Virginia Department of Education
Identifying the Main Idea in Fiction
Discovering the main idea in fiction is like uncovering buried treasure; one must persevere to locate it, and the reward is priceless. Scholars delve deep into leveled stories using three questions to aid in identifying the main idea.
Curated OER
Lesson Plan 10: Writing Really Good Dialogue
Boring dialogue can run a great story into the ground; get your novelists using dialogue as a tool to move their story into deeper and more developed territory. As part of a larger writing series, this instructional activity has a...
EngageNY
Introducing Close Reading: Finding the Main Message and Taking Notes About Rain School
This second lesson in a larger unit is perfect for the beginning of the year because it explicitly teaches 3rd graders how to use close reading skills by identifying unfamiliar words, figuring out the gist, and defining important...
Curated OER
Chain Together A Book Report
Individuals examine a book's components, including key events, characters, and vocabulary and develop "chain book reports" with their peers. Strips of paper containing the book's important events are staples together and hung.
Maryland Department of Education
The Concept of Identity Lesson 7: Logical Fallacies
What are the effects of competition in an academic environment? The competition between the main characters in A Separate Peace motivates a series of activities that asks readers to take a stance on competition, and then to develop a...
Curated OER
Picture a Character
How would Jean-Etiénne Liotard paint the characters from "The Little Mermaid?" What would the main character from "The Little Match Girl" look like from Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes' point of view? After examining various paintings...
August House
How Tiger Got His Stripes
How did the tiger get its stripes? Kindergartners read a Vietnamese folk tale, "How the Tiger Got His Stripes," retold by Rob Cleveland, and work through several reading comprehension and literary analysis activities.
Curated OER
Colors, Characters, & Clues
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.
Curated OER
Colors, Characters, & Clues: White Socks
Students examine the process of making inferences. They define inference, view a Powerpoint presentation, and as a whole group locate clues in the pictures of a short story, locating written clues to reinforce their conclusions.
Curated OER
Compliments can Change the World
Students explore the definition of philanthropy as it relates to bullying. In this moral values lesson, students listen to the book Thank you, Mr. Falker and identify how the main character was bullied. Students define philanthropy, and...
Curated OER
To Kill a Mockingbird
Students explore the components of racismas they read through Horton Foote's, "To Kill a Mockingbird." The trial of the main character reveals instances of justice in the face of prejudice and forms the focus of the lesson.
Curated OER
Identity: A Path to Self-Esteem
Sixth graders participate in a brainstorming activity in which they identify the types of decisions they make everyday. Individually, they complete a worksheet on making decisions effectively. After reading a poem, they identify the...
Curated OER
Counteracting Media Stereotyping
Discuss media stereotypes with your emerging consumers. They view a television program to identify gender bias. After discussing the clip as a class, each learner writes a story showing more equitable roles. Or consider having them...
Orange County Department of Education
Pepita Talks Twice
Third graders read Pepita Talks Twice and define the character traits of respect and responsibility. They write their examples of the characters traits on a character trait doll. Students recognize the character traits of respect and...
Curated OER
Do You Know What You Just Read?
Students answer reading comprehension questions using the "story grammar" technique. They listen to a story and then answer questions using the technique: main character, setting, main events, and resolution. Students complete an...
Curated OER
Those Fabulous Fables
A video leads off this activity on fables, introducing the class to this important form of traditional storytelling. The group defines fable and hears an explanation of the origin of this type of folk tale. They summarize the story they...
Generation Rx
My Generation Rx: Plot Twists
How can prescription drugs be dangerous if they were prescribed by a doctor? Is it okay to share your prescription drugs with friends if they really need them? Clear up any common misconceptions about prescription drugs with a set of...
Curated OER
What Is a Promise?
Learners brainstorm the definition of honesty. For this honesty lesson, students read Ostrich Egg Wife and discuss events in the story relating to honesty and breaking a promise. Learners explore ways the main character showed he was not...
Curated OER
Day Six Lesson- The Whale Rider
Students recognize Maori sayings, identify major characters, and discuss major story lines in The Whale Rider. In this The Whale Rider instructional activity, students repeat and define common words of the Maori and discuss the setting...
Curated OER
Health: The Three Dimensions
Students examine the three dimensions of health, wealth, and happiness from both emotional and social perspectives. Among the week-long activities are discussions about good and poor habits, minimizing risks by proper planning and...
Curated OER
Thinking About Money
Students explore the concept of a personal budget. In this philanthropy instructional activity, students use a Venn diagram to compare 2 stories in which the main characters spend money in different ways.
Curated OER
Immigration: Marijana's Story
Second graders explore world geography by researching U.S. history. In this immigration instructional activity, 2nd graders read the book Marijana's Story and discuss the main character, her goals, and the plot. Students complete a...
Curated OER
Not for a Billion Gazillion Dollars
Students discover what debt, saving, and credit are. In this personal finance lesson plan, the teacher reads Not for a Billion Gazillion Dollars, and the students discuss what the main character does in the book in relation to debt,...
Hawaiʻi State Department of Education
Cinderella
Reading fairy tales is so much fun! Learners use dramatic play to assist them in defining and expressing the main theme found in the story of Cinderella. Each group is given a story card and will create a tableau based on the main point...