Curated OER
Amelia Earhart: A Biography
Second graders investigate the accomplishments of Amelia Earhart. They read and discuss a biography of Amelia Earhart, complete a Venn diagram, and conduct an interview with a classmate and write and publish a biography of their classmate.
Curated OER
Dr. Seuss
Learners read books by the same author and compare what they find. In this Dr. Seuss instructional activity, students learn about Dr. Seuss' writing style, listen for the rhyme scheme in his stories, and create a KWL chart on Dr....
Curated OER
Show Me the Story
Learners examine the elements of a story, read a review of Chris Rock's new sitcom, "Everybody Hates Chris" and create original sitcom episodes based on their own lives.
Curated OER
The Lorax Explorations
Students read and debate the purpose of Dr. Seuss' The Lorax, analyze its story elements, and write their own The Lorax II.
Mary Pope Osborne, Classroom Adventures Program
Mummies in the Morning Egyptian pyramids, hieroglyphics
Visit the Magic Treehouse and take your class on a trip through time with a reading of the children's book Mummies in the Morning. Using the story to spark an investigation into Egyptian culture, this literature unit engages...
Curated OER
Investigating Fables
Time for a story! Learners of all ages enjoy listening to stories, so read them some common fables and have them work cooperatively to create a fable. Differentiate for varying ability levels by providing sentence frames, graphic...
Curated OER
Creative Outline for Your Short Story or Book
Students discuss the information listed about how to make an outline for a short story or book. They then begin writing their short story and edit it and revise before turning it in to be graded.
Curated OER
Writing A Thanksgiving Day Story
Students write a Thanksgiving Day Story using some or all of the words included in the worksheet. These stories can be fiction or non-fiction (Personal Essays). They are graded on sentence structure, paragraph structure, grammar,...
Curated OER
Design a Book Cover
Class members take on the role of graphic designer and craft a cover for a book they are reading. Individuals formulate a proposal outlining the images they will use to not only grab the interest of readers, but hint at the mood and...
Curated OER
Storytelling
Students compose a story and tell it to the class. In this storytelling lesson, students work in small groups to create an illustrated story. Students are given a checklist of elements to include in the...
Orange County Department of Education
Dear Mr. Henshaw
Fifth graders read Dear Mr. Henshaw and identify the character trait of self-respect as exhibited by Leigh throughout the story. They evaluate the author's use of letters to tell the story and discuss how the story would be different if...
Curated OER
Independent Reading Responses
Students participate in independent reading activities by reading a book at their independent reading level and selecting activities to complete after reading. Activities are broken up into C Level, B Level, and A Level activities.
Orange County Department of Education
The True Story of Abbie Burgess
First graders read a story about Abbie Burgess. They identify at least three specific actions exhibiting traits of courage and responsibility. Students explore ways children and adults become heroes by helping others out in a time of...
Curated OER
Across Five Aprils/Civil War
Eighth graders study the Civil War novel, Across Five Aprils, by Irene Hunt. They review vocabulary and literary elements and write a "Brother Against Brother" essay about coming face to face with a brother in one of the battles of the...
Curated OER
Fairy Tales
Learners write and draw fairy tales based on modern themes and/or their own experiences. The class is divided into groups and are assigned a fairy tale. The groups develop a modern story based on this fairy tale through group discussion.
Curated OER
Comic Book or Comic Strip Design
Students design an original cartoon character. They explain the creative process and development of a cartoon from brainstorming to final draft and study different types of cartooning. Use the correct terminology associated with cartooning
Curated OER
A Comparison of the Play and Movie "Inherit the Wind"
Students read the play "Inherit the Wind" about the Scopes "Monkey" Trial. In groups, they choose their favorite scene and create a diorama dipicting the scene as they see it. They watch a recording of the play and compare it to their...
Curated OER
Literature Circles
Fourth graders work in groups in order to motivate one another to develop reading comprehension and literacy skills. The skills are built through the sharing of fine literature. They maintain a reading log to keep accountable for the...
Curated OER
The Home Stretch
Students read the novel Stone Fox by John Reynold Gardiner. Using Lego RCX units, students build and program sleds to re-enact the "home stretch" of the National Dog Sled Race.
Curated OER
Making Photo Essays Easy
Young scholars generate ideas about what makes a good story and a good photograph then place them together to create a photo essay. In this photo essay activity, young scholars assemble random photos into a story, select the best photos,...
Curated OER
Unknown Vocabulary
Students develop the vocabulary necessary to make their reading meaningful. After creating pre-reading activities, students a list of unknown vocabulary related to their reading selection. They complete vocabulary and context...
Curated OER
Fearlessness and Confidence
Students develop confidence to face up to problems and fears in order to deal with them safely. They recognize that family and friends should care for each other. Students go through a series of activities that they interact with,...
Curated OER
Narrative Writing
Imagine a day in the life of a child who has to work 12-14 hours a day, seven days a week. After viewing images and reading stories of child laborers, class members select an image and write a richly detailed narrative about a typical...
Curated OER
Enemy Pie
Third graders pair up with a partner via an online classroom. They analyze half of the story "Enemy Pie" and communicate with their online peer to predict the outcome of the story.