Students compose a creative writing piece based on a painting of a mythological scene. In this creative writing lesson,  students write about the scene in the painting and tie in  their original stories into tales from the life...

What's got 60 eyes, 150 fingers, and an endless number of ideas? Your language arts class! Challenge young writers to come up with clever riddles with an online poetry lesson.

Kids create leaf people out of sticks, glue, and leaves. They use their imagination to construct leaf people and then glue them onto construction paper. Tip: Extend this craft by incorporating writing. Have learners write a short story...

Sometimes short lesson outlines are enough to give you a great idea. Young writers draw any object inside an image of a jar, that doesn't belong in a jar. They can draw a tree, truck, or dinosaur. Tip: Have kids write a short story...

Explore the world of copyright law with a variety of activities to instill the importance of respecting creative property. Scholars watch an animated tale then take part in a grand conversation detailing the video's main idea, details,...

What can happen if you eat too much cafeteria food? Or wear dirty clothes every day? Or talk back to your mother? Use a lesson on humorous poems as a way for students to practice silly rhymes as fictional epitaphs.

If a bar of chocolate was on the floor, would you try to pick it up? What if it was covered with glue? The eighth lesson in an 11-part unit designed to accompany The Twits by Roald Dahl has scholars imagine crazy scenarios. The...

Learners write a funny story and illustrate it in a comic strip. In this comic strip lesson, students study comic strips and determine the plot of each story. Learners then write a short story and illustrate it using a comic strip...

Two different knights grace this stationery. There are lines provided for writing a story or summary and a box where pupils can mark down a title.

A reading of Roald Dahl’s Lamb to the Slaughter opens a discussion of justice and fairness. Using a Venn diagram and an Idea Wheel graphic organizer, class members consider the similarities and differences in these two terms. They then...

Students brainstorm animals with unusual characteristics such as a giraffe with a short neck or a zebra without stripes. They write paragraphs about their animals and work in peer editing groups to refine their stories.

Fourth graders study Chaucer as a master of details. Then, they create a short story linking unrelated details into a logical plot with a clear setting and established characters. This lesson has some excellent worksheets attached!

A video leads off this activity on fables, introducing the class to this important form of traditional storytelling. The group defines fable and hears an explanation of the origin of this type of folk tale. They summarize the story they...

Students discuss with teacher how to complete a short story and the elements necessary: characters, settings, themes, and plots. They then use the worksheet to complete the short story.

Students compose a short story working with partners. They create a beginning, middle, and an ending. Students brainstorm with their partners and create a creative short story.

Students choose a favorite animal and identify its prominent characteristics. They draw their favorite animal adding their own heads to animal bodies. Then they write a creative, detailed short story about themselves as a nonsense creature.

In this predictions worksheet, 4th graders guess what the book Black and White will be about based on the first line. Students answer questions related to the book's genre and story line. Students write and illustrate their own short...

Creative activities help bring literature alive. The first of a set of lessons designed to accompany selections from Theme 4: Problem Solvers uses activities such as skits, responses to music, and social studies projects. These...

Academics take turns as actors in an engaging poetry cafe. Elementary learners work in small groups to create original poems or stories addressing community issues and read their work in front of a live audience. Scholars also reflect...

Reinforce literacy skills using a six-sided die that focuses on phonics and story starters. Scholars roll, and show what they know about blends, plots, and more! 

Students analyze photographs, then create their own photo essays by using photos, magazine pictures or drawings to illustrate their stories.