National Endowment for the Humanities
Dramatic and Theatrical Aspects in Thornton Wilder’s “Our Town”: A Common Core Exemplar
“So I’m going to have a copy of this play put in the cornerstone and the people a thousand years from now’ll know a few simple facts about us.” Our Town is used as the text in a Common Core exemplar that examines the dramatic and...
Curated OER
Language Arts: Predicting and Clarifying Techniques
First graders discover predicting and clarifying skills while reading "The Old Woman and Her Pig." During the reading, they check their predictions while evaluating the characters, setting, problems, and solution. On the second day,...
Curated OER
Arts Mart
Students identify the goals of an art museum as conservation, recreation, research, and education. They explain the businesses engage in activities that help achieve their goals and they describe a business plan. Pupils work in museum...
Curated OER
Adverbs
Fifth graders complete a worksheet where they must fill in the blanks with the correct adverb. In this language arts activity, 5th graders learn all about adverbs and when and where to use them. Students cut action pictures out of a...
Curated OER
Writing a Storybook
Young scholars explore language arts by creating their own stories in class. In this book making instructional activity, students read the story City Pig in class and create storyboard illustrations in order to analyze the story. Young...
Curated OER
Reading-Author's Purpose
Students review what author's purpose is by understanding that authors either persuade, inform, describe, or entertain with their story. In this language arts lesson plan, students bring in junk mail and in small groups discuss what the...
Curated OER
Dictionaries
Students understand the way the dictionary is laid out as well as the purpose for why people use dictionaries. In this language arts lesson, students recognize the need for alphabetical order and are able to find words using a...
Curated OER
MTV's Poetry
Students use several strategies in poetry to convey tone and speaker. In this language arts lesson, students read and build vocabulary as they gain a larger understanding of how to write poetry. Students then work in groups in order...
Curated OER
CD-ROManticism and Computer Classicism
Students assess the many benefits and drawbacks of reproducing works of art, such as sculpture and paintings, on CD-ROMs and on the Internet, as well as explore art history via these computer technologies.
Curated OER
Rhyming Objects
Students explore language arts by reading Dr. Seuss stories in class. For this word play lesson, students identify the rhymes in both Dr. Seuss and Nursery Rhyme stories. Students utilize flash cards with rhymes written on them to play a...
Curated OER
Altered Books
Students transform a discarded book into a creative art work of art that encompasses a theme and utilizes a variety of media and techniques.
Curated OER
Toot & Puddle: Puddle's ABC Lesson Plan
Students familiarize themselves with the sounds of the alphabet by creating an alphabet book. In this early childhood language arts lesson, students identify uppercase and lowercase letters, recognize sounds, and review the order of the...
Curated OER
A Zoo Book for All
A visit to the local zoo launches an integrated life science/ language arts research project into the habitat, feeding habits, offspring, lifespan, and other interesting facts about animals. Each group selects two animals to photograph...
Canadian War Museum
Comparing Primary and Secondary Sources
This simple two-day lesson introduces learners to the differences between primary and secondary sources. The lesson includes group work that explores the similarities and differences, and the advantages and disadvantages of primary...
Middle Tennessee State University
Help Is on the Way: Civil War Women and Relief Work
The role women played in the Civil War, especially in relief efforts, is the focus of this seven-page resource. Groups examine primary source materials to determine how this work reflected and expanded the traditional roles women held in...
Curated OER
Dance: Discovering the Culture of Gullah
It's wonderful to see a lesson that incorporates art, movement, and writing. These three forms of creative expression are explored as learners dance to music from the Gullah people of West Africa. They analyze several paintings, listen...
National Gallery of Canada
September Gale T-Shirts
Focus on the principles of design with a wearable landscape art project. The plan provides definitions to share and art to examine. After students have a grasp of the principles, they draw a scene to eventually transfer onto a...
Media Smarts
Scripting a Crime Drama
Develop novice script-writers. Small groups sift through a sample script, noting any script-writing conventions to share with the whole class. Using these conventions and plot structures, these groups compose a script for a 10-minute...
EngageNY
Researching: Eyewitness Accounts, Part 2
Continue on. Learners continue with the work they began in the last lesson looking for quotes to complete an eye witness interview. Pupils work in their groups to examine the texts in their research folders and The Great Earthquake and...
Literacy Design Collaborative
Identifying Points of View through Character Responses in R.J. Palacio's "Wonder"
Readers examine the book Wonder by R.J. Palacio to determine how characters respond differently to situations and events. Readers annotate and analyze the text and carry out group discussion using accountable talk. They work in small...
NPR
Teaching Podcasting: Choosing a Topic
Pick a topic, any topic! Working in small groups, scholars choose three topics they think would make interesting podcasts. Next, each group shares their ideas with the class to narrow down their choices.
Curated OER
The Outsiders
Are you working on an Outsiders unit? Use this list of activities to deepen your middle schoolers' understanding of the novel. After reading S.E. Hinton's novel, young readers work on three required activities, including participating in...
EngageNY
Practice Evidence-Based Constructed Response: Explaining One Factor That Helps Nya or Salva Survive (Chapters 11–13)
Class members work through a model lesson in answering constructed response questions. They begin viewing an Evidence-Based Constructed Response sheet and then watch the teacher model. Readers then work as a group to answer a question...
The Big Read
The Grapes of Wrath - Discussion & Writing Activities
Add a great resource to your collection of The Grapes of Wrath curriculum materials. A thorough packet contains loads of useful suggestions, whether you use the novel as an anchor text, as a reading circle...