A definition of theme or central idea along with a link to a practice activity. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.2

In this lesson, students will learn to retell a story using story elements to improve their comprehension of the story. The students will actively listen to a story and complete a graphic organizer to share and discuss with a partner.

In this lesson, students practice active listening by paraphrasing what they hear. Students will practice listening to one another and repeating what they heard. Various listening activities are included in this lesson.

A lesson plan in which learners read a text and complete a graphic organizer to identify the topic and supporting details or facts. Materials are included.

[Free Registration/Login Required] In this lesson, young scholars will use What Do You Do With A Tail Like This? by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page to identify the main topic and key details using the illustrations and text. Students will...

The Frame Routine is a strategy designed to assist students as they organize topics, main ideas and details about reading assignments. This technique includes a basic hierarchic graphic organizer called a "Frame" that can be used to help...

Summarizing teaches students how to take a large selection of text and reduce it to the main points for a more concise understanding. Upon reading a passage, summarizing helps students learn to determine essential ideas and consolidate...

[Free Registration/Login Required] A two-instructional activity unit in which young scholars learn how to identify explicit information in both fiction and non-fiction texts. The lessons utilize the books Frogs by Gail Gibbons and...

In this lesson, 5th graders use their prior knowledge and inference skills to determine uses of unfamiliar objects. They participate in group discussions and analyze the key information they have in order to reach conclusions.

Online activity allows elementary young scholars to use prior knowledge, make predictions, and perform research on the Internet. Labeled "The Frog Beyond the Fairy Tale Character," activity challenges students to examine print and online...

Reading unit plan about endangered animals from the New South Wales, Australia, Department of Education and Training entitled "One World" (Forty-four page PDF file). It contains ten days worth of teaching suggestions that use a variety...

[Free Registration/Login Required] This flipchart helps to teach students how to retell main events from a story and sequence events.

PDF page from the New South Wales, Australia, Department of Education and Training that contains suggestions for helping students retell things they have read or seen. It includes some suggestions for how to achieve this as well as a...

A Seed Discussion is a two-part strategy used to teach students how to engage in discussions about assigned readings. In the first part, students read selected text and identify "seeds" or key concepts of a passage which may need...

Read an informational piece, and learn how to analyze the development of individuals in the text. Includes practice exercises.

Read an informational piece, and learn how to analyze the development of an event in the text.

Before, during, and after-reading ideas for introducing students to informational texts in the early-elementary grades in order to boost reading achievement through the upper-elementary grades.

The students will learn how to form a proper letter. They will be able to remove key ideas/details from a text and apply it to their writing. They will also be able to incorporate transition and descriptive words into their writing.

[Free Registration/Login Required] A series of three lesson plans designed to teach students to recognize a character's personality traits, predict a character's actions, and describe a character using rich language. Lessons are based on...

[Free Registration/Login Required] Designed to teach students to identify explicit information in nonfiction and fiction texts. Lessons are based on the books Deserts (A True Book-Ecosystems) by Darlene R. Stille and The Stories Huey...

[Free Registration/Login Required] Use Animal Taste by Kirsten Hall to teach students to find explicit information inside informational texts. Includes ideas for teaching, guided practice, and independent practice. Although the book is...

An experienced science teacher shares detailed information regarding how students develop science fair projects. In addition to the key steps involved in working through a project, you will find judging guidelines and links to other...

A detailed slideshow that presents key concepts and ideas on Renaissance economics, society, politics, arts and architecture, philosophy, the Papacy, and the spread of humanism. The significant individuals in each category are also...

Ideas for using Symbolic Math Guide (SMG) to help you learn to solve indefinite integration problems. The key transformations in SMG are substitution and integration by parts.