animals, people, plants, and trees during...
Institute for Teaching through Technology and Innovative Practices
The Right Number of Elephants
How can you tell if a number of items is reasonable? Combine math and language arts with a fun lesson based on Jeff Shepard's The Right Number of Elephants. After reading the book, kids discuss amounts of other items and create...
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Mythology: Reader's Theater
Build reading fluency and classroom community with a Reader’s Theater activity. Class groups select a myth, or if part of a myth writing unit, select a group member’s myth, craft a script, and perform for the class. Directions for...
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Objectivity
Help young readers examine historic artifacts to determine if they were designed to help people survive or to create enjoyment. They identify objects that were designed to help people to survive and to enjoy themselves. Then compare and...