A review of decoding words is incorporated in a discussion on reading with expression in order to increase fluency. The teacher gives several book options for readers to practice smooth and inflected reading, giving a short book talk on...

Practice reading with fluency by blending words together. To start, prepare flash cards with pseudowords on them (words that can be pronounced but have no real meaning), and work with the class to sound out the words using known...

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...

What is figurative language, and why do we use it? Introduce your high schoolers to some examples and discuss the importance of including this element in your writing. After studying a text and searching for examples, writers will...

Students study wildlife management as it relates to ecological principles and whole systems. They role play professional ecologists working for the fish and wildlife service to develop a plan to manage a new wildlife refuge along the Rio...

Middle schoolers use the popular game of Jeopardy to explore different mathematical concepts. They are highly engaged with the use of technology for this activity. They function using higher-order thinking skills in order to create their...

Review how to decode words and practice repeated readings for fluency. Kids review the cover-up method as a way to decode unknown words and then practice reading sentences for fluency and short passages with partners. They record their...

Celebrate Black History Month with this lesson, in which middle schoolers create an essay about a famous African-American. Writers conduct research online, take notes to write an essay in proper format, and use ideas, text, and graphics...

High schoolers engage in a lesson that is concerned with the research of finding information to help them develop new science projects. They conduct research using a variety of resources that includes e-mail and discussion groups.

Practice listening skills while studying oral story tellers from different parts of Louisiana. Consider the regional dialects and insider language of folk groups with your class. Identify language as part of folk life and recognize that...

Learners identify the right number "ingredients" to add to their pot of "soup" given a rule that you provide. Whether you are covering even and odd numbers or equivalent expressions, the number soup can be an easy way for learners...

Focus on terminology of the female anatomy and the various functions of each organ with a study on the pros and cons of birth control effects. This lesson plan provides a list of strategies to teach this concept for both female and male...

Practice basic addition facts and measuring skills. In this addition and measurement lesson, students are provided with drywall tape and work in groups of four at a long table. Partners take turns generating addends and marking the...

Pupils create various types of graphs. They go to suggested websites to collect data and create graphs to organize the data. Then they answer questions according to their graph.

Students demonstrate how to alphabetize animal names. In this word study lesson, students identify animals that live on the farm and conduct a favorite farm animal survey. Students order animal pictures in alphabetical order.

Discuss the history of slavery by analyzing historic photography depicting slavery. Learners write fictional stories based on these photographs. This is a creative and motivating way to launch a discussion of these topics. 

The final session in a sequential, three-activity sculpture study designed by the education staff of the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles has class members using the criterial they developed to critique each others' symbolic sculptures.

The Bubonic Plague is a fascinating study. Your class will discover the causes and effects of the plague and how it was spread. Additionally, they will learn how the spread of the plague helped people understand the...

Students study the sun. In this heat energy lesson, students use the sun's warmth to make tea. They place a few jars with tea bags and water in the sun and discuss what the sun is doing to the water while they wait for the tea to brew....

Students study how to create a compost heap. In this composting lesson, students create a compost heap. Students write an essay describing the process.

Students study water conservation. In this water conservation lesson, students investigate the scarcity of water and determine reasons for conserving water.  Students estimate how much water they use in one day and identify ways to...

Hook your class up to an online home energy usage calculator so that they can estimate the amount used per month by their families. Then give them Watt meters with which they will measure the power consumption of several small...

Young scholars study the different transportation fuels.  In this energy sources lesson students debate the merits of their fuel over others while working together in groups.

Another A+ instructional activity on the impact of climate change comes to you from the National Earth Science Teachers Association. In this installment, learners model the stratification of water in lakes due to temperature differences....