Prepare kids for Easter egg decorating with a social skills story that explains the process and details appropriate behavior for the activity.

Can a neon sign be considered art? Kids consider two different works that use neon text as the basis for conveying artistic social messages. They then analyze a truism from Jenny Holzer's web site that holds meaning to them personally....

A New York Time article on a major music and arts event can be a good way to get kids interested in the daily news. They read an article about Coachella, and then answer eight comprehension questions, in either blog or print form. Note:...

Keeping a daily journal is fun. It builds strong writing skills and provides an expressive outlet. For children with visual impairments, it's even more important. It provides a way for them to connect written word with real events,...

Games are great for practicing any number of basic skills. Here is a set of wonderful instructions for making a braille version of a spinning game, where children win points by correctly reading/identifying the high-frequency words the...

What a great activity. Kids create humorous ceramic character (heads) spikes to enliven a planter. Modern art is full of expressive and exaggerated forms and your class gets to create them out of clay. This would be a lovely activity to...

Expressing one's wants and needs is vital for learners of any age or ability level. Young children with visual impairments and intellectual disabilities practice asking for preferred items, foods, or activities in a structured manner....

Break your class into groups and have them read certain passages from the text Flipped (included here). After every two paragraphs, the groups stop to answer the questions included. Which questions provided are right there questions?...

Don't get caught plagiarizing! Before starting your research unit, use this activity to help your young writers identify plagiarism. The truth is, many kids don't even realize when they're doing it! They practice citing sources when...

Good question are the heart of great discussions. To prepare for a book club discussion, introduce young readers to the characteristics of good conversation-starting questions. Practice crafting questions for a text the class has...

Is it ok to be mad at someone who comes to your party uninvited? What about someone who interrupts you? For this prereading strategy, your class members must decide whether or not they'd get angry in the 10 situations provided. Then,...

Young writers engage in a lesson which reinforces the concept of when to use periods, "full stops" as they're called, when writing. There is a terrific online activity built into the plan which gives the kids valuable practice, then a...

Engage your class in writing right away during the month of March. This resource provides writing prompts for every day in March, and each is decorated with a shamrock. For most of the prompts, learners use creative writing skills,...

Second graders write a Halloween story. In this combined technology and writing activity, 2nd graders create a Halloween picture using KidPix, insert it into Microsoft Word, and then write a story to correspond with the picture.

Students explore technology by completing word processing assignments in class. In this software lesson, students utilize the software KidPix and familiarize themselves with the options, techniques and content the program offers....

Students understand the stereotypes and realities of older people. In this philanthropic lesson, students in groups read and report on the positive images of older people in children's books. Students address the needs and wants of older...

Students study conservation and how cities obtain their water.  In this water lesson students view a PowerPoint presentation and draw a picture of the water cycle.

Learners create biographies on the people they know best-- their teachers! students use various skills to collect information, organize details, publish the biographies and present the information.

Third graders explore the concept of self esteem. In this health lesson, 3rd graders participate in several classroom activities that address developing a positive self concept.

Individuals use words or illustrate what they experience during a reading of a passage from chapter eight of Gary Paulsen's Canyons. Complete directions for the guided imagery exercise, and a suggested passage, are included with the...

Learners write garden inspired poetry. In this poetry lesson plan, students go out into the garden and write poems about how they feel, what they see, and what is going on in the garden.

Now that your class has worked to understand verb tenses and time expressions, assess them on their understanding and application. Seven questions are provided here; for each, English language learners (or young native speakers) must...

Sometimes it's easier to read one part of a novel when focusing on discussion points. Partners work together to read a few paragraphs of Chapter 5 from Gary Paulsen's Hatchet and discuss the plot and theme of the book.