Fourth graders view examples of help-wanted ads as they plan and create their own writing in the fourteenth instructional activity of this unit on colonial trade. The engagement of the class is captured when the teacher shares an actual...

Introduce high school freshmen to the characteristics of informative writing with a 5-day lesson that distinguishes informative writing from other modes. Scholars learn how to search for and cite reliable resources, then research and...

Lesson ten in this unit for the book Bullfrogs at Magnolia Circle, prepares third graders to begin writing an informational paragraph about the adaptations of bullfrogs. First, young writers work either independently or in pairs to...

Get energized about all the different sources of energy. A research project has scholars investigate a renewable or non-renewable energy type of their choice. They write a report on their findings and decide on a way to publish their work.

Do reporters write about what they see, or what they think? Examine the differences between investigative writing and opinion writing with a lesson from PBS. Learners look over different examples of each kind of reporting, and convince...

Investigate popular scientific claims and gather evidence to defend or argue against an author's stance. Writers synthesize information and compose their own "Really?" columns modeled after those found in the weekly "Science Times"...

Rome wasn't built in a day, but researchers can be with proper scaffolding. This writing unit has scholars write a research paper through scaffolding of various parts of the process. Learners begin with identifying a topic and crafting a...

Following a review of how to research and take notes, scholars define the term paraphrase and identify ways to organize information and finish reports. To put their newfound knowledge to the test, learners interview a peer, take notes,...

Transitions are the glue that link paragraphs together. Pupils listen to a mini lesson plan on sentence structure and transitions and use what they learned to revise their informative consumer guides. Next, they self-assess their writing...

Not all sandwiches are edible. Scholars use a Quote Sandwich graphic organizer to draft the written content of their informative consumer guides. Additionally, they view a mini-instructional activity on formal writing. 

Analyze, strategize, synthesize! Scholars analyze informative consumer guides to determine what features to include in their own guides. Next, pupils select charts and images to use in their guides.

Pupils explore brochure writing. They work in groups to brainstorm and categorize important places in their community. In addition, they gather information from the Internet, take pictures using a digital camera, and create a community...

Let's get to the gist. As scholars continue their study of Charles Fishman's The Big Thirst, they practice writing the gist of the text. Additionally, pupils add notes about the industrial uses of water to their researcher's...

Explore non-violent protest in this social values and world history instructional activity. After viewing the movie Gandhi, and discussing important events in Gandhi's life, young orators write a speech defending Gandhi's position on the...

All teachers are teachers of reading! The 13-part interactive series ends with a lesson that teaches learners (and their instructors) how to approach reading their textbooks. After learning about several strategies, users test their...

Teach young adults how to become advocates for their privacy in the modern information age. In a series of five lessons, learners explore their beliefs and opinions about privacy vs. the actual laws regarding who has the right to access...

The perfect resource for a beginning journalism teacher or someone designing a journalism unit, this activity prompts students to write a newspaper article. It covers all aspects of the writing process, such as a guided warm-up...

Fourth graders practice using a graphic organizer to record their notes and answer text-dependent questions while supplying evidence of how they found their answer. They focus on a machine called the wheelright, which was commonly...

The fabulous four. Scholars learn the four key components for creating an excellent journal entry. They then work to create a journal entry rubric and participate in a mini lesson about organizing and outlining journal entries. 

Engage your pupils in a seres of journalism activities. For this journalism lesson plan, learners practice with AP style, analyze an article, practice writing leads, work with organizing information, and take a stab at writing headlines....

In instructional activity 13 of this unit on colonial trade, young researchers learn about apprentices as they prepare to write help-wanted ads for the specific trade they have been researching. To begin, the class listens closely as the...

Class groups investigate the economic and political implications of a country's policies on genetically modified foods, craft a position paper detailing that policy, and share their findings with the class. Armed with this...

Eighth graders examine, brainstorm, cluster, and skim how to use a variety of information resources to assist them in projects or reports. In addition, places to find those information resources as well as the parts of a book is covered...

Elementary writers will create short stories with their classmates' help, publishing the books using computer programs. The first learner writes a sentence to start the story, and each classmate adds a sentence to the story. The original...