Fighting a war over home soil makes a living nightmare even more real. Class members describe the experience of a Civil War soldier during the Battle of Franklin, poised right at a major turning point of the war, after researching the...

Students work in pairs to create a creature and its habitat out of construction paper. Then students write a narrative to describe the animal and its habitat.

Third graders read and discuss the selection "Paul Revere's Ride" (included with the lesson). Students imagine they live in one of the villages that Paul Revere stopped. They are awakened by his knock on the door. Students write an essay...

Students create a writing selection with a well-developed plot. They use a personal photograph in which they are visible to base their autobiographical writing. They write a description of the events surrounding the photograph in the...

Learners investigate Chinese culture by reading their folk tales.  In this creative writing lesson, students practice identifying the different elements in a folk tale and examine the related vocabulary.  Learners organize...

Learners create holiday story while working in cooperative learning groups, using Chris Van Allsburg's Polar Express as a writing prompt.

Use photographs to trigger memories. Writers use a personal photograph as a starting point for an autobiographical writing exercise. They complete brainstorming activities that have them study their photograph before actually putting pen...

Spice up your writing! Your amateur writers will benefit from concentrating on understanding and improving verb use in writing. An introductory activity addresses weak verbs. A second exercise helps them see the importance of strong...

Seventh graders examine the importance of being organized when making transitions. In this organization lesson, 7th graders watch a teacher demonstration of entering a room in a disorganized manner before discussing how the transition...

Fifth graders study how to form paragraphs. In this writing instructional activity, 5th graders discuss why it is important to have paragraphs in their writing. Students also explore the rules writers use to know where to begin a new...

Students interview staff members at their elementary school in order to get to know them better. They write interview questions, conduct an interview, write a paragraph about the staff member, and take digital pictures of that person....

Starting at the very beginning may be a very good place to start, but it can also be very difficult for emergent writers. Help them get started by providing them with a setting, a main character, and a basic plot.

Students compose a piece of poetry modeled after the poetry of Carl Sandburg and share their poem(s) with their colleagues. They use a cluster diagram to organize their thoughts and brainstorm their ideas.

To conclude a study of social justice and tolerance designed to prepare classes for a visit to the Museum of Tolerance, class members brainstorm a safe and peaceful world. They then write about their own vision of this world.

Eyes on the finish line. Serving as the first part of the end of unit assessment, learners answer questions based on a text about how to write a graphic novel. Using what they've learned, they then create a storyboard about the invention...

Combine a lesson on the elderly with grammar instruction. Before viewing a series of provided video clips, class members brainstorm a list of words related to senior citizens and organize these words into categories that correspond with...

And now for the star witness! Scholars take a look at a model newspaper article and discuss the importance of eyewitness accounts. In groups of three, they take turns underlining text from eyewitnesses. They then regroup to talk about...

One, two, three go!  Scholars work independently to finalize the three components of their final task. They complete a science journal entry, scientific text box, and scientific drawing. While working, learners sign up for an...

Focus on the literary elements of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's The Little Prince with a concept analysis sheet. With suggestions and explanations for many of the book's concepts, vocabulary, and other issues that may arise in...

Through an informative WebQuest and group work, learners explore the human body and cell structure. They create a cell diagram, research a disease, write a letter explaining the causes of human disease, and work in small groups to create...

Students research different mammals and create illustrations and narratives about them. Working individually or in small groups, students compose their rough drafts prior to creating their posters or dioramas. Students present short...

Logical thinking is at the forefront of this jam-packed lesson, with young mathematicians not only investigating geometric concepts but also how they "know what they know". Through each activity and worksheet, learners wrestle with...

Slavery in India, Sudan, and Mauritania? What about in the United States? Groups research modern slavery in these four countries, collecting factual evidence (What), determine their feelings about this evidence (So what),...

A reading of Peggy Parish's Amelia Bedelia launches a study of idioms. Groups then select several idioms, write the meaning of the expressions, draw or select images, and use GIMP or Photoshop to create an idiom book.