Curated OER
Changing Seasons
Explore expository writing and using precise language in this descriptive paragraph writing lesson. Learners brainstorm prior knowledge about the changing seasons in Ohio. They describe seasonal items, view seasonal pictures from...
Curated OER
Write a Description
Finding the central idea is the focus of this lesson plan. Middle schoolers write descriptions of different animals using details and descriptive language. They watch a video of kids using descriptive language, and then use showing...
Curated OER
A Seashell Lesson: Writing for Detail and the Scientific Process
Practice descriptive language in this lesson, which prompts elementary and middle schoolers to write detailed descriptive sentences describing a seashell. They write a description of a shell, create an illustration, and other students...
Berkshire Museum
Nature Journaling: Experience the Outdoors Through Writing and Drawing
Step into the great outdoors and develop young scientists' skills of observation with a nature journaling lesson. Given a specific focus or goal, children practice making and recording observations of nature through written descriptions...
Curated OER
"Snapshot" Exercises & Sensory Detail Word Bank
Read a sample of creative descriptive writing to your science class. Discuss how writing can be used to record and communicate observations that scientists make. Reading selections and thought-provoking questions are suggested. Also...
Berkshire Museum
Adopt a Schoolyard Tree
Help young scientists connect with nature and learn about trees with a fun life science lesson. Heading out into the school yard, children choose a tree to adopt, taking measurements, writing descriptions, and drawing sketches of it in...
Berkshire Museum
Meet a Naturalist: Researching, Writing, Interviewing
Young scholars reach out into the community and learn about different environmental science careers in this inquiry-based instructional activity. Beginning with a short research assignment, children gain background knowledge about...
Curated OER
Wild Horses of the Outer Banks
Students explore animal habitats. For this cross curriculum animal survival and writing lesson, students view a website about wild horses on Shackelford Island and discuss ways in which the horses have changed to this...
Channel Islands Film
Magic Isle: Lesson Plan 3
Middle schoolers complete a writing assessment task to demonstrate their ability to craft a narrative based on a variety of informational texts. They view West of the West's documentary Magic Isle, read three print resources about...
Curated OER
Discovering Saturn, The Real "Lord of the Rings"
Reading, writing, and rings! A lesson plan from NASA combines space science with authentic reading and writing tasks. Included in this lesson plan are pre-reading activities, four mini informational booklets on Saturn, a...
Curated OER
Ten Red Apples; The Five Senses
A clever lesson designed around an apple awaits your learners. Descriptive words are used to explain what they believe is inside a bag while using their five senses. Students read the story The Apple Pie Tree and are introduced to the...
Curriculum Corner
Guest Teacher Plans: Kindergarten
Emergencies happen. Be prepared the next time you have to call in a substitute with a lesson plan designed to meet the needs of a kindergarten class. Throughout the day, class members work with number and alphabet cards, identify numbers...
Curated OER
If I Were the Wind
Eighth graders are introduced to authors in the conservation community. As a class, they describe a personal experience they have had with nature. They identify examples of an author's descriptive writing techniques and answer questions...
Berkshire Museum
Backyard Rocks
You don't have to travel far to learn about rocks, just step outside, pick up a stone, and begin investigating. After taking a class walk around the school grounds collecting rocks, young scientists practice their skills of observation...
Alabama Wildlife Federation
Water Words
Water is an interesting substance that all living things need to survive. Learners focus on the characteristics of water as they create a list of words related to water and then incorporate them into descriptive paragraphs. They then use...
Curated OER
Showdown in the New Wild West
What is the root of the conflict between ranchers and environmentalists? Middle schoolers write their impressions of what an environmentalist is and does. They read the New York Times article "In New Wild West, It's Cowboys vs....
Curated OER
Animal Diaries
Launch this lesson with Doreen Cronin's Diary of a Worm! Discuss the format and content of a diary, and ask learners if they've ever kept a diary before. Then, after an introductory discussion, have learners choose an insect or another...
Curated OER
Prehistoric Pen Pals
Students read online information and identify relevant information about a particular dinosaur species, assume the personality of a specific dinosaur species, and write online "getting to know you" letters to other student-dinosaurs in...
Curated OER
Children's Health on the Decline
Demonstrate the importance of children's health with this cross-curricular lesson, which includes elements from health and science as well as expository writing. Middle schoolers develop realistic and obtainable one week health and...
Curated OER
Don't Let the Earth Down
Writing a persuasive argument starts with a clear thesis. Using this resource, your class will write a persuasive paper on a conservation issue. They will then transform their argument into a 30-second public service announcement. If...
Curated OER
Using Descriptive Language - Inventing Your Own Bug!
Students use descriptive language to invent and describe a bug. In this descriptive language lesson plan, students watch a video about bugs and review the names of insects. Students complete a worksheet about insects and then describe an...
Curated OER
Describing Characters - Cloud Grows
Learners complete descriptive writing about the appearance and actions of a horse. In this descriptive writing lesson plan, students use the 'Cloud Grows Character' to chart the horse as they watch videos of his growth stages. Learners...
Curated OER
Our Poetic Planet - Writing Poems about the Earth
As a way to combine language arts and science, try this instructional activity on writing cloud poetry. Begin by showing a PowerPoint presentation and images of cloud types. Take meteorology masters outdoors to explore the sky using the...
Curated OER
Third Grade Writing Lesson #2/Science Project
Third graders invent a gadget using one or more simple machines. They write a detailed description of that gadget.