Virginia Department of Education
Weather Patterns and Seasonal Changes
Get your class outside to observe their surroundings with a lesson highlighting weather patterns and seasonal changes. First, learners take a weather walk to survey how the weather affects animals, people, plants, and trees during...
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Growing Seeds (9)
A seed, water, and sunlight. A seed, water, but no sunlight. A seed, sunlight, but no water. Young biologists are ask to infer what will happen to seeds given five different growing conditions.
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ReQuest and Motor Imaging with My Side of the Mountain
Fifth graders read "My Side of the Mountain." They create a pantomime using vocabulary words from the story. Students create three questions about the reading. They discuss the passage they read and act out words to help them better...
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"Julie of the Wolves"
Fifth graders research life in Alaska and compare life there to their lives in this lesson. They read "Julie of the Wolves." They research through the novel and other reference books facts about the Alaskan climate and geography. They...
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Living Longer
Students relate health information text to themselves and society. In this health information lesson, students answer questions using the 5 W's based on the health issue they are reading about. Students discuss life...
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KWL Chart
Students create a KWL chart on a selected nonfiction topic using a variety of strategies. They infer the answers to four questions, identify a purpose for reading, list four or more things about the topic, and list four or more answers...
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It's Happening, Where? Find the Absolute and Relative Location of News Articles
Students read newspaper articles. In this social studies lesson plan, students locate the latitude and longitude of the location where the news article takes place. Students write a summary of the news article.
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Mapping Roxaboxen
Fourth graders read Roxaboxen and draw a map of the Roxaboxen community. In this language arts and geography lesson, 4th graders use specifications given, adding features to the map as described in the book and creating a legend.
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Westward Ho: The Difficulties of Emigrants Moving West
Students research the journey west of 19th century emigrants. In this pioneer lesson, students read the letters and diaries of a fictitious family traveling on the Oregon Trail. They mark their route on a US map, create a chart showing...
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Reflections on Poetry Readings
Eighth graders design and compile a booklet of published and original poems reflective of a specific theme.
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The Tale of Despereauz
Fourth graders read text and draw inferences or conclusions about the text. In this reading lesson, 4th graders discuss their opinions on what was read and state why they think that way to a partner.
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But We Need More, Where Will It Come From?
Students write a persuasive letter and create a poster about pollution and conservation. In this pollution and conservation lesson plan, students learn how humans are the number 1 cause of pollution.
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Biochemistry Detectives
Students explore the process of chemosynthesis and relate it to the biological communities in cold seeps. In this biochemistry lesson students interpret analyses of enzyme activity and draw inferences about organisms in cold seep...
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Comparing Characters Across Two Short Stories
Ninth graders listen to a read aloud of two short stories focusing on literary devices. The write about the settings and realism of the stories, and decide each main character handles the conflict he faces with nature.
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Conflict Resolution Lesson Plan
Fourth graders investigate conflict and social justice. In this conflict resolution lesson, 4th graders consider conflicts they have experienced and think about how they could have applied conflict resolution strategies to change the...
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To Question Or Not To Question?
Fourth graders practice questioning to aid in creating meaning when reading. Through guided practice, they read a passage from a chapter book and answer in-text and inference questions. Independently, they read another chapter from the...
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Enrichment Activities - "Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH"
Fifth graders read the novel "Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH." They discuss the various characters in the book, and the different types of conflict that take place within the book. They also research owls and rats to make comparisons...
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Could You Repeat That?
Pupils participate in an oral story telling activity designed to show how story embellishments occur. They read "Beowulf" and identify incongruities that suggest additions and embellishments over the years.
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When Sophie Gets Angry-Really, Really Angry
Students explore feelings. In this language arts lesson, students realize that books help in talking about feelings. Students discuss how they feel during the reading of a story and listen to each other in answering various comprehension...
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The Underground Railroad in the I and M Canal Area
Students discuss provocative statements about the Underground Railroad and form opinions. They locate and read a selection on the Internet that either supports of discredits their written opinions. They then read a speech by John Hossack.
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Jason's Gold: Chapter 9
Students collect details from chapter 9 of the book Jason's Gold and connect them back to the author's purpose of the book. In this details lesson plan, students listen to a read aloud where they discuss the details with the teacher as...
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The Law of Inertia
Learners practice the 4 question strategy to form more questions and develop further experiments. The four questions are engage, explore, explain, and elaborate. They use the 4 question strategy on an investigation involving the mass...
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Nursery Rhymes
Students recall details of nursery rhyme read by teacher, identify main characters, and demonstrate knowledge of poem by creating concept map about story that includes title, clip art, and changes in font and color.
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Cause and Effect
Young scholars identify cause and effect relationships in a short story. After reading a short story, they participate in a discussion of how one event in a story can lead to several others. Students are then paired for a matching task...