Curated OER
The Arab-Israeli Conflict
Provide your class with a context and series of events that has led to the conflict in the Middle East. They read 4 separate passages and answer 1 critical thinking question for each. Four more questions are posed at the bottom of the...
Curated OER
Study: Largest Wealth Disparities in 25 Years
The New York Times has produced an article specifically geared to its younger readers. They read an article entitled, "Largest Wealth Disparities in 25 Years" to answer six comprehension questions. They'll be asked who, what, where,...
Curated OER
College Graduation Rate Stagnate
College has become a way to prepare for the future. However, according to this New York Times article, college graduation rates are stagnating. Kids read the article and then answer nine questions answering who, what, when, where, and...
Curated OER
Do College Rankings Matter?
How do you know which college is for you? Upper graders consider multiple factors about the college application process, the college system, and how colleges are ranked. They read a New York Times article on the subject then compose blog...
Curated OER
Do You Have Good Manners?
Who cares about manners anyway? According to the New York Times, Mrs. Mason does. Learners read and consider an article which addresses the decline of manners and the impact it has on society. They answer seven critical thinking...
Curated OER
Imagining Apple Without Steve Jobs
Who was Steve Jobs and what has he contributed to American culture and technology? Kids ask themselves these questions as they read a New York Times article about Apple and Mr. Jobs. There are seven comprehension questions for learners...
Curated OER
Reading Practice: Winnie-the-Pooh
Whether your first graders can read or not, they will enjoy this comprehension activity. They read or listen to an excerpt from a Winnie-the-Pooh story, they predict what will happen next, then draw Pooh Bear's favorite food. A compare...
EngageNY
Close Reading: Paragraph 1 of “Refugee and Immigrant Children: A Comparison” (from “Refugee Children in Canada: Searching for Identity”)
What common challenges do refugees and immigrants face? Using the 9th lesson plan from the 20-part Grade 8 ELA Module 1, Unit 2 series, pupils read about the similarities between refugees' and immigrants' adaptation processes. Partners...
Curated OER
Caves
Explore caves with your class! Your scholars will participate in scientific observation, research, inference and deduction, reading, vocabulary, and writing activities about caves with this lesson plan. This resource contains five...
Curated OER
Red Dirt Groundbreakers
Discover Oklahoma's first farmers. Read about 14 different agriculture workers and their contribution to Oklahoma's farming. After reading, have your class complete several activities such as researching an agriculturist, writing a...
Literacy Design Collaborative
A Pale Blue Dot: That's Here. That's Home. That's Us.
21st-century learners live in such a visual world that many are unused to letting their minds imagine the picture that words create. An excerpt from Carl Sagan's lecture, "The Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space,"...
Curated OER
Is That a Fact?
Investigate popular scientific claims and gather evidence to defend or argue against an author's stance. Writers synthesize information and compose their own "Really?" columns modeled after those found in the weekly "Science Times"...
Tech Know Teaching
5th Grade Constructed Response Question
New to constructed response question worksheets? Here's a model that demonstrates how to construct questions that require readers to interpret graphics found in informational text.
Mr. Nussbaum
Redwood National Park Reading Comprehension
An interactive tests scholars' reading comprehension skills. Young learners read an informative passage about redwood trees then respond to five questions. Feedback appears instantly.
EngageNY
Close Reading of Bullfrog at Magnolia Circle: Predators and Prey
Reading is fantastic, especially when it's reading about bullfrogs. Kids get cozy with predator/prey relationships as they hone their information-reading skills. They start out as they read a portion of the text aloud, then they...
Curated OER
Compare and Contrast Cultures
Using informational text to make cross cultural comparisons is a great way to build a global understanding and comparative analysis skills. With several handy worksheets and a Venn diagram the class will read to make cross textual...
Curated OER
Captions and Graphic Aides
Fifth graders read a book. In this informational text features instructional activity, 5th graders define captions and their purpose. Students view an article and discuss the graphic aides that assist comprehending the...
Curated OER
Amos and Boris: Text Study
Twenty insightful questions follow a read aloud of the story, Amos and Boris by William Steig. Scholars then show what they know through completion of a cause and effect chart, reading fluency assessment, and a written...
Shmoop
ELA.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.10
Make sure that your pupils have mastered complex literary nonfiction by the end of the year and use this resource to help get them to that point. After a brief description of the Common Core standard, a list of age-appropriate...
Curated OER
My Community Book
Young learners examine different places in their neighborhood using informational texts. First they identify a place that they like to play and predict if it will be in the nonfiction book Community at Play.They will share their favorite...
Curated OER
Whittle, Whittle it Down: Summarizing
Middle schoolers summarize a one to two page article of informational text. They compose a summary according to the guidelines on the "Five Rules for Writing a Summary" chart. They take turns reading their summary to the group, and...
Curated OER
Three-Level Reading Guide- The Apaches: People of the Southwest
A reading guide designed for Jennifer Fleischner's nonfiction text, The Apaches: People of the Southwest, provides readers with three levels of comprehension questions meant to encourage higher-level thinking.
Florida Center for Reading Research
Comprehension: Expository Text Structure, Text Feature Find
Scholars explore an expository text to answer questions about its structure.
Utah Education Network (UEN)
Evaluating the Format of Informational Text
Make your learners aware of the advantages and disadvantages of using different media in presentations. This straightforward resource evaluates media formations such as print, digital text, and videos. Although the subject of ballet is...