Every class enjoys reading new books at the beginning of a unit. Use this resource to identify a variety of books for kindergarten to third grade that can be used to complement social studies standards. The books can kindle learners'...

Before your high schoolers embark on the journey of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, provide them with this prereading activity. Independently, they respond to seven statements that connect with the novel. For example, they must decide if...

The story Franklin's New Friend contains three tier-two vocabulary words! Your class reads the story, identifies the vocabulary words, and then works to construct their meanings. The new words are recorded either in a journal entry...

Is falling in love easy or hard? Challenge your class to consider seven statements about love and relationships before reading Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. Then, as you work your way through the play, revisit the sheet to record...

Students explore the book Billy Brown and the Belly Button Beastie. In this verb, onomatopoeia, and syllable lesson, students pantomime verbs, read onomatopoeia from the story and clap out syllables. Students unscramble sentences from...

First graders listen to the story One and design a favorite color graph. In this language arts instructional activity, learners answer comprehension questions and discover the importance of standing up for a friend. They complete a...

Although labeled an anticipation guide, this plan is designed to be used about 22 pages into Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson. A guide is provided with 10 statements. As they read each one, they mark whether or not they agree and whether...

Wouldn't it be a blast to uncover the science behind volcanic eruptions? Explore, research, and examine the nature of volcanoes with three fun hands-on projects kids will love. First the class takes to the Internet to research volcanoes....

Celebrate Black History Month with the help of 10 ideas that delve deep into the history, major events, contributions, famous African Americans, and sheds light on how scholars today can take a proactive stance on current civil rights...

As part of their study of the 1963 March on Washington, class members do a side-by-side comparison of the original text of Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream Speech" with a transcript of the speech he delivered. The take away from the...

Learners investigate body systems by participating in a role-play activity. Third, fourth, and fifth graders pretend that they are an organ or system of the human body, and they must write a letter to the body "corporation" discussing...

Break your class into groups and have them read certain passages from the text Flipped (included here). After every two paragraphs, the groups stop to answer the questions included. Which questions provided are right there questions?...

Ideas like this are highly effective for helping build better reading comprehension. The class listens to an excerpt from a grade-appropriate text, and they discuss what clues or words helped them visualize the scene. They then read a...

Stella Louella’s Runaway Book launches a study of point of view and storytelling. After reading the tale, class members retell the story from the point of view of another character. The scripted plan, developed by a teacher candidate,...

Explore word meanings. Sixth graders identify examples of words with affixes while listening to the story Paul Bunyan by Steven Kellogg. They participate in the game "Pass the Parts" and practice separating given words into their root...

Explore well-known expressions that are frequently used. Middle schoolers read an article with the author's opinion of the most annoying phrases. Afterward, they complete numerous activities that check their reading comprehension. Some...

An informative list compiled with quotes, authors, and discussion questions, along with 20 out-of-the-box application ideas, make up the collection of lessons geared to spark dialogue and creative thinking about quotations. 

Help, there's an emergency! Adult English language learners need to know how to express concern and call for help in an emergency. Provide them with this comprehensive list of vocabulary and lead them through the exercises given....

Fairy tales seem like quick, fun children's stories, but asking compelling questions about characters, plot elements, and literary themes can transform them into rich and complex tales. Use a series of eight lessons on Hans Christian...

Here is a full-fledged investigation of light waves, the electromagnetic spectrum, and element spectra. Physicists research a scientist that contributed to our understanding of the behavior of light. They take notes on your lecture, and...

The characters in Shizuko's Daughter by Kyoko Mori are complex and vivid. Compare their characteristics with a biopoem, which prompts learners to complete a format with adjectives, relationships, and additional details that describe...

After watching West of the West's documentary on Catalina Island, The Magic Isle, class members research how Walt Disney's and William Wrigley's different visions impacted the island.

Turn your classroom into a music studio as groups work together to determine why music sounds different when performed live versus a recording. After listening to some different music, each group picks a poem, creates a recording, and...

What is the relationship among the heart, circulation, and exercise? Your class members will explore first-hand how different physical exercises affect an individual's heart rate. They will begin by learning how to measure their own...