Curated OER
Writing a Reflective Paper
Students write about literature. In this writing skills instructional activity, students discuss recurring literature themes and then write reflective essays that about the themes in pieces of literature they have read.
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Lessons of the Indian Epics: The Ramayana
Students read a version of Ramayana and explore the elements of the epic hero cycle. In this Ramayana analysis lesson, students retell the basic narrative of the Ramayana and identify the main characters. Students identify elements of...
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The Land and the Water
Third graders read "The Land and the Water," a fictional short story and an article about John F. Kennedy, Jr. and compare and contrast fictional tragedy to a non-fiction tragedy. They fill out a Venn diagram and write an essay using...
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Great Books: Kafka's Metamorphosis
High schoolers discuss the central image of Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis and use a strong symbol in a piece of writing. In this Metamorphosis lesson, students focus on the central image of the novel in a class discussion. High schoolers...
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What Does This Have To Do With Me?
Learners examine how to make a difference in their community. In this philanthropy lesson, students discuss if one person can make a difference, brainstorm a list of actions individuals can take to make a difference and write an essay...
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My Inspiration Project
Students reflect about decision making in their lives and explore their feelings about these life events. They create 100 word narratives and poems with specific details then create Power Point presentations of their project.
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Comparing The Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring
Students write an essay comparing The Hobbit to The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien. In this The Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring lesson, students compare the plot, theme, writing styles, and other elements in the two books.
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Coming to America
Students read one book together about the immigrant experience. Teacher asks students to identify some of the themes around immigration contained in the book (example: prejudice).
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The Timeline of a Lifetime
Students create a timeline which includes four important events from their own life, two national events and two world events. They write an essay highlighting the four events included on the timeline.
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Guess What It Is?
Third graders write and present a descriptive 'powergraph' that describes a secret object using prior knowledge of adjectives, clustering graphic organizers, and presentation skills. Authors read powergraphs and classmates 'Guess What It...
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Family Life
Learners investigate the lives of families in two different centuries. They compare the 1600's to the 1800's. Students write an essay about the differences and how they developed in history. Special attention is paid to the external...
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I am the Walrus
Students research walruses using the library and the Internet, then write an essay from what they find in their research. In this investigative instructional activity students view a video on walruses then write an essay after...
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Upside-Down Books
Students read various examples of literature. In groups, they brainstorm a list of views that go against what was in one of the stories. They illustrate the opposite ideas and compile them into a class book. They use each other to...
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Black Bayou Lake Short Story
Tenth graders use Microsoft Word to create an original short story. The setting must be Black Bayou Lake National Wildlife Refuge. The characters must be animals found at Black Bayou Lake National Wildlife Refuge. The story must contain...
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Oregon Cities
Students research one 20th century Oregon city, focusing on its population changes and the reasons for the changes. They write an expository essay which includes graphs/charts.
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Explore the Ocean
Learners explore the oceans from their origin. In this oceans lesson plan, students read and discuss excerpts from the Book of Genesis regarding the creation of the ocean. Learners then clean up a mock oil spill, measure the volume and...
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Expository Journal Prompts
Stuck for a journal topic? Download CAHSEE’s 21 “Expository Journal Prompts” as a pdf handout for yourself or class. A great resource for your writing program, print it up and add it your curriculum library.
Scholastic
Reading Characters
Philip Pullman's The Golden Compass provides the text for a study of how writers bring characters to life. Using the provided character mapping worksheets, readers respond to questions and then write a short character sketch.
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Fifteen Seconds of Fame
A reading of Panic in Paris launches a review of the elements of narrative writing. Class members work in groups to find narrative devices in the book and record their findings on a provided worksheet. Using the completed pages,...
Virginia Department of Education
Creating Thesis Sentences
Growing writers explore what it takes to develop and support a thesis statement with pre-fabricated ideas provided by the Virginia Department of Education. Learners take notes on what makes a thesis statement and a topic sentence, and...
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Persuade the Aliens!
Why do we do what we do? Imagine that people on a faraway planet came to visit Earth. Could you convince them to adopt a custom or behavior that we participate in here? Learners of all ages write persuasive essays. If you're using this...
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Biographical Poems
Learners write a biographical poem about themselves. They observe a teacher-led demonstration, write an autobiographical poem and a biographical poem about a famous person using a template form, and display the poems side-by-side.
Curated OER
Like It Or Not?
Write a review of the film adaptation of Holes. After viewing the film, your young reviewers make recommendations about viewing the film. Using details to support their opinions, they highlight the important parts of the movie without...
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Random Acts of Kindness for Kids
Students examine the concept of kindness to others. They define kindness, listen to various stories about random acts of kindness, and create an e-mail chain describing their own acts of kindness that is sent around the world.