Through this exercise, high schoolers identify character traits present in Romeo and Juliet. They listen to an excerpt from "The Office of Christian Parents: Showing How Children Are to be Governed" and participate in a Socratic...

How is fixing a flat tire like reading and writing? By thinking about each activity properly - identifying the problem and purpose, gathering information, and making inferences - you can exercise your thinking skills equally. This...

Need some punctuation practice? Challenge your third or fourth graders' editing skills with a helpful instructional activity on punctuation. After naming different types of punctuation marks, they rewrite a paragraph that has multiple...

Which word is Mico trying to say? A puppet helps make phoneme blending fun as you challenge your scholars to blend segmented words. Mico (or a puppet of your choice) has trouble saying words without separating the phonemes. Using the...

The study of the life of Julius Caesar can be divided into three parts: his early life and military successes, his reign as dictator, and the rise of the Roman Empire after his death. Young scholars demonstrate their mastery of the facts...

An engaging and unique instructional activity that combines literature and economics is here for you. In it, learners read the short story, "The Doghnuts" found in  the book Homer Price. Pupils define "capital resources," and...

After a review of what suffixes are and how they are used, middle schoolers utilize a worksheet that is embedded in the plan to work in pairs to strengthen their understanding and skills in using these very important parts of our...

There's nothing like the prospect of writing a scary story to get your middle schoolers' writing juices flowing! In the lesson presented here, pupils listen to scary short stories read to them by the teacher. Then, a discussion ensues...

Whether or not you are new to using The Odyssey with your classes, this publisher-produced teaching guide deserves a place in your curriculum library. The packet includes background information, chapter by-chapter summaries, study...

Your 9th - 12th graders can hone their analysis and critical thinking skills by studying the way a subject is portrayed across media types. They examine how various print, visual, and online sources have portrayed key players in the 9/11...

Young historians explore US culture by investigating the US flag. They will use their textbooks, prior knowledge, and sources provided by the teacher to research the history of the American flag. They will design and create a trading...

The ability to analyze an argument is a skill emphasized by the Common Core standards. Offer your class an opportunity to develop and hone their skills by providing them the testimonies in an Oregon court case. After reading the facts of...

Middle schoolers develop strategies for what to do when they come upon words in a text that they don't know. After a class discussion, pupils are given a selection of text that contains some very difficult words. They are instructed to...

Allow your class to figure out what they will be studying through an inquiry-based anticipatory set that involves analysis of mystery documents and practice with making inferences. The lesson plan document includes a detailed description...

Illusions and allusions certainly sound similar but there is a world of difference in their meanings. The narrator of this short video distinguishes between these terms, defines them, and offers examples that are sure to engage viewers....

Sor Juana, considered one of the first feminist writers and a great Latin American poet, is the topic and inspiration for this excellent lesson. Use the introduction, guiding questions, and learning objectives to lead your class into a...

Earthquakes, hurricanes, volcano eruptions, and more. To enrich their study of nature's big events, kids map tectonic plates and major earthquake locations, identify emergency response agencies, and storyboard a film about volcanos.

Youngsters analyze a book discussing a child's fear on the first day of school. They discuss the characters in the book, The Teacher from the Black Lagoon. Then they discuss their own fears and uncertainties about starting a class with...

Why do readers need to know an author’s purpose? How do you figure out what that purpose is? Guide your pupils through a series of activities that show them how to identify various techniques and structures used in persuasive writing....

Listen to the book Madeline, and identify rhyming words with learners as they hear them in the book. Learners will engage in a class discussion about rhyming words. After listening to Madeline, they will circle pictures of words that...

Are you are considering a unit on Beowulf or Superman, on myths, or tricksters? Here's a great overview you can use to launch a study of universal themes and archetypes. The focus here is on the oral tradition, but the concepts apply to...

Readers of The Wednesday Wars respond to model "Right There," "Think and Search," "On My Own," and "Author and You" (QAR) questions before crafting their own for class discussion.

Links to other pandemic poems are provided in the optional extensions

An inventive and engaging lesson on nutrition, food groups, and the food pyramid is here for you. In it, young dieticians learn about the basics of nutrition. They use the book, Frog and Toad are Friends, to help them foster discussion...