What do you do when you find a word that's not familiar to you? Help readers use context clues when encountering unfamiliar words with a grammar activity. They note the parts of the sentences that show the meaning of the word,...

Familiar with the systems-based sports drawing of experimental artist Lee Walton? If so, this drawing exercise if for you. Young artists observe an activity over time, develop a coded language for the activity, and then draw a...

Fourteen days of writing prompts (or 16 if you count the two bonus days) are featured in packet designed for high school, college level, or adult writers.

Does Mark Twain’s satire become sarcasm and does he cross the line of propriety in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn? As an introduction of satire, class members view an excerpt from The Daily Show and discuss Stewart's use of this...

It's amazing the complex figures that can be made using only a few simple shapes. Following a class reading of the children's book Grandfather Tang's Story by Ann Tompert, young mathematicians use sets of tangrams to create models...

Language learners receive support with the concepts in the Houghton Mifflin Harcourt thematic unit Our Earth from this 32-page packet of exercises and activities designed just for them

Go beyond the textbook to gain a better appreciation for the English language. A series of ESL lessons help expand the concepts found in Theme 2: Give It All You've Got. The second lesson in a three-part unit incorporates strategies such...

Art can mimic life, and animals are always interesting subjects. Learners create large soft sculptures (stuffed) birds using paper, paint, and other basic collage materials. They view images of birds, and discuss bird traits and shapes....

Making decisions can be very difficult. Show your class one way to evaluate choices with this lesson, which is inspired by the book Glo Goes Shopping. Learners practicing using a decision-making grid with the content of the story and a...

Update your classroom decor with this series of colorful alphabet displays. Showing both upper- and lowercase letters with vibrant pictures representing each, these posters will fit nicely in any primary grade classroom.

How should pupils read short stories? Set them up for this unit with an introductory lesson that goes over the main characteristics of a short story and starts learners off reading their first short story of the unit. In order to get a...

Encourage readers to think deeply about text with a reading strategy that promotes active comprehension. Individuals develop questions on four levels (right there, think and search, author and you, and on my own). Step-by-step directions...

The task of creating a set for a theater production may leave theater arts students asking where to begin. Set their minds at ease with a packet that not only provides information about the elements of design, but also guides them...

What kinds of thoughts help us to cope with problems and approach difficult situations? Support learners on the autism spectrum in exploring their emotions and considering the connection between our thoughts and our feelings using one of...

Who doesn't love learning about the ocean? And who wouldn't want to help create an ocean themed mural? Little learners make lobsters out of recycled egg cartons, pipe cleaners, and paint. These are then used as part of a larger 3-D ocean...

Shell Silverstein’s “Sick” provides an opportunity for kids to demonstrate their understanding of syllables and phonemes. The class creates a list of descriptive words used in the poem that have more than one syllable, and brainstorm how...

Students are introduced to prehistoric paintings with the cave art at Lascaux and Altamira. They, in groups, role-play the members of a clan and design appropriate cave paintings for their group.

Eighth graders examine how to create a 3-D effect on a flat surface and draw in two-point perspective. They view and discuss elements of design, analyze artwork by M.C. Escher and Roy Lichtenstein, and design and create an art folder.

Students examine works of art to develop an understanding of the importance of visual balance in works of art and nature. Students research artists and their artwork for examples of visual balance. Students create works of art showing...

Young researchers explore the history of the peace process in the Middle East. They write a paper about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and view the video Israel and Palestine: The Fight for Peace. They discuss the events leading up to...

Take a journey to India with a read aloud of The Drum: A Folktale from India by Rob Cleveland. Make connections to the story's theme by building and practicing drums, role playing story characters, and practicing skills in phonics, math,...

Investigate nonlinear motion through an analysis using the Pythagorean Theorem. Pupils combine their algebraic and geometric skills in the 24th instructional activity of this 25-part module. Using the Pythagorean Theorem, scholars...

Explore the life's work of one of the great children's authors using this ten-lesson author study unit. After first performing some whole-group research into the life of Cynthia Rylant, the class goes on to read six different...

Point of view, purpose, and tone: three concepts readers of primary and secondary source materials must take into account when examining documents. Class members view a PowerPoint presentation and use the SOAPS strategy to identify an...