Beautiful illustrations and tender memories of cultural identity make Kam Mak's story My Chinatown an ideal resource for budding readers learning four vocabulary words in context: fortune, scraps,...

Are your scholars reading Jerry Spinelli's Maniac Magee? If so, use this textual analysis packet and activity guide to drive deeper thinking about the characters, create personal connections, and apply historical...

Hook kids into a study on poetry elements by asking them to bring in the lyrics to their favorite song. Discuss the elements in one or two songs (preferably that demonstrate rhyme, figurative language, or a repeating phrase). Groups do...

Start kids thinking about point of view and autobiographies by telling them a short story about your morning (first person), and then asking a volunteer to re-tell the story to you (second person). There are tips to help you tie this...

Here is a terrific lesson on poetry! Learners bring in the lyrics to their favorite song. A class discussion ensues regarding what makes a song "catchy." After analyzing the alliteration of the poems, learners read the poem "This...

Practice distinguishing biography from autobiography through point of view. Tell a brief story of your morning. Have a class member retell the story to you (using second person). And have another retell the story to the class (using...

Encourage more pun-derstanding of word play in your literary scholars as they explore Brian P. Cleary's book Rhyme and Punishment: Adventures in Wordplay. Although this isn't suggested, consider beginning this study by simply showing...

Many 12th graders will say they want to go to college, but they don't know how they'll pay for it. Prepare them for a life of learning by giving them the tools they need to get through school. After a financial aid debriefing session,...

It's easy enough to put energy in, but not so easy to use it up! Look at food labels with your young learners and help them understand the concept of calories in and calories out. Food eaten means calories in and exercise means calories...

Does having higher self esteem encourage learners to take better care of themselves? It absolutely does! Does having high self esteem mean that one likes everything about themselves? No, but that they like most things and can work to...

How many calories are needed each day? What foods have good calories? What happens to calories that don't get used? How many calories are in the different kinds of foods and drinks? How many calories do I need to do a certain activity?...

All physical activity requires energy. The more vigorous the physical activity, the more energy required to perform the activity. Sitting around requires energy. What? Yes, there are still physical things happening in the body, like...

Most of us like to play games, but knowing what to do when a game doesn't go the way one expects is a learned skills. Adolescents with behavioral disorders practice responding to a variety of situations that arise during game play. They...

Japanese architecture is rich in symbolism and culture. Critical thinkers engage in three activities intended to expose them to the beauty of Japan. They read through the book, Praise of Shadows by Junichiro Tanizaki and watch the...

British warm-up tag is a team dodgeball game. One ball, two teams. Run away from the person who has the ball in his hand to avoid being hit by the ball and eliminated from the game.  If you have the ball in your hands, you may not...

Round-up as many soccer balls for your team as possible. Hula-Hoops are scattered about equal distance from the center spot. The older the players, the farther away the Hula-Hoops should be from the center spot. There should be enough...

Get even your most reluctant pupils reading, writing, reciting, and maybe even enjoying poetry! A four day lesson, young writers learn about Golden Shovel poems: a poem format that uses borrowed words from other poems as the last words...

Divide the class up so there are five players on each team. Then scatter enough cones for soccer goals. Each team needs to have offensive players who will dribble and pass the soccer ball and try to score on all the other teams. They...

Using the provided tracing number worksheet, a pair of kindergartners will practice their adding skills. Player A will roll two die, add the sum, and then trace the sum on the worksheet. Player B will take a turn and do the same. The...

Here is a 19-page sample activity that uses an interesting format. It starts with an appetizer or activity to make reading the book James and the Giant Peach fun. Then it dives into the main course or core content instruction which...

A cross-curricular resource that takes the electoral votes and allows your learners to organize and analyze the data. Young voters can determine which states are more influential and interpret the dotplot provided for more data....

Foreshadowing, flashbacks, and imaginary places are the three topics of focus in this two-lesson packet written especially for the book, Bridge to Terabithia. Each lesson also comes with worksheets and activities to support student...

Have fun learning about fruits and vegetables with a game of pictionary! One team draws a fruit or vegetable on the board, while the other team collaborates to guess what it is. After the game, class members discuss where foods are grown...

Score a home run with this packet of information on the very first player of the Negro League to be elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame — cultural groundbreaker and sports legend Satchel Paige. These worksheets include a...