Dive your class into the novel The Pinballs by Betsy Byars with the support of this reading guide. Including short answer questions, a multiple choice comprehension quiz, and extension activities, a variety of materials are...

Considering using The Josefina Story Quilt in your classroom? Check out this sample teaching guide for a list of pre-reading activities.

Students read patterned sentences. In this guided reading lesson, students use one to one matching and picture clues to aid comprehension. Cross-curricular activities are provided.

Students discover shapes on a playground. In this guided reading lesson, students discover new vocabulary words related to shapes as they read Shapes Where We Play. In small groups, students use picture clues and one to one matching to...

Support your phonics instruction with this beginner reading book that focuses on the short vowel /a/. The book is divided into four chapters based on the word families at, ad, an, and am. Letters and words used are c, a, t, s, m, n,...

Delve into The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling with a helpful study guide. Crossword puzzles, comprehension questions, character descriptions, chapter summaries, and vocabulary exercises connect readers with the classic text of a boy...

Whether you are planning on using Of Mice and Men for whole-class reading or as a selection for literature circles; whether you are new to John Steinbeck's novel, or it has long been a part of your curriculum, you...

Before diving into the engaging tale of Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan, conduct this directed reading and thinking activity. Assess your pupils' knowledge of Greek gods and mythology through a knowledge web,...

"What should we have for dinner?" "What am I eating?" "Where did it come from?" These three questions are at the heart of Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals. Pollan's book provides some very...

Seventh graders have a golden opportunity to learn how to read poems and short stories with a unit that introduces them to the techniques writers use to craft their works. They examine poems by William Carlos Williams and Edgar Allen Poe...

Enhance a reading of the Caldecott Medal-winning children's book Joseph had a Little Overcoat by Simms Taback with this collection of learning activities. Starting with general background information about the book and author,...

Eliminate the hard work of creating an entire literature unit with this reading guide for the novel Sarah, Plain and Tall. From background information about the author and her motivation for writing the story to...

An 11-page teacher's guide that focuses on Delia Owens' bestseller Where the Crawdads Sing is packed with discussion questions and activities. Text-dependent questions, activities, and writing prompts are also included....

Young scholars blend phonemes. In this guided reading lesson, students create words by blending isolated phonemes. Young scholars read a book discussing families.

Young scholars blend phonemes to decode words. In this guided reading lesson plan, students evaluate different comprehension strategies to aid reading.  Young scholars make predictions based on picture clues and use patterned...

Students answer "essential questions" to establish background and prior knowledge of the book, "A River Ran Wild." In this language arts lesson, 3rd graders complete a graphic organizer of vocabulary words and read and take notes at...

Guide your class through reading various versions of The Three Little Pigs. Talk about the traditional story line and then discuss a different point of view: Maybe the wolf was just an innocent bystander! This lesson plan, which has...

What if the Gingerbread Man was trying to catch you, rather than the other way around? Pupils can find out what happens by reading the story The Gingerbread Man Loose in the School by Laura Murray and enrich their experience with the...

This discussion guide accompanies the fiction book Midnight Magic written by Avi, enforces story elements, inferences, and theme/plot. Have the class work on it over time, it will engage even your reluctant readers. 

Introduce literary analysis, writing skills, and purposeful reading with a book review. Pupils answer five questions that ask about plot, characters, language used, story elements, and the main character. This is a wonderful way to start...

This unit introduces book clubs/literature circles to lower elementary classes, but could be adapted to higher grades. It outlines the anticipatory activity that includes a WebQuest, a discussion to clarify questions about the unit,...

Reader's of Wildwood Dancing engage in a guided imagery exercise designed to encourage them to visualize the setting of Juliet Marillier's young adult fantasy novel.

After several short 15-minute mini-lessons, your learners will gain an understanding of the characteristics of a non-fiction text. Using the book Map It by Elspeth Leacock, your class will become acquainted with non-fiction terms...

Reading with expression is an important component in developing fluency. Emerging readers learn different strategies for accomplishing this skill through the teacher's model reading of Earrings!. Partner practice is combined with...