Maryland Department of Education
A Raisin in the Sun and Dreams Deferred
To conclude a study of A Raisin in the Sun and to prepare for a visit to the Lewis Museum, class members analyze Langston Hughes' poem "Harlem." Learners then draw connections to characters in the play and to their own experiences...
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Very Important Points-Determine Importance
Fifth graders investigate very important points in stories. In this reading comprehension lesson, 5th graders read a story and determine what the very important points are within the story by using notes and discussing what they feel the...
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The Long and Short of It: Summarizing Important Details
Students practice their summarizing skills while listening to a brief biography of Amelia Earhart. Students take notes while the teacher reads the article and write a paragraph that summarizes the important events from Amelia Earhart's...
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A Feat of Daring with Lewis and Clark Jeopardy
Sixth graders discover the exploration of the United States by participating in a class activity. In this U.S. History lesson, 6th graders research the Lewis and Clark expedition and participate in a game of Jeopardy based on the...
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Graphic Organizers Aid Comprehension
Students create story webs to aid comprehension of ecosystems. In this reading strategies lesson plan, students discover the importance of organizing information while reading a nonfiction text. Students produce story webs to communicate...
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Putting the Truth in Writing
Students define "nonfiction" and describe what they view as the best pieces of nonfiction writing. They determine criteria to evaluate whether or not a piece of nonfiction writing is good, and list categories of nonfiction writing.
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Biographical Time lines
Students create a time line. In this biography activity, students define biography and autobiography and then read short examples of each. Students create a time line using a read aloud.
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Titanic
Students conduct research with the purpose of writing a report about the Titanic. They use a variety of resources. The students produce a written document that has plenty of documented information. They also compare the information that...
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Kolam: A Living Art of South Asia
Middle schoolers will read the short story "Meenakshi's Magic Hands" by Santhini Govindan and view a slide show of photo images interspersed with the text to learn of the art form of Kolam. Students read and reflect upon a nonfiction...
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Good Knight Alphabet Quest
Students will learn new words by using their favorite books. They will examine fiction and nonfiction works to differentiate types of literature. The lesson engages learners because it is using the format of a game to deliver instruction.
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Pointed Comments
Fifth graders analyze pieces of writing to identify the author's purpose of writing. In this writing lesson plan, 5th graders consider a variety of pieces of writing such as, poetry, drama, fiction, and non-fiction. Each student...
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Where Is Saturn in the Solar System? Where Am I in the Solar System?
Students engage in a solar system activity, In this activity, students will read aloud as a class about the solar system. The students will then listen to the teacher read a solar system book prior to filling out a worksheet about...
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Saving the Titanic
Students research the Titanic using fiction, nonfiction, images, and Internet based resources. They determine if it is appropriate to raise and save the Titanic and its artifacts before planning and writing an opinion piece which defends...
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Short and Sweet
Students summarize nonfiction text. After reviewing the process for reading in order to summarize, students independently read a nonfiction article. They write a summary paragraph using the checklist outlined by the instructor during...
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Ready, Set, Summarize
Pupils summarize nonfiction text. After reviewing the correct way to read in order to summarize, students independently read a nonfiction article. They write a summary paragraph using the three step-process outlined by the instructor...
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Animals attributes
First graders analyze different animals in fiction and nonfiction stories. In this animal lesson, 1st graders choose an animal and read a fiction story with that animal as a character. They describe how the animal acted in the story and...
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Chunks, Chunks, And More Chunks!
Pupils summarize a selected piece of text nonfiction text. After reviewing the process for summarizing, students read a nonfiction article, highlighting important information as they read. They write a summary paragraph using the five...
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Where Is Saturn in the Solar System? Where Am I in the Solar System?
Students discover the planets and their location in the solar system. They complete a KWL chart on Saturn and discuss. They complete the lesson with a writing activity.
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Madagascar-Simply Summarized
Students summarize a selected piece of text nonfiction text. After reviewing the correct way to read silently, students read a nonfiction article. They write a summary paragraph using the four step process outlined by the instructor. ...
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Journey Through Wonderland: Real or Fantasy
First graders recognize the difference between fact and fiction, real and fantasy. After listening to Rip Van Winkle, retold by Lara Bergen and a version of Jack and the Beanstalk, 1st graders demonstrates their understanding of fiction...
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The Spotted Owl
Second graders explore using nonfiction text to gain information. Working in pairs, 2nd graders read an article about the spotted owl. Each group identifies the main idea and supporting details of their text and use this information to...
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Comparing Characters Across Two Short Stories
Ninth graders listen to a read aloud of two short stories focusing on literary devices. The write about the settings and realism of the stories, and decide each main character handles the conflict he faces with nature.
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Pre-writing activities for improving students' connections to literature
Students, while reading a novel together in class, jot in their journals any connections to their own lives they can make between the text and self, text to text or text to the world. Various themes are connected to open more doors to...
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Retelling Main Event in Sequence
Second graders practice retelling events from a fiction book. For this reading comprehension lesson, 2nd graders read Harry and the Lady Next Door and retell the main events of the story to a partner.