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Curated OER
Writing a Letter to Johnny Appleseed
Third graders write a letter to Johnny Appleseed describing how they use technology in their daily life and the advantages and disadvantages of using technology.
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Flat Stanley, a Literature Lesson Plan Transformed into a Multiculturalized and ESOL Strategy-Infused Lesson Plan
Third graders complete a variety of reading and writing activities related to the book "Flat Stanley." They create an illustration and write a short summary for each chapter, and write a letter and send a "Flat Stanley" to a friend or...
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Letter Writing - Formal
Although rarely used these days, letter writing is still a form of writing reviewed in schools. After examining written letters, middle schoolers discuss characteristics of a formal letter and its parts. They choose a famous person to...
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The Personal Letter: The Outsiders
After completing S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders, eighth graders compose a personal letter to their teacher detailing what they liked about the novel and the activities assigned during the course of the unit. A clever way to get feedback,...
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Book Letters
Learners study language. In this writing lesson, students listen to a story and then compose a friendly letter, about the book, to a friend. They work independently to compose their letter depicting what happened in the story,...
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Giving Thanks for Food and Farms
Sarah Stewart’s The Gardener and Food from Farms by Nancy Dickmann display the importance of community farms. After reading these short picture books, class members draw connections between farms and the food we eat each day. As a...
Civil War Trust
Civil War Slang
Introduce a lesson on Civil War slang to your class of fresh fish. After looking at pictures from the Civil War and examining the list of slang terms, young historians write a letter to a family member as if they are a Union soldier or a...
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Descriptive Writing: Using Art to Inspire description
Write with the senses! Try using art to inspire writers to consider all of the senses. Here, the class is divided in half. Each group looks at one of two images, imagines the senses that would be engaged, and records answers to five...
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Writing letters
First graders participate in a teacher demonstration instructional activity of the five main parts of a friendly letter including the heading, the salutation, the body, the closing, and the signature. They write a friendly letter to...
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The 3 Little Pigs
Second graders create new endings to The Three Little Pigs. They read and discuss The True Story of the Three Little Pigs and compare it to the original version. After comparing the two versions, they write a friendly letter to the wolf...
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Alien Pen Pals
Students write a friendly letter to an Alien Pen Pal including details about the planet Earth.
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Where in the World is Flat Stanley?
Second graders analyze the proper form of a friendly letter and send flat Stanley letters all over the United States. In this letter writing lesson plan, 2nd graders read the book Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown and create their own Flat...
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Developing a Topic for Writing Using an Idea Web
Teach your upper graders how to use an idea web to develop a topic for writing. After reading a variety of stories about friendship (a list of stories with the theme of friendship is included), model using an idea web. Class members...
Council for Economic Education
Satisfaction Please! (Part 1)
The topic of consumerism seems easy to those who participate actively in the US economy, but pupils who are new to economics may see the idea as foreign. Help them understand their rights as consumers and what to expect when interacting...
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Plankton Parade
Plankton isn't just a tiny cartoon character, it's also a very important food source for animals around the world. Budding scientists discuss the types and functions of plankton, including where they are found, how they are caught, and...
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A South African Storm
Students read "A South African Storm" by Allison Howard and participate in a class discussion that examines Howard's letter for both content and writing form. They write a letter using some of the techniques they identified in Howard's.
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Dear Miss Florence: Writing Letters To the Boardinghouse for Artists
Imagine being one of the painters in 1910 at the Lyme Art Colony in Connecticut. Using the Florence Griswold Museum's on-line resources to gather information about the daily life of artists at the boardinghouse, learners write a letter...
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Preparing a Personal Letter
Young scholars examine the parts of a personal letter. In this language arts lesson plan, students view examples of personal letters and write a personal letter.
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To Whom It May Concern! Writing for a Variety of Audiences
Elementary learners write friendly letters with the same subject to two contrasting readers or audiences. They choose words and phrases that will be the most effective for the audience they are trying to reach. They read both letters and...
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Consumer Scams
Letter writing may be outdated but it's a great way to practice English conventions, grammar, and spelling. The class researches consumer scams, then writes a letter about them. They each choose a scam to write about paying close...
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Environmentally Friendly
What can your pupils do to promote better conditions for wildlife? After researching issues around wildlife management, class members use the Internet to locate three different organizations devoted to protecting wildlife. They then...
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Aloha From the King
Through this activity pupils learn about King Kamehameha I, and letter writing. It begins with an overview of Hawaiian history, with an emphasis on King Kamehameha I, and then goes on to a letter writing activity. Each person writes a...
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Writing and Research with a Manatee Theme
Students use Internet research methods to find information about manatees. They write a story about a manatee, told through the manatee's eyes, and also a letter to an environmental group, thanking them for what they do to protect the...
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Letter to Self: A Personal Time Capsule
Seventh graders identify the parts of a friendly letter and write a letter to themselves as a part of a time capsule. In this letter writing lesson, 7th graders identify the five parts of a letter and write a friendly letter to...