Fifth graders review the characteristics of a nonfiction text. In this language arts lesson, 5th graders understand that one can use a specific graphic organizer to help them in understanding an organizational structure. For example, in...

Explore the fascinating ways in which authors use specific literary devices to create interesting and realistic texts. Using non-fiction articles with the subject of rogue waves, an excerpt from The Perfect Storm, by Sebastian Junger,...

What are the three types of irony? High schoolers engage in a lesson about the use of irony while reading O.Henry's short story "Gift of the Magi." They'll discuss rising action, climax, and resolution in the text before highlighting the...

Reading, writing, and rings! A lesson from NASA combines space science with authentic reading and writing tasks. Included in this lesson are pre-reading activities, four mini informational booklets on Saturn, a structured...

An informative lesson has learners read about, discuss, and study the classification, structure and importance of the following biomolecules: carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, nucleic acids, and enzymes. 

Get your class going on one of the final assessments for a unit on short stories by introducing iMovie and its main features. In this tenth lesson in a series of fourteen, pupils take some time to explore iMovie before conducting an...

Racist, independent, conflicted? Readers of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn brainstorm words that describe the traits of characters in Twain’s novel and then rate these qualities in several of their favorite characters. Individuals...

Intelligent? Arrogant? Obnoxious? After completing Chapter 18 of Freak the Mighty, individuals fill out a semantic feature chart for characters in Rodman Philbrick's novel. Group members then use their charts to discuss relationships...

Invite your kids to tell all sorts of stories with this interactive app. Learners view images and record their own voices as as they create short narratives to go along with the images. The app provides plenty of...

Reciting poetry is a great way to build oral language skills and build classroom community. Pupils look at the text elements of poetry and choose a poem to read aloud. They focus on rhythm, fluency, and expression. This is a great way to...

Show young readers how to put some personality and voice into their storytelling with an in-depth assignment. Kids practice saying the same thing, such as counting from one to ten, in different tones and perspectives, and then work on...

Learners view a slide show featuring famous athletes and educational institutions that have played a part in the history of basketball. They participate in a game in which a basketball is tossed from person to person as facts and...

Whether you are teaching a newspaper unit in language arts, covering the First Amendment and censorship in social studies, or focusing on writing ethics in journalism, a unit based on the foundations of journalism would be an excellent...

Third graders explore genre characteristics. In this genre literacy lesson, 3rd graders listen to a variety of fiction stories and classify them according to genre. Students identify common features in each genre and complete a chart by...

Who are we and what shapes our identities? Seventh graders work to answer this question as they learn how to write a memoir. Full of non-print resources and supplemental texts that range from fiction to non-fiction, scholars write their...

It's that time of year to consider how Shakespeare selects his images and structures his Sonnet 73 to develop the meaning of the poem. Class members examine the rhyme scheme, the indented lines, the conceit, and the images used in each...

Have you ever wanted to know the true structure of E.coli? Does the thought of peering into its "small world" sound exciting? Here is a lesson that allows pupils the ability to do just that. Blossoming microbiologists use...

Readers of Nineteen Eighty-Four engage in a close reading exercise that directs their focus to the key details Orwell provides in the opening paragraphs to introduce his dystopian society. The included worksheeet is divided into three...

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,...

Author Michael Buckley's novel The Sisters Grimm features two fairy-tale sleuths who are tasked with stopping a giant from destroying their town. Using the novel study, individuals acquire new vocabulary and answer...

As wise as an owl may not be true if the owls are out-of-control pets. Farley Mowat's Owls in the Family features two pet owls that turn the neighborhood upside down. Scholars read about their adventures while learning new...

Who wouldn't want to read a book about monster plants? Get those kids into informational texts with an engaging topic, like meat eating plants! You'll use the teaching guide to provide structured practice as your class reads to...

After researching an issue introduced in Tyson Miller's Dream of a Nation: Inspiring Ideas for a Better America, writers develop an original thesis statement and craft an analytic essay using evidence collected in their research.

Just like you choose your clothes to ensure they fit the occasion, you should choose your words deliberately while writing. Style, the main topic of one handout in a series on writing skills, involves choosing words carefully and paying...