Chicago History Museum
Reading Artifacts
History detectives put their keen observation skills to the test as they closely examine artifacts. Drawing on visual and tactile clues, they formulate a theory about who done it, or in this case who made it, why, and for what...
California Education Partners
Eleven
It is difficult to articulate how growing up feels as accurately and beautifully as Sandra Cisneros does in her short story "Eleven." After seventh graders read the story and note the author's use of figurative language, they respond to...
EngageNY
Research: Close Read of Text 2 for Each Expert Group
Pass the chalk! Pupils participate in a Chalk Talk activity to synthesize information from multiple texts about Roberto Clemente and Althea Gibson. Scholars also read an informational article about one of the athletes, searching for...
EngageNY
Rereading and Close Reading: Communism, “The Vietnam Wars,” and “Last Respects” (Pages 85 and 86)
What might a papaya symbolize? Using the resource, scholars look for examples of symbolism in the novel Inside Out & Back Again. They also participate in a silent discussion called a Chalk Talk, writing their responses to a...
You Evanston
Social Emotional Activities Workbook
Split into five sections, you'll find plenty of activities, discussion prompts, and worksheets to address social-emotional intelligence. Learners focus on self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and...
Kids Voting USA
Kids Voting USA: K-2 Classroom Activities
Address both social studies and critical reading skills with a resource dedicated to the voting process, the American democracy, and the ability to evaluate information in order to develop a stance on an issue. Each themed activity...
Curated OER
Open Cloze Worksheet 10
In this ESL cloze worksheet, students read 8 sentences that contain missing words. For each space, students choose any one word that would make sense in the sentence.
Curated OER
Jim Murphy, The Great Fire - Grade 6
The Great Fire by Jim Murphy provides the text for a study of the Chicago fire of 1871. The plan is designed as a close reading activity so that all learners have the same background information require for writing. Richly detailed, the...
Curated OER
Do You Want to Be My Friend?
Learners participate in a variety of emergent and early-literacy activities based on a "friendship" theme. Learners listen to the book Do You Want to Be My Friend by Eric Carle, then echo read, choral read, and independently read...
Curated OER
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
In this story structure lesson, students read the book A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and identify the characters, setting and main themes of the book. They answer a list of study questions about the book.
Florida Center for Reading Research
Phonological Awareness: Rhyme, Rhyme Closed Sort
A rhyming activity challenges scholars to sort picture cards according to their rhyme. Four picture cards line up across the top of a pocket chart. Learners take turns choosing from a face-down stack of picture cards and sort them...
Equality and Human Rights Commission
Learning area 2: Challenging Stereotypes and Discrimination
Six powerful and eyeopening lessons provide scholars with activities designed to challenge stereotypes and discrimination. The unit provides reading material with which pupils read and discuss. Grand conversations lead to physically...
Curated OER
The Lightning Thief: Questioning Strategy
Step into the shoes of the Oracle from the novel, Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan, with this response to reading activity. After reading chapter nine, scholars answer questions from the Oracle's point...
Novelinks
Touching Spirit Bear: Question Answer Response Strategy
What types of questions help readers learn the most? Sixth, seventh, and eighth graders learn how to ask four types of questions from the Question Answer Response (QAR) reading strategy to help grow their comprehension of Touching Spirit...
Tell City Schools
The Cay
Support your instruction of The Cay by Theodore Taylor with this extensive unit of materials. Provided here are prereading activities, worksheets and discussion questions for the entire book, and reading quizzes that you can use to check...
Curated OER
Inspector Readers: The 002 Book Club
This unit introduces book clubs/literature circles to lower elementary classes, but could be adapted to higher grades. It outlines the anticipatory activity that includes a WebQuest, a discussion to clarify questions about the unit,...
Novelinks
Zach’s Lie: Questioning Strategy – Cubing
Your class won't be a bunch of squares from using this well-rounded activity! Instead, they'll be expressing thoughtful questions using the cubing strategy. The class brainstorms questions of increasing rigor about Zach's Lie in the...
Center for the Advancement of Ethics and Character
Charlotte's Web: A Story About Friendship
Strengthen the bonds of friendship within your class with a reading of E.B. White's award-winning novel, Charlotte's Web. Focusing on the unique characters in the story and the relationships they develop, young readers draw...
Novelinks
The Devil’s Arithmetic: QAR Strategy
Asking questions about the text is an important way for kids to become critical readers. Use a QAR activity based on The Devil's Arithmetic to help learners decipher between questions that are right there, between the author and the...
Cleveland Metro School District
Novel Lesson for The Giver
Lois Lowry's The Giver is one of the most engaging and thought-provoking works of literature in the middle school curriculum. Round out your novel unit with a collection of reading activities, comprehension questions, memoir and...
EngageNY
Examining How Word Choice Contributes to Tone and Meaning: Close Reading of “Wet and Crying”
Scholars participate in a Write-Pair-Share activity while answering questions about the meaning of words in "Wet and Crying." They use their Write-Pair-Share note-catchers to guide their thoughts and then share with the class. After...
EngageNY
Reading for Details: Taking an Inventory in the Rainforest (Pages 28–31)
Take inventory. Scholars analyze pages 28-31 of The Most Beautiful Roof in the World and use a note catcher to model how Meg Lowman took inventory of the species in the rainforest. Learners then take a close look at the vocabulary...
EngageNY
Listening Closely and Taking Notes: Colonial Trade Podcast About the Wheelwright
Voices from the past. Young scholars listen to a podcast interview with a historical re-enactor as they continue their research in the eleventh instructional activity of this unit on colonial trade. Applying their close reading skills,...
EngageNY
Listening Closely and Taking Notes in Expert Groups: Colonial Trade Podcast
The twelfth instructional activity of this unit builds on the skills developed in the previous instructional activity, as fourth graders continue their quest to become experts on colonial trade by listening to interviews with historical...