Unit Plan
Pearson

Unlocking and Exploring Folktales

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
Designed with many of the Common Core standards in mind, this 10-lesson unit is brimming with ELL strategies, teacher's notes, and the best of core instructional methods for teaching the common elements of folktales, and exploring...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cherokeee Myth: Origin of Strawberries

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders read a Cherokee myth about the origin of strawberries. After reading the story, they add another chapter to it and read their additions to the class. Or, as a group activity, they each write a few sentences and then pass...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cinderella Stories

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students watch the original 1957 television production of Rodgers and Hammerstein's CINDERELLA starring Julie Andrews. They write their "own" version of the beloved fairy tale. However, theirs have a twist.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Creation Stories

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students read and research American Indian creation stories as a way to understand the origins of American Literature. They conduct Internet research utilizing Internet search engines. They create an online report page as well as write...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Origin of the Modern Olympic Games

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students using a Venn diagram, compare and contrast the modern and ancient Olympic games. They write essays and construct timelines about the games. Students, using various items, create tools for a new Olympic game and write the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Writing Myths

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students read and write myths. In this world mythology lesson, students read and analyze myths from various cultures and then recognize their attributes as they write their own myths that explain natural phenomena.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cinderella Stories

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students read and compare Cinderella stories using a worksheet. They write and illustrate original tales with a twist.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Origin of the Purple Heart

For Teachers 6th - 7th
Students research the origin of the Purple Heart. In this writing lesson plan students research personal stories of friends or family who have received the Purple Heart. Students then design their own armed forces award complete...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Adventure Writing: Oregon's Landscape as a Setting

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students identify geographical features of different regions encountered by migrants on the Oregon trail. Students research how the Oregon landscape may have affected life and 19th century westward migration. Students write a narrative...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

New Year's Etymology and Writing Activity

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students investigate the history and etymology of New Year's Day. They listen to a teacher-led lecture about the background of New Year's Day, design an image of Janus, and write a story in the first person telling what Janus might say...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Harcourt Story: Eleanor and Amelia Go for a Ride

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders are introduced to a list of vocabulary words as it relates to the story Eleanor and Amelia Go for a Ride and a use graphic organizer to clarify the meaning of the text. In this "Eleanor and Amelia Go for a Ride"...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Translation Lesson to help Students Improve Vocabulary and Writing Style

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students translate an entire Internet page from English into a target language. In small groups, they create a short story or document in their native tongue or find an Internet page in their own tongue that they translate into English.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Details: Writer's Workshop Mini-Lesson

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Students read the story I Know a Lady by Charlotte Zolotow. They discuss the details from the story. Students draw an illustration of what they expect their Thanksgiving dinner table will look like. They list details that describe their...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Once Upon a Time: Writing Stories about Reading

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students read a New York Times article to examine strong first person voice in essays about reading. They write their own first person essays about some aspect of reading, participate in peer review, and re-writing.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Writing tall Tales

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students become familiar with the origins of the tall tale.  In this Tall tale technology activity, students complete worksheets to plan a tall tale.  Students write their tall tales and put it on the computer in KidPix.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Fairy Tale: Italian Folklore

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed
Students work in groups to write an original fairy tale in Italian. They research the components of a fairy tale, compare and contrast fairy tales with myths and follow an outline to write a complete, 15-20 page fairy tale.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Stone Soup

For Teachers 1st
First graders examine the use of logic, deduction, and inference to determine the answers to riddles. They listen to a teacher read aloud of Heather Forest's, Stone Soup before discussing the story which gauges their comprehension....
Writing
E Reading Worksheets

Don't Tell. Show!

For Students 3rd - 8th
As part of a study of narrative writing, young story tellers are asked to revise 20 telling sentences and create showing ones.
PPT
Curated OER

Creating Characters in Storytelling

For Teachers 4th - 6th
In this six-slide presentation, pupils are coached to used strong verbs and adverbs to help them create impact and interest in their original story writing. Other tips include: using paragraphs for each part of the story, using similes...
Writing
Curated OER

Printable Story Starter: Snow Leopard

For Students 3rd - 4th
This writing prompt about a hungry snow leopard provides students with the beginning of a story, including characters, a setting, and a conflict that the student can complete. The student can then compose an original middle and end of...
Unit Plan
Curated OER

Tom Thumb Stories From Around the World

For Teachers 1st
Students read Tom Thumb story versions from around the world. They locate the country on a map. They compare and contrast the stories and analyze common elements found in fairytales. They create a finger puppet and write about being...
Activity
College Board

The Departure

For Teachers 8th Standards
Scholars learn about the Hero's Journey as they read Ray Bradbury's "The Drummer Boy of Shiloh." They analyze the story's structure and narrative techniques. Finally, they write summaries of the text's central idea and use their...
Activity
Schools Linking Network & Lifeworlds Learning

How Do We All Live Together?

For Teachers K - 5th Standards
Explore the concepts of community and point of view with these activities complementing the children's book Voices in the Park by Anthony Browne. Following a class reading of the story, ask students to either draw a map of the...
Lesson Plan
American Statistical Association

Tell it Like it is!

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Scholars apply prior knowledge of statistics to write a conclusion. They summarize using correct academic language and tell the story of the data.