Use a vocabulary asssignment as a quick activity between reading chapters of Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech. Young readers choose their favorite words from the vocabulary word list to describe Sal, Phoebe, or any other character from...

What three readily available things would you grab in case of an emergency? That's the question that launches a unit study of William Golding's The Lord of the Flies. After sharing their choices, class members read Golding's rationale...

Budding poets create two acrostic poems, one for their name and another using a word of their choice. Over the course of five days, scholars compose, revise, publish, and share their work with their peers.

Help young writers with the daunting prospect of a five-paragraph essay. Using William Golding's Lord of the Flies, learners work through a short process to shore up their brainstorming and prepare to write a longer essay.

What's the best way to study? Well, it depends. . . Session two of a 23-lesson life skills series focuses on a variety of study skills strategies and suggests when/why to choose one over another.

Building on prior knowledge of the pervious lesson in the series, pupils explain the previous lesson to each other. Then they write a simple guide for a young child to read on the same topic. 

Is it do'nt or don't? How about doesn't or does'nt? A instructional activity on contractions helps learners identify, form, and use contractions. Components within the plan include direct instruction on decoding and encoding...

Outlines are a great asset to essay planning. Scholars read and analyze a model essay about the importance of daily reading and consider how it would look in an outline format. Next, they outline their own informative essays about rules...

Forgiveness can be a difficult step to take in any circumstance, but is it more difficult if the offense is more egregious? High schoolers consider the concept of forgiveness before reading William Shakespeare's The Tempest. As...

There are a few things every good speller knows: spelling rules, vowel sounds, and word endings. Help your learner with dyslexia become a more efficient speller with a few tips from a dyslexia expert. Included in the lesson is a video,...

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.

Who doesn't enjoy an engaging scavenger hunt? Here, scholars listen to, and discuss, the informative text, Where is my Continent? by Robin Nelson. They then explore the seven continents and four major oceans using...

How did women use President Wilson's ideals and rhetoric in their bid for suffrage? To answer this essential question, class groups analyze primary written documents and visual images.

Use the accompanying assessment to determine your class's prior knowledge on Martin Luther King, Jr. before beginning a lesson on the famous civil rights movement leader. The resource has young historians thinking about life for African...

Lend a helping hand. Pupils read two informational articles about international aid organizations and how they help areas affected by natural disasters. Scholars attempt to uncover the gist of each text, discussing their thoughts in...

You've heard of the historical moment when Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus, but did you know that some historical accounts disagree on where she sat? Investigate this query with your young historians, and practice...

It's time to choose a position! Scholars read a model position paper about fracking to practice identifying the topic and argument. Then, working with a partner, they use a rubric to assess the essay. 

Few children's books convey the message of conservation as well as Dr. Seuss' The Lorax. Read the story aloud, emphasizing the interconnectedness of plants and animals in an ecosystem and discussing different ways people can help...

Phonics is a fundamental key to reading success. To help your learners with dyslexia or learning disabilities, try using the phonic alphabetic code chart. The chart and full instructions on how it can be used in the classroom are...

Reinforce the concept of probability with a series of lessons highlighting the idea of likelihood, probability formulas, relative frequency, outcomes, and event predictions. The collection is made up of four lessons offering informative...

Case studies, an examination of images, and readings of passages from the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child are used to spark conversations in ESL/ELD social studies classes about this highly-charged topic. Using a variety of...

Learning to craft quality questions is a skill that can be taught. Class members use the Question Formulation Technique to learn how to create and refine both closed-ended and open-ended questions. They then view West of the West's...

Class members investigate how positive and negative numbers are useful in the real world. Individuals first read a short passage and identify terms indicating positive and negative numbers. They consider situations involving positive...

What's the difference? Scholars analyze the similarities and differences between introductory and concluding paragraphs. Then, using a model essay as a guide, they write their draft position papers.