Students read Macbeth and work in groups to organize and create an outline for a persuasive essay. In this persuasive essay instructional activity, students work in tiered learning groups to organize their thoughts for a persuasive...

How are raptors and airplanes alike? Combine science and language arts in this fun and interactive project. Young scientists research the animal in order to design their own aircraft, and compete in a contest for farthest, fastest, and...

Nanofibers can be made through electrospinning or force spinning in order to reduce the negative impact on the environment. Pupils study the role of fibers and dye on the environment through a series of five hands-on activities. Then,...

Dream or nightmare? Class members craft a synthesis essay with textual to determine to what extent the United States has fulfilled the ideas embodied in the America Dream.

Special educators know that it isn't all about the lesson plan, but rather the strategies and practices you choose to use. Here are a set of research-based practices and tips you can use to inform your choices when teaching learners who...

A self-assessment helps scholars take ownership of their learning. Using the resource, pupils begin a Writing Improvement Tracker to develop awareness of their writing strengths and challenges. Next, they complete worksheets to plan...

Complete research on Pourquoi tales and then lead your students in creating their own. This lesson accompanies another on Pourquoi Tales on our site and deals more with the writing process. Your class will put the tales together in a...

It's hard to beat the beauty of John Steinbeck's prose, so borrow a little of it to form your own found poetry. After kids finish Chapter One of The Pearl, they select the most evocative and vivid words to create found poems.

The works of Carol Ann Duffy, Scottish poet and Britain's 2009 poet laureate, serve as a model for a writing activity that asks class members to select a character card, brainstorm lists of words, phrases, actions, and items associated...

Momoyama and Edo are periods in Japanese history that can be defined culturally and artistically. Learners explore and discuss how the samurai used sword guards and grip enhancers. Pupils read the story "The Inch-High Samurai," examine...

Plagiarism is the theft of intellectual property. To avoid this crime, class members learn how to create a works cited page and how to craft in-text citations. After examining a high-performance model paragraph and an example of a works...

Provide Ant-Man with a flying device to aid in fighting crime. The first installment of a five-part unit has learners designing and building a flying device for Ant-Man. They write a narrative essay describing the engineering process...

Schools in the 1950s and 60s looked very different from the schools we know today. An educator's guide explores the civil rights movement and, specifically, the process of integrating schools. Questions cover key themes in the novel and...

To better understand the debate over the 19th Amendment, class members examine two primary source documents that reveal some of the social, economic, racial, and political realities of the time period.

Get the youngest American citizens involved in the presidential election and inauguration with a set of social studies activities. Focusing on the history of presidential inauguration ceremonies, learners draft their own poems, design...

Third through fifth graders discover the importance of reading and plan a service project to provide books to children. First, they read the book The Important Book and then they brainstorm about the importance of reading. Afterward,...

Introduce your young readers to the book review. Groups of writers practice the basic steps of writing a book report and complete an Accordion-Book Summary activity. The lesson includes book report basics and directions to make...

Begin this activity by asking third graders to bring from home pieces of cloth that represent something important to them. (Have extras for students who need them.) They reflect on important events in their lives, compose narrative...

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...

Graphic organizers are a wonderful tool for young writers to use to help them get their thoughts in order for a piece of writing. Here, learners are coached on what a piece of narrative writing is, and how they must have a distinct...

A viewing of Disney’s 1993 film of The Adventures of Huck Finn launches an examination of the events in and themes of Mark Twain’s story. Viewers respond to prompts on a film story worksheet, engage in full-class discussions, and select...

Students review and revise their writing from a portfolio created during a thematic unit. In this writing instructional activity, students working in pairs examine and revise written pieces using action verbs. They add at least 10 action...

Students practice their persuasive writing skills. In this writing process lesson, students write essays that meet the requirements of the included text element worksheets and analyze poetry of their choosing.

Working together, learners analyze a text looking for examples of good writing. While this lesson is just a framework for a more complete exploration, it provides a new way for learners to approach a text.