Academy of American Poets
Teach This Poem: "In the Next Galaxy" by Ruth Stone
Imagine what life might be like in a different galaxy. That's the challenge young scientists take on in a warm-up activity designed to prepare them for a close reading of Ruth Stone's poem "In the Next Galaxy." After class members share...
Minnesota Department of Natural Resoures
Tree Life
The life of a tree is the focus of a packet consisting of several activities all covering a different subject. Second graders measure shadows, make pinecone critters, write poems, count rings, complete a word search, play tree tag, and...
DePaul University
Egypt
The country of Egypt is more than just big pyramids and ancient pharaohs. After reading a brief overview of this African nation, young learners will demonstrate their understanding of the text by identifying the main idea and supporting...
Curated OER
The Too Small House: Story and Craft Activity
Engage students in setting and character with this story and craft activity set. To begin the activity, learners read the short story "The Too Small House." They then cut out and color a picture of the house and paper figures of the...
Education Center
Safety Sequence
Follow up a class reading of the children's book Officer Buckle and Gloria with this simple sequence-of-events activity. Including pictures of six key moments from the story, young learners must first number them in the correct...
Curated OER
"As You Like It" by William Shakespeare
Jacque's soliloquy from Act II, scene ii of As You Like It sets the stage for a close reading exercise that models how to approach difficult, dense text and enables readers to practice reading comprehension and analysis...
Mary Pope Osborne, Classroom Adventures Program
The Backpack Travel Journals
Strap on those backpacks, it's time to travel through history with this literature unit based on the first four books of The Magic Tree House series. While reading through these fun stories, children create story maps, record...
E Reading Worksheets
Persuasive Writing - Introductory Paragraph Review
Master a well-organized thesis statement with a short activity for a persuasive writing unit. Young writers read five different introductory paragraphs about various topics, find the main ideas addressed in each thesis statement, and jot...
K-State Research and Extensions
Water
How are maps like fish? They both have scales. The chapter includes six different activities at three different levels. Scholars complete activities using natural resources, learn how to read a map, see how to make a compass rosette,...
Heritage Foundation
The Office of the Executive
An executive is not just a leader of a company; you can also use the term to describe the president of the United States. The ninth part of a 20-part unit teaches high schoolers about the importance of the executive branch and the...
Novelinks
Words by Heart: Question Answer Relationship
Even though readers investigate matters of the heart, this activity promotes the inner workings of learners' brains. The fifth lesson of six has the teacher first model the strategy to the class before having small groups practice. To...
Curated OER
Directed Reading Thinking Activity: "A Raisin in the Sun"
Students predict outcomes of a text. In this comprehension strategy lesson, students read a poem and compare it to the play A Raisin in the Sun. Students discuss their similarities and the power of dreams.
Curated OER
Following Directions
In this following directions learning exercise, students read an entire page of activities but only complete the bottom of the page. Students are to read the entire page before simply putting their name on it and turning it in.
Curated OER
Black History Month
In this cloze activity instructional activity, students explore black history. Students read about black history in a short passage where they are to fill in the blanks with the correct word.
Curated OER
4 Corners Pre-reading Strategy for A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
High schoolers consider different statements based on the themes from Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun, and decide what they think of the statement. They share their ideas as a class and discuss all sides to a idea.
Curated OER
Ana Finds an Apartment
Because of the topic of this reading comprehension and vocabulary activity, it would probably be best used with adults in an ESL class. The 10 question reading activity, which focuses on vocabulary involving renting an apartment, could...
Curriculum Corner
Quick Literacy Centers for Back to School
Use a set of quick and easy to use literacy centers at the beginning of the year as you start to assess your students. The 13-page packet provides writing and reading activities with simple directions that allows new class members...
Novelinks
Tuck Everlasting: Herber Readiness
Begin your unit on Natalie Babbitt's Tuck Everlasting with a pre-reading activity about the novel's themes. As class members ponder five questions that reflect the book's themes, they talk about their opinions in...
Curated OER
All Aboard the Freedom Train!
Young historians identify Harriet Tubman, her character traits, and role as a conductor on the Underground Railroad. They create an escape map using map legends and the Cardinal directions. This plan utilizes one of my favorite video...
Curated OER
Candide: A Herber Readiness Activity
“Everything will end up okay if you believe hard enough.” “People create their own luck, good or bad.” Prior to reading Candide, class members respond to an anticipation guide that focuses on the issues of optimism, prejudice, and...
Curated OER
Analyzing Atmosphere: Macbeth Murder Scene and Dagger Speech
Shakespeare's Macbeth (Act II, Scenes I and II) lacks explicit details of the murder of King Duncan, yet the author creates an atmosphere that allows us to visualize the event. Readers interpret the "Dagger Speech" by writing stage...
K12 Reader
What Is a Glyph?
After reading a short passage about glyphs, kids must follow the provided directions to create a star glyph.
Curated OER
Georgia CRCT - 7th Grade Language Arts Quiz
Whether your seventh graders are preparing for the Georgia Criterion-Referenced Competency Test (CRCT) or any other standardized test, this practice worksheet takes them through a variety of language arts skills. Punctuation, grammar,...
Curated OER
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...