Engage pupils in practicing denotative and connotative strategies to understand particular words. They work in pairs and write a series of sentences using each word that has a positive connotation and negative connotation. Some example...

A new baby means a lot of changes for Peter! Ezra Jack Keats presents this common childhood experience in his story Peter's Chair, the context of a detailed vocabulary study. Before you read, introduce the three new words scholars...

Build a sense of self while honing prewriting and fine motor skills by having your learners with autism draw a self-portrait. The lesson is intended for younger pupils but could be used with learners of any age in need of motor and...

Students explore cultures through storytelling. They read African folktales. Students discuss characteristics of folktales. They research and write a folktale that includes an animal. Additional cross curriculum activities are included.

Students study the life of a woman spy for the Union. They study archival photographs of Pauline Cushman and examine her life. They create a key with symbols representing her activities (e.g., a baby bottle for her birth in 1833 in New...

Students read a passage from Geraldine Brooks's novel Year of Wonders. They generate questions to clarify the meaning of the text and make connections between the text and information learned in their history and science classes.

Young scholars read and interpret letters about James Vanderhoef included in lesson. Students make connections and note interesting vocabulary used in the letters. Young scholars generate a list of questions about the soldier's life and...

Students study prison life during the Civil War. As a class, they brainstorm questions about prison life. In groups, students read primary source documents that give clues to life in a civil war prison. Students draw conclusions and...

Students study the Fourteen Points. They examine motives behind Wilson's Fourteen Points and why most of them were rejected by France. They answers questions concerning primary resources (casualty list and before and after...

Third graders increase reading strategies while learning about Abigail Adams and her role in history. In this Abigail Adams lesson, 3rd graders read about the American Revolution and Abigail Adams using all the balanced literacy...

Fourth graders recognize that ethnicity, religion and geography are reflected in the food choices we make. In this food choices lesson, 4th graders discuss different types of food from different places. Students compare a menu to the...

Students explore whales. In this animal adaptation and whale lesson, students access prior knowledge about whales from previous lessons, then use background knowledge to predict the eating strategies of a baleen whale and a toothed...

Seventh graders use the Internet to research the holiday of Kwanzaa. Using the information, they create a brochure to promote the holiday to others. They email the information to a friend to end the instructional activity.

Students calculate how they will spend a million dollars.  In this millionaire math lesson, students complete a worksheet and then make a poster of how they would spend a million dollars.  Each item and its cost must be shown....

Students view four sections of one of Haring's paintings. They describe the people and characters they see. Students participate in a variety of classroom art activities such as: Making a treasure box modeled after Keith Haring's work,...

While an interesting instructional activity idea involving the exploration of a story about an Asian American boy named Imduk, a teacher would need to have assess to the Scott Foresman reading program to make this work. If not, a teacher...

Students review the terms idyll and imagery. They read "A Winter Idyll" from "Snowbound" as a class. They break into groups of 5 and respond/react to their lines to make connections to the text.

Students retell the story, "The Mitten," by Jan Brett, as a group by using the computer program,

Fifth graders investigate the origins of foods they eat while they consider social justice issues. In this food sources lesson, 5th graders play a game and then research food distribution, food security, and hunger in the world today....

Students identify various patterns. For this patterns lesson, students assemble paper flowers by using patterns. Students discuss how they constructed their flower.

Students explore the Holocaust. In this world history lesson, students research Nazi oppression under Hitler's rule as they read Holocaust and Human Behavior and Facing the Lion: Memoirs of a Young Girl in Nazi Europe.

Students examine the impact of dairy nutrients. In this nutrition lesson, students participate in interactive activities that require them to consider how much calcium their bodies need. Students also visit the school cafeteria and...

Pupils explore the concept of estimating and organizing a group of objects into an array to count the exact number of items. They create their own arrays and practice elements of estimation.

Students create a one-page family newsletter about a selected person in their family. They bring in a photo or use a digital camera to take a picture of their selected family member, and use a newsletter template to write and publish...