A game designed to support advanced phonics instruction challenges scholars to read and break a word into syllables. If the player is correct, they move their game piece forward on the board. Whoever gets to the end first wins!

Challenge readers to read closer in an activity based on the Socratic questioning strategy. As kids read Antoine de Saint Éxupery's The Little Prince, they use sentence starters to ask deeper questions about the text, and...

Are video games sports? Pupils investigate this question as well as various nonfiction selections to learn more about claims and the support that defines them. All of the selections mimic the rigor on state tests and encourage close...

Have your pupils really been reading the directions? Find out with this tricky little test. The first instruction is to read all of the directions quickly, but you'll find that quite a few pupils start acting rather funny just a few...

Combine class members' love of crafts and reading with one innovative lesson. Scholars create a one-of-a-kind woven bookmark using cardstock paper, yarn, and a needle. 

Those in positions of authority don't always have the best interest of their people in mind. As part of a sample assessment question, readers must consider how works of literature they read apply to a quote from Edmund Burke—"The greater...

Combine measurement, following directions, physics, and art with one fun activity. Learners read a set of instruction to create three different kinds of paper airplanes. They measure, fold, and fly the planes, and record data and answer...

Explore rural and urban environments over the course of four days. Each day offers a new look into how both environment compare and contrast. Activities include the observation and analyzation of images, a read aloud and grand discussion...

If you've ever wished you could respond to an author's message, an instructional activity that connects three poems with the same concept will appeal to you. Based on the first few lessons' focus on Christopher Marlowe's "The Passionate...

Here's resource that presents step-by-step directions for three different activities that ask kids to read a short passage, listen for the main points, and then to summarize the passage in their own words.

As teachers, we have a lot of patience. Our scholars, on the other hand, may need some support. Give your pupils the emotional intelligence instruction they desire with a lesson designed to teach patience through grand conversation,...

Imagine a dark sky lit up with fireflies. Robert Frost's "Fireflies in the Garden" instills a visual in the reader's mind of a star lit sky glowing with fireflies. After reading the poem, learners compare and contrast the image the...

Technology has undoubtedly improved the lives of people around the world—but has it improved communication? Seventh graders read two informative passages about the rise of texting and emailing versus in-person conversations before...

A three-part writing assessment challenges scholars to think critically about schools of the past and present. Learners read informative texts, answer questions to prepare for a discussion, research in small groups, complete a Venn...

A fiction and nonfiction text, The Great Kapok Tree: A Tale of the Amazon Rain Forest by Lynne Cherry and I See a Kookaburra! Discovering Animal Habitats Around the World by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page begins a learning experience in...

With the Common Core State Standards' growing focus on informational text, it's the perfect time to showcase this PowerPoint to your team of teachers. It's 59 slides focus on seven best practice structures: reading-as-thinking,...

Unfortunately, not all students learn to read at the same pace, but with the help of this resource, you can ensure that they all receive the support they need to reach this important goal. Comprised of short...

Here is a nice set of activities and discussion questions to accompany your class reading of No Pretty Pictures, a memoir of a young girl's experiences and struggle for survival during the Holocaust.

What does it mean to come undone? Scholars consider the author's use of the phrase as they read paragraphs 12–15 from Julia Alvarez's autobiographical essay "A Genetics of Justice." They complete a quick write to analyze how Alvarez...

What is a megalomaniac? Scholars discover the word's meaning as they read and analyze paragraphs seven and eight from Julia Alvarez's essay "A Genetics of Justice." They also read Mark Memmott's article "Remembering to Never Forget" and...

How do authors use rhetorical devices and word choice to emphasize their ideas? Pupils consider the question while reading paragraphs 16–19 from Julia Alvarez's essay "A Genetics of Justice." Readers engage in evidence-based discussion...

How do people's relationships with their parents impact their lives? Scholars read paragraphs 23–26 from "A Genetics of Justice" by Julia Alvarez, in which the author details her relationship with her mother. Pupils discuss how the...

How do authors develop the main ideas in their writing? Pupils consider the question as they read and analyze paragraphs 27–31 from Julia Alvarez's essay "A Genetics of Justice," in which Alvarez describes her decision to become a...

Scholars compare and contrast two informational texts about Poison Dart Frogs. A brief vocabulary review and discussion lead the way to a two-part close reading—the first reading for gist the second reading for details. Followed by a...