Association for Library Service to Children
Summer Reading List Grades 3-5
Encourage your charges to pick up a book (or two, or three) over the summer! They'll find 25 different ideas on this list of summer reading books for kids. Each book is paired with publication information and a brief synopsis, so your...
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Writing Prompts for Middle School
Scratching your head when it comes to engaging writing prompts? Check out a list of prompts designed for middle school classes, which includes topics for persuasive writing, expository writing, how-to essays, personal narratives, and...
Curated OER
Frindle: A Guiding Reading Unit
Guide your class through a reading of the popular children's book, Frindle, with this comprehensive literature unit. Starting with a brief introduction to the guided reading process, the class goes on to read the story two chapters...
Curated OER
Using the Comprehension Strategies
High school learners review the six major reading comprehension strategies. They demonstrate the strategies by putting them into action using more complex reading. They finish by discussing a seventh strategy, monitoring comprehension.
Curriculum Corner
Summer Reading Record
No more summer reading lag! Give young readers a set of graphic organizers and worksheets to keep track of the books they read over the summer and to keep reading comprehension skills fresh. The graphic organizers include identifying...
University of California
Student Workbook: Reading Comprehension
Teach your class five reading strategies to help them with reading informational texts and literary texts. This packet, designed to help learners prepare for the CAHSEE, provides specific strategies that could be used to help prepare for...
Curated OER
Regarding the Fountain: A KWHL Strategy
A KWHL strategy prepares young readers for the different type of writing found in Kate Klise's story of the Dry Creek Middle School drinking fountain. Step-by-step directions, student and teacher copies of the KWHL template, and...
Curated OER
A Year of Reading
Utilize literature books for youth as a means to engage new readers and celebrate reading accomplishments.
Indiana Department of Education
Indiana K-12 Educators’ Resource Toolkit
Imagine a tool that magically engages readers in the classroom. A handbook for Indiana educators doesn't guarantee success, but it does offer a variety of strategies for teachers to try. The handbook opens with research-based theory...
Curated OER
10 Tips for Keeping All Readers Accountable
Keep middle and high school readers accountable and push all students toward success by showing interest in their reading and testing the strategies below.
Teachers.net
How to Write a Movie Review from a Pet's Perspective
When would two paws up denote a blockbuster film in your classroom? Only when young writers create movie reviews from a pet's perspective in this imaginative expository writing practice. This engaging topic begins with a class discussion...
K12 Reader
Anne of Avonlea
Middle schoolers read a passage from Lucy Maud Montgomery's Anne of Avonlea and identify three details from the passage that show Anne is nervous as she faces her students for the first time.
Arkansas Government
Creative Adventures with Literature - Whoever You Are
Celebrate our similarities and differences through multiple readings of Whoever you Are by Mem Fox. Readings are accompanied by a grand discussion, charts, creative art, dramatic, and music play to reinforce the uniqueness that is...
University of Chicago
Using Artifacts for Clues About Identity
Learn about the ancient Near East through a close examination of ancient artifacts. Lead your class into analysis by first observing an artifact as a class. Pupils can then work in pairs to analyze the other artifacts and compile a list...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Animating Poetry: Reading Poems about the Natural World
Young scholars complete poetry analysis activities. In this poetry analysis instructional activity, students consider the use of imagery and sound devices in poetry. Young scholars translate poetry into another art, read a diverse...
Curated OER
Use The Polar Express to Develop Rich and Detailed Writing
Bring The Polar Express into your middle school classroom to spark the creativity of your emerging writers.
Dream of a Nation
Creating Awareness through Action Oriented Writing and Research
Middle schoolers aren't too young to feel strongly about politics, social issues, consumer rights, or environmental problems. Demonstrate the first steps toward social change with a project about action-oriented writing. Eighth...
Curated OER
On Target: Strategies to Help Readers Make Meaning through Inferences
Here's a resource that explicitly teaches, models, and provides readers with opportunities to practice the process of drawing inferences from text. Packed with strategies elementary, middle, and high school teachers can use, the resource...
Smekens Education Solutions, Inc.
Introducing the 6 Traits to Students
Put together an English language arts unit on the six traits of writing with this helpful collection of resources. From fun songs to differentiated writing exercises reinforcing each of the traits, great ideas are provided for...
Penguin Books
Wonder in the Classroom
Would you rather be right, or would you rather be kind? A novel unit based on R.J. Palacio's Wonder focuses on the need to be kind to others and to accept their differences. As learners read the book, they discuss the themes of...
Curated OER
Reading Logs
Students create reading logs. In this reading logs lesson, students create a monthly reading log with a theme. The reading log has a goal record sheet, minutes read sheet, and award list.
Curated OER
Hey, Teacher, Leave My Kids Alone
What are the differences between homeschooling, traditional schooling, and unschooling? Middle and high schoolers examine the opinions of their peers on these varied types of education. After reading a New York Times article, they...
Scholastic
Dear Miss Breed
This compelling plan based on the letters in the book Dear Miss Breed engages readers in learning what it was like for Japanese Americans following the attacks at Pearl Harbor. After reading the letters, young scholars will...
Trinity University
Explain Yourself: An Expository Writing Unit for High School
Introduce expository writing with a unit that asks writers to craft an essay to explain a belief, value, or priority that is important to them. Mini-lessons within the unit focus on crafting thesis statements and conclusions, selecting...