Ready Houston
Make a Plan. Build a Kit. Stay Informed.
Help prepare your youngsters for an emergency or natural disaster by discussing important topics as where to meet, how to remain in contact, and what belongs in an emergency kit.
Practical Money Skills
Making Money
The first step in managing your money is making money! Learn about ways to find and interview for a job with a thorough lesson plan on personal finances. Kids learn about the ways to earn a paycheck and then manage the funds they receive.
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Science Fiction Lesson Plans
Students can explore a literature genre through science fiction lesson plans.
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Brown Bear Phonics
Students listen to Brown Bear, Brown Bear and imitate the style of Eric Carle in writing a sentence. In this writing lesson, students use the beginning and ending sounds of words to write an Eric Carle type sentence. ...
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Analysis Through Character Action/Beliefs
Students explore characterization. In this characterization lesson, students give analytical responses to questions and determine a character's beliefs. Students use the school mission statement to develop two beliefs that the statement...
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Fitting Trash into Yesterday: A Fifth Grade Activity
Fifth graders explore the concept of waste management. In this recycling lesson, 5th graders discover the history of waste management and discuss how the U.S. should respond to the issue of ever-increasing waste.
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American Indians
Eighth graders discuss their country of origin and form work groups based on their answers. In this American Indian lesson, 8th graders locate their country of origin to the lifestyle, products and living arrangements...
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Poetry And Me
Third graders create visual poems using crayons, making a connection to an important aspect or event in their lives.
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A Neighborhood Expedition
Students plan and conduct an expedition through their neighborhood based on the techniques used by the Harriman Expedition to Alaska in 1899. They research the Harriman expedition on the internet and then create a route and collection...
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Poetic Analysis
Students write a poetic analysis on a poem by Carl Sandburg. They take their previous knowledge of poetic devices and apply them to a piece of writing that displays their knowledge on a specific poem. They explain what they know about a...
Curated OER
Poetry Writing
Students compose a piece of poetry modeled after the poetry of Carl Sandburg and share their poem(s) with their colleagues. They use a cluster diagram to organize their thoughts and brainstorm their ideas.
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Projectile Motion
Learners determine the angle of launch that will give a projectile its greatest range. In this projectile motion instructional activity, students recognize that the motion of a projectile results from the combined horizontal and vertical...
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Wetlands in Our State
Fifth graders access prior knowledge to create a KWL about the wetlands. In this wetlands lesson, 5th graders research to answer the questions in their KWL.
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Promoting Safe Driving/Choices on Prom Night
Students explore ways to promote safe driving on prom night. In this driver education lesson, students interview people about driving on prom night. Students design a poster with their researched quotes and discuss the topic in the...
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Extending Vocabulary to Describe Communities
Second graders study vocabulary to describe their community. In this meaning of words lesson, 2nd graders acquire new vocabulary words to label pictures and objects. They use these words in speaking and writing.
Curated OER
Teaching the Theme: The American Dream
This can be a good time for students to discuss what the idea of the American Dream means to them.
Austin Independent School District
Austin Independent School District: Independent Reading [Pdf]
A guide explaining the importance of Independent Reading and providing several strategies students can use to increase comprehension while reading independently. Strategies include Reader's Response Journals, Quick Conferences,...
AdLit
Ad lit.org: Scaffold Mindful Silent Reading
Help students internalize and routinize their reading comprehension monitoring with this sample lesson.
Other
Ncrel: Reading Strategies: Before, During, and After [Pdf]
This page provides a detailed chart to aid students' understanding of texts. It goes through the steps of pre-reading, during reading, and after reading, outlining what students should be thinking about as they interact with a text. This...
Other
Reading Quest: Making Sense of Social Studies
Teaching students to read well in areas other than language arts requires teaching and reinforcing the kinds of reading strategies taught here. There are 27 strategies, ranging from brainstorming to word mapping. The site includes PDF...
ReadWriteThink
Read Write Think: Anticipation Guide
Anticipating is an effective reading strategy for readers of all ages. Utilize this template and graphic organizer to help your students become better readers.
Sophia Learning
Sophia: Reading Comprehension and Classroom Discussions
This tutorial focuses on active reading comprehension strategies including reading aloud, taking notes, summarizing, and writing in the margins of books to improve retention and class discussion. It includes two Flickr videos on active...
Scholastic
Scholastic: Investigating Nonfiction Part 3: Independent and Guided Reading
This article provides tips for using nonfiction with guided reading and independent reading. The following strategies are shared: ways to help kids select "just right" nonfiction books; lessons to use with nonfiction in guided reading...
Austin Independent School District
Austin Independent School District: Questioning the Author [Pdf]
Improve reading comprehension by using the reading strategy of Questioning the Author. Explains the strategy with scripted examples of the strategy in action, ideas for implementation, research behind the strategy, and more.