Young scholars define and use new vocabulary associated with the elements of art. As a class, they brainstorm different ways in which we communicate with one another. In groups, they view different pieces of art from the Native American...

Students explore artistic design by viewing video clips on the Internet. In this blanket making lesson, students view tutorial videos in which they discover the creative process in button blanket designing. Students create their designs...

Here is an effective way to have your charges practice and model important listening skills. After a short review of effective active listening concepts, such as using body language, summarizing what the other person said, and asking...

Young scholars investigate the world of nonverbal communication by analyzing body language around the world.  In this cultural communication lesson, students research the Bulgarian language and how we could easily misinterpret their...

Bring writing to life with this lesson in which elementary and middle schoolers create a display of the imagery they identify in a series of Gary Paulsen books. They read the suggested materials, identify imagery and descriptive...

Add to the narrative writing experience. Elementary or middle school writers listen to the teacher read a descriptive passage, then reread the same passage silently. They highlight sensory details and figurative language, then orally...

Fifth graders explore the different types of Indian languages used today in the United States.

An examination of the figurative language in Gwendolyn Brooks’ To Young Readers challenges your writers to think about the richness of language. Ask your class why Brooks says, “Good books are bandages.” This discussion of alliteration,...

Practice the skill of compare and contrast. First, show learners the different pairs of artwork in the project packet (included). Then, each learner chooses one of the pairs and finds the similarities and differences between the...

In this music and speech worksheet, students find similarities between language and music. Students also tell about their own language. Students also may write the 7 music letters.

Learners discover new art techniques by examining the work of Paul Gauguin and his use of opposite colors.  In this art analysis lesson, students investigate the different perspectives and colors used in classic post impressionist...

Students discover depth in photographs or paintings by creating a picture from scrap paper.  In this art analysis lesson, students practice creating depth by placing different elements higher or lower on a picture.  Students...

Guide your readers to explore character traits. As a class, discuss and record the traits of a commonly-known fairy tale character. Then do the same with the main character in the class novel. Finally, have learners use magazines...

Work with your department or on your own to create organized unit plans that connect to all parts of the Common Core standards. The three-page template includes space to summarize the unit, list standards for each category of the ELA...

Practice expository and creative writing with your class. Pupils use magazines to find pictures, cut them out, and create a collage. This work of art is then used as a writing prompt. They describe the collage in either a creative or...

Young scholars examine a piece of art to find objects and symbols used by the artist. In this visual art lesson, students look at Jaun Quick-to-See Smith's, "Trade Canoe for Don Quixote." They look for symbols and items that show the...

Poems carved into the wooden walls of the Asian immigrant prisons on Angel Island provide upper elementary graders an opportunity to study not only the story behind the poems but to also focus on the figurative language employed by the...

Get ready to read The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963 with a lesson about historical fiction. Spanning several centuries, the resource prompts learners to guess the historical era of a story based on a word or phrase...

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder," is a popular phrase in our society. The lesson plan here puts the phrase to the test as pupils explore what truly is beautiful through a study of some Japanese folk art. A careful examination of...

Students explore the language of Shakespeare. In this literature lesson plan, students examine words invented by Shakespeare as they interpret their meanings in drawings. Students pantomime the meanings and then write a short story...

Explore poetry, personification, and multiple languages with a poetry reading and writing lesson. After the teacher reads the poem to the class, a discussion about personification follows. The class then writes a collaborative poem...

What makes up a society? Read a passage about culture and community and answer five reading comprehension questions.

Even though this is technically an art lesson, haiku poetry is actually the main focus! Learners view photographs of Japanese tea caddies. They list five descriptive words for the caddies, then write haiku poems using the caddies as...