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A World Without Color And A World With Color
Sixth graders create black and white pictures followed by a re-creation of the same picture using color with an emphasis on contrast, depth, and mood.
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Short Stories Through Multimedia Presentations
Ninth graders summarize and paraphrase a short story read in class. They identify the six story elements of character, setting, plot, conflict, solution, and tone/mood. Students create a PowePoint presentation that illustrates the...
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A Song By Any Other Name Would Be a Poem
Students examine the poetic elements of a piece of music. They discuss favorite songs, select a song, and write a persuasive essay identifying the poetic qualities of the song lyrics.
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Chasing Peter's Wolf
First graders listen to Prokoviev's Peter and the Wolf, relate the story to the music and identify instruments and their representative characters. They examine how music communicates events and images that help the listener to better...
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Let's Watch a Story
Fourth graders watch a silent movie and identify the elements of a story. They complete a worksheet attached to the lesson and discuss their answers.
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HyperStudio Book Reports
Fifth graders create a HyperStudio book report after reading a novel. They work in pairs or small groups to design a HyperStudio stack about a previously-read novel. They use a variety of graphic organizers to have Students gather...
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Photo Essay
Students examine the process of writing a photo essay. They examine and select a personal photo or photo from a magazine, and brainstorm a story that can go with the photo. They identify an emotion to go with their picture, then write...
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Poetry
Fifth graders read several poems by famous poets and identify what about their style makes them unique. They then analyze and compare poetic style, use of forms and themes. Next, 5th graders investigate and collect different examples of...
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Text Under the Microscope
Students explore plot, setting, point of view, and theme. In this literary elements lesson, students read "The Cask of Amontillado," by Poe and the War of the World script by H.G. Wells. Students identify and define the text elements in...
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Symmetry in Butterflies
Students create a butterfly displaying a mirror image of itself to show that it is symmetrical. In this symmetry lesson plan, students go over symmetry in different shapes and identify patterns in butterflies.
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Learning Crescendo and Decrescendo
Third graders examine the sounds and notes for crescendos and decrescendos. They attend a concert by a symphony orchestra and when they return to the classroom they identify the crescendos and decrescendos in music they hear.
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Colors, Characters, & Clues
Middle schoolers investigate inferences. They define inference, view a Powerpoint presentation, answer questions about a picture book, and identify clues throughout the story as examples of inferences.
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Exploring Musical Instruments of the Orchestra
Students listen to "The William Tell Overture," identify instruments, sounds and other characteristics of the music. They compare and contrast orchestra music to large band music. Students discuss the musical composition and how the...
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A Year
Students examine an author's philosophical look at life through anecdotes he describes as a teacher in Uzbekistan. In this Uzbekistan lesson, students analyze a literary passage in order to identify, then practice using, similes,...
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Symbol Beneath the Surface in "The Life You Save May Be Your Own"
Students identify the value of symbols in shorts stories and analyze Flannery O'Connor's use of symbolism. In this symbolism instructional activity, students complete a worksheet about symbols for cars. Students answer questions about...
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Current Events Activity
Students investigate world news and create a performance from their research. In this current events lesson plan, students identify major political or news stories in the media and create a performance based on a character they will...
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Let's Create a Collage!
Students create a collage and identify the various styles of artists and illustrators. They read Alphabet Adventure by Audrey Wood, illustrated by Bruce Wood and discuss his illustrations portrayed in the book. Students also create a...
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Grandfather's Journey
Third graders explore world cultures by reading a children's story in class. In this Japanese heritage lesson, 3rd graders read the book Grandfather's Journey and identify the characters, setting and plot that takes place. Students...
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A World without Color and a World with Color
Visual arts instructional activity involving the creation of a black and white picture followed by a re-creation of the same picture using color with an emphasis on contrast, depth, and mood.
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Model Lesson Plans
Ninth graders study how to identify and analyze the use of figurative language used in selected poems, short stories or other pieces of prose chosen by the teacher. These pieces of literature represent at least two pieces by one writer...
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Elements of a Short Story
Students read a short story, The Tell-Tale Heart and create a story map identifying the elements of a short story included in the selection. Students complete an Accelerated Reader test on the selection.
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Edward Elgar
Students explore the music of Edward Elgar. As a class, they listen to Elgar's "Nimrod" and the "Adagio Cantabile" from Beethoven's piano Sonata. They listen to the music, write down the moods and discuss their feelings. Students compare...
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Thrilling Information: Music and Reading
Here’s a cross-curricular program music activity that uses Peer Gynt to engage class members. Groups take one section of “In the Hall of the Mountain King,” choreograph their section of the tune to represent the story as they imagine it,...
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Same and Different Through Music and Art
This lesson is intended for a music class but would be a great way to teach compare and contrast to any class. Kindergarteners dance the Hokey Pokey to four different styles of music and examine two paintings of Humpty Dumpty, then...