Activity
Gourmet Curriculum Press

Author's Purpose

For Teachers 3rd - 6th Standards
Who knew determining author's purpose could be turned into a game? Four teams compete to correctly identify the author's purpose for writing a series of passages.
Activity
Scholastic

A Reading Guide to Sarah, Plain and Tall

For Teachers 1st - 5th Standards
Eliminate the hard work of creating an entire literature unit with this reading guide for the novel Sarah, Plain and Tall. From background information about the author and her motivation for writing the story to...
Activity
Scholastic

Eric Carle Author Study

For Teachers Pre-K - 2nd
Learn all about Eric Carle, find out about his famous caterpillar, and try out related art, science, writing, math, and social studies activities. The resource comes with plenty of materials to support your instruction.
Activity
Shmoop

ELA.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.6

For Teachers 9th - 10th Standards
What does the author believe about his topic? Why did he write in the first place? Challenge your class to figure out the answers to these questions as they read through informational texts. The resource provides a breakdown of the...
Activity
Florida Center for Reading Research

Comprehension: Text Analysis, Persuade, Inform, and Entertain Sort

For Teachers 2nd - 3rd Standards
Why do authors write? Practice determining the author's purpose with a categorizing activity. Learners sort twelve short passages into three categories: persuade, inform, and entertain.
Activity
Education World

Every Day Edit - Author Scott O'Dell

For Students 3rd - 8th
For this everyday editing activity, students correct grammatical mistakes in a short paragraph about author Scott O'Dell. The errors range from punctuation, capitalization, grammar, and spelling.
Activity
Education World

Every-Day Edit: S.E. Hinton, Author

For Students 3rd - 8th
For this everyday editing instructional activity, students correct grammatical mistakes in a short paragraph about the author, S.E. Hinton. The errors range from capitalization, punctuation, spelling, and grammar.
Activity
Education World

Every-Day Edit: Author Katherine Holabird

For Students 3rd - 8th
For this everyday editing activity, students correct grammatical mistakes in a short paragraph about author Katherine Holabird. The errors range from capitalization, punctuation, spelling, and grammar.
Activity
Education Development Center

Proof with Parallelogram Vertices

For Teachers 8th - 10th Standards
Geometric figures are perfect to use for proofs. Scholars prove conjectures about whether given points lie on a triangle and about midpoints. They use a provided dialogue among fictional students to frame their responses.
Activity
Curated OER

Pi Day: The Other Math Holiday!

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Happy Pi Day! This collection of games, experiments, and activities leads participants through an exploration of the many aspects and attributes of that mysterious quantity, pi. Activities range from using statistical...
Activity
Harper Collins

Ramona Activity Booklet reading comprehension

For Teachers 2nd - 5th Standards
Add a some variety to a reading of Beverly Cleary's Ramona series with this collection of fun worksheets and activities. From a basic reading comprehension crossword puzzle to a quiz that determines which character...
Interactive
Khan Academy

Project: Bookshelf

For Students 6th - Higher Ed
Start your own virtual library with this JavaScript programming project. Create arrays of book objects, and fill the shelves with different books, different colors, titles, authors, etc. Let coders create their own unique display. 
Activity
2
2
Southern Nevada Regional Professional Development Program

The Columnist Project

For Teachers 11th - 12th Standards
Imagine a list that includes Alan Abelson of Baron's, Bob Woodward of the Washington Post, and Mother Jones. High schoolers select a national columnist, read and annotate five columns by this author, noting the rhetorical...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Winter Wonderland: Internet Literature Project

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
Students, using the Internet, communicate with peers around the world about winter-themed books. They study authors, write book reviews, re-write endings, interview book characters, create scene dioramas, paint murals, and write...
Activity
Sharp School

Horror Fiction Multimedia Project

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
"There comes an end to all things" and ending a study of horror fiction with a multimedia project is "like starting a stone. . . away the stone goes, starting others. . ." In this case, groups start with a question generated by Dr....
Lesson Plan
1
1
Baylor College

Using Heat from the Sun

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Let's heat things up! This simple experiment demonstrates for students the important role the sun plays in providing the earth with energy. Place one cup of water in direct sunlight and one in shade, then take measurements in order to...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Baylor College

Modeling Earth's Atmosphere

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Life on Earth is made possible by the unique composition of its atmosphere. Working collaboratively, a scale model is created as young scientists learn about the different layers of gas that surround the planet. Cards are included that...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Baylor College

There's Something in the Air

For Teachers K - 5th
Clever! In order to compare indoor and outdoor dispersal rates for the movement of gases and particles through air, collaborators will participate in a classroom experiment. Set up a circular grid and set students on lines that are...
Activity
Curated OER

Lesson Plan 18: Art Project! Design Your Own Book Cover

For Teachers 3rd - 9th
Finished your novel? What’s next? Designing the book cover, of course. But how to begin? After examining the covers of published books and noting the common elements of these jackets, young novelists design a front and back cover for...
Activity
Pearson

End-of-Year Portfolio Guidelines

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Go beyond a traditional end-of-the-year survey and have your middle school pupils compile a portfolio of work illustrating their progression as a writer. 
Activity
All for KIDZ

The Orphan of Ellis Island

For Teachers 3rd - 6th Standards
Everyone comes from somewhere. An interdisciplinary lesson on Elvira Woodruff's The Orphan of Ellis Island includes discussion starter and writing prompts for the novel, as well as a graphic organizer to help learners begin their...
Activity
Teaching Tolerance

Picture Books

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Aspiring artists and budding writers combine their skills in an interactive lesson. Young scholars become authors when they create their own picture books focused on social justice. The resource guides learners through the writing and...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Shmoop

ELA.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.11-12.3

For Teachers 11th - 12th Standards
Identifying an author’s choice, especially choices that concern craft and literary devices, is a difficult skill to teach. Here's an activity that will make your job easier. The resource breaks down how to teach the skill to novice,...
Activity
Education World

Every Day Edit - Chris Van Allsburg

For Students 3rd - 8th
In this everyday editing activity, students correct grammatical mistakes in a short paragraph about the author of The Polar Express and Jumanji, Chris Van Allsburg. The errors range from capitalization, punctuation, spelling, and grammar.