EngageNY
Grade 9 ELA Module 4, Unit 1, Lesson 12
Anna McMullen's opinion piece "Bangladesh Factory Collapse: Who Really Pays for our Cheap Clothes?" offers readers another opportunity to examine how writers craft and support their arguments. After reading McMullen's article, class...
Curated OER
Don't Flick Your Bic!
Students research the ban on lighters and how it is being enforced and interview community members who smoke, especially travelers who have or might be stopped for carrying lighters. Students then write an opinion piece about the situation.
Curated OER
Stepping in: Good Samaritan or Fool?
Young scholars write an opinion piece, including facts of this situation and any other statistics about helping others during a fight. Students offer suggestions about how to break up a fight, or when not to try (based on what national...
Curated OER
How to Write a Five Paragraph Essay
What are the necessary components of a five paragraph essay? How does one interest their reader? These questions are answered with this 12-slide PowerPoint which details components of the introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion....
Curated OER
Voter Fraud: Are Ghosts Going To The Polls
High schoolers research background material about voting in their community. They interview local/county election officials to see what is going on in the community. They also interview teachers, and students to determine if they are...
Curated OER
School Newspaper
Fifth graders run a school newspaper on a school website and discover how to use various literary forms as they relate to the writing process. For this school newspaper lesson, 5th graders synthesize information from different sources,...
Curated OER
Supporting Opinions - Ken from Japan
Middle schoolers write a compare and contrast essay. In this writing skills lesson, students learn about life in Japan through a video of a Japanese third grader. Middle schoolers use notes written on the video to write a...
Curated OER
A Day at the Beach: How to Keep Our Planet Clean
Students write a persuasive essay based on cleaning up the coast and other philanthropic values. In this writing lesson, students determine what is needed in order to keep the planet clean, and offer solutions to the International...
Dream of a Nation
Writing a Narrative Essay
Imagine using narrative essays to encourage change. This multi-week unit plan does just that. After reading a series of articles from Tyson Miller's Dream of a Nation: Inspiring Ideas for a Better America, class members examine the...
Curated OER
Young Learner's Writing Workshop 1
Students become familiar with writing an essay in English. They are given an overview of basic essay writing styles. Students develop skills that are used when analyzing texts as the basis of their essays.
California Education Partners
My Five Senses by Aliki
An assessment designed to examine scholars' reading comprehension skills takes place over three days. Starting with a read-aloud of My Five Senses by Aliki, learners then take notes and discuss their most memorable moments with...
Curated OER
Writing a Book Review
Introduce literary analysis, writing skills, and purposeful reading with a book review. Pupils answer five questions that ask about plot, characters, language used, story elements, and the main character. This is a wonderful way to start...
Curated OER
Amos and Boris: Text Study
Twenty insightful questions follow a read aloud of the story, Amos and Boris by William Steig. Scholars then show what they know through completion of a cause and effect chart, reading fluency assessment, and a written...
Curated OER
Express Your Opinion
Learners explore local, state, and national levels of government and discuss which level of government they should contact to get information, express their opinions, or get help on specific issues.
Curated OER
Aztec Myths: Writing Editorials
Middle schoolers write an editorial giving an opinion of whether or not Quetzalcoatl has arrived and if so, what the Aztecs should do. They discuss whether or not they believe Quetzalcoatl is a god or a man, and use an Editorial...
Polk Bros Foundation
Comprehensive Nonfiction Reading Questions
Analyze any nonfiction text with the set of questions on this sheet. Class members practice inferring by noting the main idea and purpose of a passage. They also analyze an opinion in the passage and write a brief summary. See the...
Achievement Strategies
CCSS Unpacked Learning Targets for Reading and Writing History/Social Studies
How do all the lessons and activities you have planned for your class align to Common Core State Standards? This can feel like a very daunting question. Help ease the process by referencing a template that not only lists and...
Curated OER
Writing American Diaries
Young scholars examine the concept of historical perspective in writing. They read the diary of Sally Wister, a young Patriot from Philadelphia during the Revolutionary Era. Additionally, they must include different points of view in...
Virginia Department of Education
Writing and Research Using Counterclaims
Introduce your high school scholars as to how to use counterclaims in argument writing. Learners explore this skill with collaborative efforts and technology. Together they explore the pros and cons of homework and develop a thesis for...
Education Development Center
Writing Numerical Expressions—Hexagon Tables
Explore a basic pattern to practice writing expressions. In collaborative groups, learners examine a contextual pattern and write an expression to model it. The task encourages groups to describe the pattern in multiple ways.
Orlando Shakes
The Great Gatsby: Study Guide
Uncover the exciting world of the Roaring Twenties with The Great Gatsby study guide. Individuals become critics as they write a review of the production. Scholars also read historical information and analyze the differences between the...
Orlando Shakes
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde: Study Guide
Can science ever go too far? Learners explore this topic with the Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde study guide. They read about the connection between scientific experimentation in fiction and real life and then compare a scene from the novella...
Curated OER
Speak Write! Understanding the Hidden Meaning of Words
"Can the connotation of a word or phrase create bias or prejudice?" The activities in this SMART Board lesson are directed toward this question, which will be sure to incite lots of opinions and ideas. The SMART Board file guides them...
Weber State University
Quoting, Paraphrasing, & Summarizing
Tattoos and piercings. Here’s a PowerPoint that uses an article on the tattoo and piercing craze to engage viewers in a presentation about citing sources. The 14 slides focus on how to add credibility to writing by including and citing...