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The Poetry of Langston Hughes
Students read aloud Langston Hughes poems. They select a poem and read aloud to music.
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Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain
Students identify the African Plains and the plants and animals that are found on the plain, which are of a benefit to humans. They listen to the story and actively participate in a choral reading of Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain.
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Letters from Rifka
Students read Karen Hesse's book "Letters from Rifka" and explore how it presents the experiences of a Russian immigrant to America. They research and write reports on the experiences of various immigrants from different cultures, keep...
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The Middle Ages
Students read books about the Middle Ages. They discuss characteristics of the Middle Ages. In groups, students construct a castle and draw a map to scale. Pupils create a Venn diagram comparing rules in different countries in the...
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The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
In this reading response activity, students answer questions based on the C.S. Lewis novel, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Each chapter has 5 questions for students to answer.
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Read On
Students consider the question "Why do we read?" through creating and sharing individual timelines of their own histories as readers. They then choose a book on which to write a personal essay.
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Writing to Photography/Photography to Writing
Students improve their' writing by incorporating photography into descriptive and narrative writing exercises. They write descriptions of various professional photographic collections. Later they use their own and other classmates'.
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Life in Letters
Students explore the relationship between an author's life and their work. Students research the historical and personal events surrounding a Nobel Prize winning author and how they are reflected in the author's writing. They create a...
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Everyday Heroes
Students research how Ernie Pyle's descriptive narratives and "every man's" perspective of the war allow them to examine personal traits such as courage and heroism. The lesson can be extended to include more examples to teach character...
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Junie B.'s Muscle Mania
In this muscles worksheet, students fill in the names of 5 muscles from a word bank (with clues) in a diagram of a runner. This is related to the Junie B. Jones series and the directions are written in Junie-style language.
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One * Two * Three * Story
Second graders explore sequencing by drawing events of a story in order. In this sequence of events instructional activity, 2nd graders are read a story such as "The 3 Little Pigs", they recall the events from the fairy tale in...
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Mary Had A Little Lamb
Fourth graders listen and observe the role play of the various versions of the poem. They take notes while listening and observing and develop their own versions of "Mary Had a Little Lamb".
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The Family: Louisiana Family Folklore
Learners determine that all families create and pass on folklore. They research stories of their own names and draw parallels between their own and others' naming traditions. They infer characteristics of their communities' history...
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Transforming Negatives to Positives
Students write diamonte poems that correspond to the double-exposed photograph they created. In this poetry and multimedia artwork instructional activity, students use the photographic process to create a double-exposed...
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Prize-Winning Prose
Learners develop criteria for 'Kids' Pulitzers,' awards in categories of writing determined by Students. Each student then bestow a 'Kids' Pulitzer' upon a piece of writing which they deem to be distinguished based on the established...
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State of the Art
Learners watch and discuss a scene from 'Cool Hand Luke,' then read the actor Kevin Costner's commentary on it. Then, each identifies one work of art that he or she loves and prepares a similar commentary on the details of that work's...
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Where the Sidewalk Transcends
Learners use titles of Shel Silverstein poems to generate their own poetry for Students. Each student then compares his or her poem to the Shel Silverstein poem of the same title.
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Legends in Their Own Times
Students learn folk tales from many different cultures and retell them using the medium of their choice. They write about the cultural indications found in these tales.
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Classes For The Masses
Students explore how class is represented in the media by developing ideas for television pilots that deal with class issues. They compile short lists of television characters from working, middle and upper classes.
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Show Me the Story
Learners examine the elements of a story, read a review of Chris Rock's new sitcom, "Everybody Hates Chris" and create original sitcom episodes based on their own lives.
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A Critical Role
Students read a New York Times review of the Museum of the African Diaspora in San Francisco. They discuss the roles and responsibilities of a cultural critic, and prepare for a visit to a local museum in order to write their own reviews.
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Behind the Cover
Students develop questions they would have liked to ask an author about their written works. They read an article about their forefathers and research a back story to a written work of their choice. They create posters to illustrate the...
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Progressive Era: Public Pressure and Government Actions
Students read sections of the novel, "The Jungle". They identify the problems of the meat industry during the Progressive Era. They discuss food concerns of today and make connections between the two time periods.
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Radical Reads
Students recreate an "American Idol" contest in which they present their favorite books to their classmates using arguments for and excerpts from the books. Following the presentation, students will be polled and the least popular books...