Students explore the species found in the Galapagos Islands and practice descriptive writing skills by creating a sample journal. They create a fictional journal that documents the places they visit and the species they encounter.

Students investigate apples. In this reading comprehension lesson, students read a book about apples then compare and contrast, make graphs, distinguish between fact and fiction and work in groups. Students work in groups...

Young scholars write weather shape poems and sing weather related songs. In this creative writing lesson, students read the book, It's Raining, It's Pouring and list weather words they heard in the story. Young scholars use the writing...

Students form expert engineering teams working for the (fictional) alternative energy consulting firm, Greenewables, Inc. Each team specializes in a form of renewable energy used to generate electrical power: passive solar, solar...

Students read a series of statements made by students about the hazards and benefits of various foods. They distinguish the "facts: from "opinions" in the dialogue, summarize the facts in a short paragraph, and write an essay...

Students explore living things. In this agriculture lesson, students read the book A Tree is a Plant and participate in an experiment to explore the patterns of change in living things. Students continue to observe the plant throughout...

Students choose an endangered species to research and report on. In this endangered species lesson, students complete a worksheet to gather information about their endangered animal and then use to write a book about the animal and...

Students explore mountain formation. In this cross curriculum earth science and legend writing instructional activity, students listen to the poem "The Way to make Perfect Mountains" by Byrd Baylor and identify examples of vivid language...

Fifth graders research and explore what life would be like for human colonists on Mars. They explore various websites, read and discuss newspaper articles, develop a chart of the hardships and conditions that would be faced by colonists...

Young scholars research and write articles for an imaginary scientific magazine about rain forests. In this rain forest lesson, students research both ecosystems and magazine writing styles. They act as reporters and editors of their own...

Students explore interesting animal behaviors and adaptations. They create information sheets about an animal residing in a fictional sanctuary and assess the animal's likelihood of being a good pet.

Students explore criticisms of the pharmaceutical drug industry. They also become aware of the difficult and lengthy process of testing new drugs by inventing fictional drugs and testing plans.

Investigate Pennsylvania Barns. Have your class consider the elements common to Pennsylvanian barns and why they are significant to the food production process. They write summaries of Frederick Watts and his impact on agriculture.

Students recognize that achievements of human beings throughout human history can be considered part of the ongoing story of human evolution. They research settings such as the biosphere and Mars and write imaginative short stories using...

Young scholars research about the search for life in Mars. In this space science lesson, students develop a creative visual display of their findings. They present their project in class.

Students comprehend the concept and causes of extinction and endangerment. They identify extinct and endangered animals. Students coordinate a plan to help endangered animals through a poster and letter writing campaign.

Students listen to story, "Never, Ever Shout in a Zoo," by Karma Wilson, practice finding information from Internet, write information about one chosen zoo animal, draw picture of their zoo animal, pair up and read their My Zoo Animal...

In this science worksheet, students learn about water resources and watersheds by reading and answering questions in this 8 pages newsletter. Students learn about salt vs. fresh water, discover the protective role of estuaries, learn...

Young scholars create dioramas that depict a habitat. For this habitat lesson, students use a variety of art items to develop either a marine, freshwater/pond, or forest habitat in a box. They write an expository essay about their...

Students explain how offspring inherit traits from their parents. In this biology instructional activity, students investigate the genes for nicotine addiction using an interactive website. They construct a fictional pedigree using their...

As part of an exploration of zoo animals, kindergarteners conduct research on their favorite animal and compile their information. Learners write about their animal in a journal and create a trading card. The culminating activity is a...

In his 2013 introduction to Fahrenheit 451, Neil Gaiman states, “Fiction is a lie that tells us true things, over and over.” In this extraordinary unit plan, readers "explore the power of written language to educate and...

Students create and perform science fiction drams based upon their knowledge of the solar system. In this solar system activity students work in cooperative groups to create a short play and will also score the play.

Students examine the difference between nonfiction and fictional writing. They identify the characteristics of nonfiction literature and examine how a nonfiction textbook organizes information.