Novelinks
Touching Spirit Bear: Directed Reading Thinking Activity
What experiences lead people to change and how do they do it? After reading about Cole's encounter with Touching Spirit Bear, readers complete the second out of a series of five activities to predict future events in the text. The...
Curated OER
Bud, Not Buddy: Directed Reading Thinking Activity
Here’s a reading strategy that can be used with any text. Class members examine portions of a novel, and make predictions about the theme or subject matter of the book. Although designed for Christopher Paul Curtis’s Newbery Medal...
Curated OER
Esperanza Rising- Metacognition
Sixth graders develop metacognitive skills while reading Esperanza Rising. In this comprehension strategies instructional activity, 6th graders read a chapter from the book and discuss questions with a small group. Students share with...
Curated OER
Journey to Topaz: Directed Reading Thinking Activity
Have you used the directed reading thinking activity in your classroom? Doubling as either a prereading strategy, or a during reading strategy, it helps readers connect the historical background of the text to the text itself. As the...
Open Oregon Educational Resources
How to Learn Like a Pro!
What's the best way to ace an exam or pass a difficult class? Scholars find out using an information-packed eBook. Pupils read about learning styles, study skills, test-taking strategies, and other topics associated with maximizing...
Curated OER
Mini-Lesson Planning for Inferences
Making inferences and drawing conclusions is a key component to successful active reading. Encourage your class to use context clues and prior knowledge to infer different elements of a story, including the setting, plot, and character...
Curated OER
If I Had the Power
Have your young learners practice using higher-order thinking skills by engaging in this problem-solving activity. They work in cooperative groups to solve problems, and list ways to address a variety of challenges. They explain their...
Curated OER
Learning Log
A simple idea, this exercise will help young learners practice metacognitive and language arts skills. At the end of each day of school, have each member of your class record, in their own words, what they learned that day. Merely...
Curated OER
Journal Writing: Daily Activities
Students use present tense verb endings by describing his/her routine daily activities, demonstrating verb endings. They listen to teacher's description, taking notes. They write their own journal entries about their own daily routines.
Novelinks
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer: Directed Reading Thinking Activity
Guide your pupils through The Adventures of Tom Sawyer with a directed reading exercise. The teacher asks questions as the class reads a chapter to help lead learners toward making well-supported predictions.
Curated OER
Identify That Strategy!
Students choose, read,and analyze a text at least one-thousand words long using varied reading strategies. They identify the strategies used in the analysis of their text and explain how they are crucial to comprehension.
EngageNY
TASC Transition Curriculum: Workshop 8
Lights, camera, action! Math educators consider how to improve their instruction by examining a model of the five-practice problem-solving model involving a movie theater. Participants examine cognitive demand in relation to problem...
Curated OER
Stones, Bones & Telephones: Analyzing Artifacts Using Bloom's Taxonomy
Seventh graders define metacognition, Bloom's Taxonomy, and artifacts. They, in groups, try to identify a mystery artifact using the Artifact Analysis sheet. They present their findings to the class.
Curated OER
If I Wasn't Me, What Would I Be?
Students use their metacognitive skills to complete a self-worth and self-concept activity. In this self-worth instructional activity, students finish a sentence about what else they would like to be and then explain why they would want...
Curated OER
Meta-Cognitive Reading
Students define the term "meta-cognitive" and explain its significance to reading strategy. They speak aloud the thoughts that pass through their minds as they are reading and write down thoughts that come to their minds while reading.
Curated OER
Lesson Plan: Before and After a Moment in Time
Think about a moment, frozen in time. Now take a critical look at the painting, Better, Homes, Better Gardens. This painting works to provide learners the opportunity to analyze art, critique artist's choices, and write a story inspired...
Curated OER
Library Media: Poetry
Fifth graders explore different kinds of poetry. They work in groups to collect different styles of poetry. Then they use charts to organize the attributes of various poems. Conclude the lesson by having each individual choose the style...
University of Wisconsin
BEAM: Background, Exhibit, Argument, Method
Thinking of assigning a research paper? Get writers off on the right foot with a activity that introduces the BEAM research model. Writers brainstorm the background of their topic, explicate the aspects of their topic, consider the...
Curated OER
Biographies
Students read a biography and discuss what defines a biography. Students choose a biography of their own interest to read and write a report about one of the people in the biography. Reports are shared with classmates.
Curated OER
Say What You Mean! ( Interpretation of Maxims)
Middle schoolers apply maxims to their reading selections. In this maxims lesson, students develop a list of proverbs. Middle schoolers explain the meaning of the proverb and relate to a book they are reading. Students share additional...
Curated OER
Making Text-to-Text Connections
Model for your class how to make text-to-text connections by following the script presented by this resource. No specific texts are offered as examples.
Curated OER
My Name Is Me!
Students write about themselves. In this personal writing lesson, students write their name vertically down a sheet of paper and think of a self descriptive word that matches each letter of their name. Students write a descriptive...
Curated OER
What's In a Name?
Students write a story. In this identification instructional activity, students write their name vertically and think of a word or phrase to match each letter. Students write a paragraph or story based on their name descriptions.
Curated OER
Getting a Driver's License
Students identify requirements to obtain a driver's license. They describe study and test taking strategies. Students describe reading material. They organize information using restatement and questioning techniques.