Curated OER
The Call of the Wild
Students read The Call of the Wild, noting its theme of survival. They investigate the book's concepts with word webs, spider maps, or graphic organizers. They conduct a panel discussion on dogs and wolves. They write a letter to the...
Curated OER
Ending the War, 1783
Learners investigate how successful they were in obtaining their goals in the Revolutionary War. The peace feelers of 1775 are examined and the reasons for the British rejection of them explored. the main provisions of the Treaty of...
Curriculum Corner
Fairy Tale Unit of Study
What makes a fairy tale a fairy tale? Use a 27-page packet to supplement your next fairy tale unit. With sequencing activities, story map worksheets, character analyses and story elements graphic organizers, and fairy tale highlight...
Curated OER
Visual and Meaning Cues
Learn how to apply visual and meaning cues to reading unknown words. Readers will explore what to do when they come to a word they do not know as they watch the teacher model the use of these cues and then participate in guided and...
Curated OER
Note-Taking: K.I.S.S. "Keep It Short and Simple"
Note-taking is an essential study skill, and it needs to be taught! In the context of a research project on energy sources, learners find multiple sources, evaluating, paraphrasing, and citing them correctly. Two lists with note-taking...
Curated OER
Which Story Matches the Given Theme?
Model for young learners how to determine the theme of a story. Read aloud Aesop’s The Fox and the Stork. Chart the plot and the main idea of the fable, showing class members how these elements support the theme. Fable titles for...
Curated OER
Close Encounters of the World Kind
Explore the vocabulary of the government process. Using a simple technique, learners discuss the meaning of the words majority, election, democrat, republican, and independent. This can be used as an anticipatory set.
Visa
Making it Work Together: Money and Roommates
Balancing money and first-time roommates can feel like a daunting prospect. Support your class members in understanding how financial agreements between roommates function, as well as the underlying importance of how to communicate about...
Curated OER
Civil Rights: Rosa Parks Centers
Research the Montgomery Bus Boycott and Rosa Parks. Set up different centers and have learners rotate through the activities aimed at researching Rosa Parks. They read The Bus Ride that Changed History: The Story of Rosa Parks, write a...
Curated OER
"Swamp Monsters" by Mary Blount Christian
Using the book Swamp Monsters by Mary Blount Christian, young readers discuss key vocabulary terms and make predictions about swamp monsters. They complete a Cloze activity, explore past-tense verbs, and categorize vocabulary words.
Curated OER
Author's Purpose
Sixth graders brainstorm the reasons authors write, and they list their responses on the board. Students discuss each purpose they have listed.Students work independently to read the selection "Tarantulas and Typhoid" by...
Curated OER
Voice and James Joyce
After reading a text written by James Joyce, middle and high schoolers find examples of passive voice. They share their findings with the class. Use this lesson to emphasize the effect of passive voice in writing.
Curated OER
Identify and Discuss the Author's Purpose
Examine author's purpose in a persuasive text using this scaffolded plan. You essentially have a verbatim script here, but it can definitely be used as an outline instead. Review questions that readers should ask themselves when...
Curated OER
Interpreting Data from Birdfeeders
What kinds of birds live in your area? Read a book about birds to your learners and explore their feeding patterns. Charts and graphs are provided in this three page packet, but consider assigning the basic questions if using with young...
Curated OER
Gift of the Magi Lesson Plan 3
Explore the literary concept of theme through the The Gift of the Magi. Starting with a class discussion, the concept of theme is explored through examples from famous stories and movies. Next, the class analyzes the possible themes of...
Curated OER
Who's in the Shed?
Second graders examine the cover of the book, WHO'S IN THE SHED? and talk about the animals portrayed and the noises they make. They then read the book as a class, looking through the peepholes and making predictions.
Curated OER
American Revolution Simulation: Colonial History, Drama
Pupils explain why the American colonies declared the independence, students should relate to that which is held most dearly i.e. life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. They participate in a drama that illustrates this.
Curated OER
School Autobiography
Students brainstorm for fifteen minutes independently, sketching out what they remember or how they want to organize their data. they write a journal along the lines of "what do you remember about kindergarten? Write to a (fictional)...
Curated OER
Speech in the Virginia Convention
“. . .different men often see the same subject in different lights. . .” but the great orator Patrick Henry used all the skills at his command to craft a speech to convince listeners to see things as he did--that liberty was worth dying...
Polk Bros Foundation
I Can Sequence Important Events
After reading any short informational or fictional text, ask your class to analyze the important events. They note down three important events on a short timeline, describing the events with either words or drawings. After this, pupils...
Curated OER
Cold Sassy Tree: Multicultural Strategy
Analyze the characters in Olive Ann Burns's Cold Sassy Tree with this assignment. After reading the majority of the novel, class members choose a character and make a visual representation of the character, including any important...
Polk Bros Foundation
I Can Identify/Infer Motive
Why do people and characters act as they do? Require your class figure out the motivation of two people or characters they read about in a given text. In the short charts, pupils note down who, what they do, and why they do it. After...
Curated OER
Science and Art Museum
Imagine each one of your learners on task and interested in scientific material. Learners investigate science related art by creating a small museum! Using digital cameras, pupils photograph different scientific actions that look...
English Exercises
Relative Pronouns
Provide your independent learner with some practice on relative pronouns. A brief explanation of when who, which, and whose is provided at the top of the screen before learners can scroll to two exercises. The first has them choose the...