Curated OER
Directed and Undirected Free-writing: An Activity in Brainstorming
Let your writers take a break from formal writing and experiment with undirected freewriting. First they'll discuss the difference between directed and undirected freewriting. Then they'll put their knowledge to work and create some...
Curated OER
Shamrock Pre-Writing Skill Cards
In thin shamrock pre-writing skills worksheet, students trace their finger along the dotted lines and shapes on the 17 cards in order to develop fine motor skills.
Curated OER
Parrot in the Oven: Pre-Reading Strategy: 4 Corners
A four corners pre-reading activity introduces class members to the major themes in Victor Martinez's award winning novel, Parrot in the Oven: Mi Vida.
Curated OER
What's My Point: Persuasive Writing
Why do readers need to know an author’s purpose? How do you figure out what that purpose is? Guide your pupils through a series of activities that show them how to identify various techniques and structures used in persuasive writing....
Curated OER
Pre-Reading Preparation
Students research the English Renaissance era. In this research lesson, students complete this activity before reading the story The Prince and the Pauper to learn about the history. They pick topics and work in groups to research...
August House
Anansi Goes to Lunch - Pre-Kindergarten
In a multidisciplinary lesson plan, you will focus your instruction around the West African folktale, Anansi Goes to Lunch by Bobby and Sherry Norfolk while your little learners sing songs, play games, participate in a grand...
Curated OER
Narrative Writing: Using Exact Words
Review the narrative writing process with your emerging story writers. They read a sample narrative and identify five vague verbs that could be replaced with a more exact, exciting verb. Then they write a personal narrative making sure...
Curated OER
Missing Toy Writing Activity
Students listen to Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale, by Mo Willems. In this listening and writing lesson, students listen to the story and create a poster for their favorite toy if it were to go missing. They work independently to...
Curated OER
Pre-Writing Activity
In this pre-writing worksheet, young scholars trace straight lines from a picture of a race car to a finish line flag. Worksheet has a reference web site for additional activities.
Museum of Tolerance
Cultural Research Activity
Class members explore cultural diversity through a variety of texts that showcase the importance of traditions. Then, they interview their family members to research their own cultural background and write their findings on quilt...
Curated OER
Nonfiction Genre Mini-Unit: Persuasive Writing
Should primary graders have their own computers? Should animals be kept in captivity? Young writers learn how to develop and support a claim in this short unit on persuasive writing.
Curated OER
Writing a News Article
Join the newspaper business with a series of lessons and exercises focused on elements of journalism. The packet focuses on distinguishing fact from opinion, writing effective headlines, sequencing events, and editing and...
Curated OER
Basic Guide to Writing an Essay
Introducing your class to essay writing? The gentle tone, concise explanations, and clear examples provided by a 17-slide presentation introduces young writers to the expository essay format. All that's missing is a complete essay with...
Curated OER
Discovering Angel Island: The Story Behind the Poems
Poems carved into the wooden walls of the Asian immigrant prisons on Angel Island provide upper elementary graders an opportunity to study not only the story behind the poems but to also focus on the figurative language employed by the...
Curated OER
Elementary Keyboarding Activities
Listen to the sound of children's fingers flying across their keyboards as they perform these fun typing lessons. From creating alphabet books and multimedia presentations to researching presidents and writing class...
Curated OER
So Much Depends Upon...Sixteen-Word Imagery Poems Inspired by Love that Dog by Sharon Creech
After reading Love That Dog by Sharon Creech (and possibly shedding a few tears), middle schoolers work on their own sixteen-word poems with a Six Trait writing activity. They focus on word choice in this activity to capture an...
Curated OER
Acting as a Pre-write Tool
Second graders use acting to help them in a prewriting activity to develop a story. In this prewriting lesson plan, 2nd graders form a character map and brainstorm ideas for their story.
Curated OER
A Poem for Two Voices for Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Poems For Two Voices are a great resource in any language arts classroom, whether you are studying poetry or not. Focusing on The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, this lesson prompts young authors to write a Poem For Two...
West Contra Costa Unified School District
Expository Writing in Math
Pupils engage in an activity where one partner reads directions while the other follows those directions to complete a math task (such as bisecting an angle). As a reflection, they examine products to see what information the best...
Curated OER
Bucket List Poetry
What is on your pupils' "Bucket Lists" - the list of things they want to do before they die? Their choices of activities for this list could be very revealing, and is a great source of inspiration for a personal poem. The lesson prompts...
Teach Hub
New Year’s Resolution Classroom Activity
Create a sense of accountability among scholars with a lesson that focuses on making and keeping New Year's resolutions. Writers compose a five paragraph essay focused on three resolutions—promises to self improvement, to...
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Person to Person: Challenge Activities (Theme 4)
The world is a big place—discover it! A series of challenge activities designed to accompany Theme 4: Person to Person encourages learners to explore the world around them. Project-based activities promote research and writing skills in...
California Education Partners
Bud Not Buddy
A two-day assessment challenges scholars to read an excerpt from the story, Bud Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis then complete a series of exercises in preparation for a writing assignment. Day one includes an independent...
Heidi Songs
Cloze Activity
The value in this cloze reading activity packet designed for parents is in the first-page letter that explains the rationale for cloze reading exercises. This explanation of the whys and how-tos of the process goes a long way to ensure...