Missouri Department of Elementary
Stressed Out Sally
Life changes may cause stress. Here, scholars identify stressful situations in a peer's life and offer coping skills to make for a better day. A short story, "Stressed Out Sally," provides pupils with a look inside a bad day. After...
Reed Novel Studies
The Mouse and The Motorcycle: Novel Study
A mouse on a motorcycle—what could possibly go wrong? Using the novel study that accompanies Beverly Cleary's The Mouse and the Motorcycle, pupils complete a brief vocabulary activity and then answer questions about the text. Next,...
Reed Novel Studies
My Side of The Mountain: Novel Study
Some money, a pocketknife, a ball of cord, and some flint and steel ... is that enough for a 14-year-old to survive alone in the wilderness? Scholars explore the topic of survival with the novel study for My Side of the Mountain....
Lerner Publishing
Teaching Folklore
Wonderful worksheets and activities complementing six sequential lessons are what you'll find in this unit on folklore. Pupils create folktales using literary devices and included story starters, compare and contrast different...
EngageNY
Analyzing Point of View: Inferring about the Impact of Hurricane Katrina on People Living in New Orlean
What, where, how? Readers hone their analysis skills as they determine the narrator's point of view in Eight Days. They complete a literary analysis chart and essay to describe what and where events take place. Individuals then discuss...
Reed Novel Studies
Runaway Ralph: Novel Study
Maybe the grass isn't always greener on the other side. Ralph, a mouse character in Runaway Ralph, thought that summer camp had to be better than dealing with his mother, uncle, and cousins. However, camp has its troubles, too. Worksheet...
Curated OER
SEQUENCING A STORY WITH PICTURES: TEXT AND TALK
Third graders create a graphic organizer. They draw illustrations that show the beginning, middle and end of a trip they took to visit a friend or a relative. They write age-appropriate text to accompany each drawing. They tell...
Curated OER
Dr. Seuss Author Study
Students listen to a story, then use the same format to write a class book.
Curated OER
Proofreading and Revising Articles for a Class Newsletter
Students submit their newsletter articles and a newsletter team proofreads them. Revisions are suggested. Writers revise their articles. Using a template from a word processing program, articles are typed in final form.
Curated OER
Humorous Story Featuring Clowns
Students write a funny story about clowns. In this humorous story writing activity, students determine how to develop a setting, use clowns as characters, and how to write a humorous story with a happy ending. They follow the study guide...
Curated OER
School-Home Links: Re-reading Writing
In this read aloud writing worksheet, students write about a topic and then read the story aloud to family members. Students then receive revision tips from their family members. Parents or guardians must sign the worksheet.
Curated OER
Lesson Plan 2: So What's a Novel, Anyway?
What makes a novel a novel? Class members select a favorite novel, record their impressions on a worksheet, and then come together in groups to discuss the elements common to narrative writing. Next, they identify the characters, the...
Curated OER
Virtual) Poetry Slam
Students create a "virtual poetry slam." This project can easily be implemented at any grade level where students have created short pieces of personal writing. They write, edit, and revise a short piece of poetry or personal writing.
Curated OER
So Much Depends Upon...Sixteen-Word Imagery Poems Inspired by Love that Dog by Sharon Creech
After reading Love That Dog by Sharon Creech (and possibly shedding a few tears), middle schoolers work on their own sixteen-word poems with a Six Trait writing activity. They focus on word choice in this activity to capture an...
Curated OER
Julian Secret Agent: Commas
Your class participates in a variety of shared reading and writing activities related to the book Julian Secret Agent. They complete a class story chart, examine how to use punctuation for dialogue, write an alternative...
Curated OER
I Am An Author
Analyze and interpret a literary work your class has read during the course. After reading a variety of literary works, middle schoolers alter the ending of a selection by creating an alternate ending. They generate five comprehension...
Curated OER
The Metamorphosis: Problematic Situation
Are you enjoying the use of all five senses? Imagine that you have to lose one of them; you can choose which one, but it's gone forever. Work through a lesson based on Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis that asks class...
Curated OER
Word Pairs
Fifth graders practice the trait of word choice and create a narrative writing with appropriate word choices. They work in pairs to write a story using as many word pairs from their imaginations as they can.
Curated OER
Write a Myth
Students explore myths in ancient times. In this mythology lesson, students read or view a video production of a myth to determine specific characteristics of myths. Students work in groups to write a myth that explains an...
Curated OER
Cuentos
Students revise Spanish mystery stories. They sequence the events from a group's mystery story and suggest revisions for the setting. They revise their stories using the suggestions from classmates and describe characters in folktales....
Curated OER
Spooky Story
Second graders write a Halloween story. In this combined technology and writing lesson plan, 2nd graders create a Halloween picture using KidPix, insert it into Microsoft Word, and then write a story to correspond with the picture.
Orange County Schools
Piggybook
Summarizing text is a balancing act between being brief but thorough. You need to be short and to the point, but also cover all the important details, a task that presents a challenge for many young learners. In this lesson based on the...
Curated OER
A Water Droplet's Experience in the Hydrologic Cycle
Students write a story from the perspective of a water droplet on a journey through the water cycle. They use the 6+1 Traits writing method to focus on voice in the writing as they create characters that their water droplet has...