First and second graders explore the importance of having a beginning, middle, and end when writing stories. In this story writing instructional activity, students write short stories using the story diamond as a guide. They invite their...

Second and third graders match the five pairs of guide words to the words in a list that should appear on the same page in a dictionary. They look at a second set of five pairs of guide words and circle the word (from three choices) that...

Students discuss their favorite book. In this book discussion lesson, students name the title and tell what makes the book special. Students also review the setting, plot, conflict, and resolution. Students make a book that tells all of...

A great addition to a multicultural unit or curriculum study, use the set of questions based on Pam Muñoz Ryan's Mice and Beans to engage learners and enhance their reading experience. As youngsters read, they...

Young readers bring characters to life by working in small groups to script and perform stories that contain a community concept. Detailed questions and activities are outlined for the class. Consider having your groups create...

If you are reading Judy Freeman's Oh No! or your class loves animals, use a reader's theater exercise to bring the story to life. After assigning 12 parts to your young actors, have them act out the story with a script that will be...

Teaching young learners about similes is easy as pie with this primary grade language arts lesson. Following a class reading of the children's book, Quick as a Cricket by Audrey Wood, young readers learn the definition of a simile...

Young readers travel back to the time of the dinosaurs in this literature unit based on the story Dinosaurs Before Dark. Intended for use with upper-elementary special education students, this resource provides reading...

What a pair! Older pupils interview younger ones and use what they learn to write a short, illustrated storybook that features the youngster as the main character. The youngster responds with a thank-you note in which they identify their...

Visit the Magic Treehouse and take your class on a trip through time with a reading of the children's book Mummies in the Morning. Using the story to spark an investigation into Egyptian culture, this literature unit engages...

Reinforce reading comprehension and story mapping skills with the help from a story, Gingerbread Baby by Jen Brett. Individuals discover new vocabulary, make predictions, retell main events, respond to reading using a graphic...

Reading scary stories on Halloween is frightfully good fun! As elementary learners read several stories for the holiday, they choose a favorite and create a decorative garland representing the characters and setting elements found...

Young writers get a jump start on story telling by selecting a plot, a setting, and multiple character cards and then use these basic elements to create a tale.

How can you tell when a story takes place? Use context clues to infer the time of day and seasons of five short reading passages. Kids then note each passage's time period as daytime or nighttime, as well as winter or summer.

Follow any story and record each step on the graphic organizer provided here. There are lines to record the title, author, and illustrator, boxes where pupils can fill in character and setting, and six boxes in which learners can note...

Cut magazine pictures into three sections, having your youngsters piece the pictures back together. With this fun activity, they discover the importance of sequencing a story. Then they use a fun template (shaped like a burger) to write...

Help young learners understand friendship and empathy with two reading comprehension lessons. Each lesson focuses on a story about a child with autism, and encourages readers to compare and contrast the characters to each other and to...

Young elementary learners listen to the story Red & Blue and participate in a collaborative project where they paint a picture using abstract shapes. Then they interpret classmates' abstract shapes and write or tell a story about...

The simple instructional techniques described in this plan will help young readers learn and practice basic reading skills and strategies. Before reading, introduce your readers to the meaning of main character, setting, and plot. Then...

ESL/ELD learners are provided extra support with the Houghton Mifflin Harcourt thematic units on silly stories by this packet of activities, exercises, and practice sets.

Get your little readers moving with a fun lesson about Eric Carle's Little Cloud. After reading the book together, they engage in a series of locomotor and manipulative activities to illustrate how different elements of the story...

In this story elements worksheet, students complete a story map graphic organizer that contains four boxes for students to fill in information. The spaces include characters, setting and problem and solution.

You've found the first grade Common Core jackpot! English Language Arts and Math Common Core standards are addressed in a 74-page packet complete with standard text printables, activities, cut-outs for the classroom, and worksheets. 

Focus on vocabulary, comprehension, and analysis while reading A Weave of Woods, a colorful picture book by Robert D. San Souci. Young learners use worksheets to preview, predict, practice paraphrasing, and make comparisons. The...