Students read several fairy tales of Russian origin. They brainstorm common elements of a fairy tale and identify those elements in several examples. They retell a favorite fairy tale through a skit, oral storytelling, a sketch, or a...

Breathe life into a reading of the children's story Clever Jack Takes the Cake with this Reader's Theater script. Offering speaking roles for nine students plus a sound effects chorus, this is a great activity that engages the whole...

Students retell a story by filling out a record sheet. In this retelling lesson plan, students fill out a record sheet that gives them prompts about the beginning, middle, and end of a story.

Young scholars explore story structure. In this multicultural literacy lesson, students discuss common elements of folk tales and then listen to the story Tiger and the Big Wind: A Tale from Africa. Young scholars identify the problem...

Reading aloud is a great way to engage learners in pacing and pronunciation! They practice using voice, pitch and intonation correctly. The teacher introduces the lesson by example, correctly stressing punctuation and using appropriate...

Not by the hair on my chinny chin chin! Upper graders and middle schoolers read the story The Three Little Pigs and other tales related to the story from various points of view. They use the Internet to find more stories...

Explore the structure of narrative writing with this fun, collaborative lesson. Start by reading aloud a short story, asking small groups of learners to fill in key events on a large story board prepared on the class whiteboard....

Young scholars practice biographical writing after completing research on the subject.  In this journalism instructional activity, students read a story of an important person's life and discuss the important moments along the way....

Students identify a tangram. For this geometry lesson, students read Grandfather Tang's Story and retell each story using the tangrams on a flannel board. Students use tangrams to complete an included worksheet.

Learn how to summarize by identifying main ideas and supporting details. Readers cross out unimportant information as they read through a text. Is it a random detail? Cross it out! They then draw a concept map, placing the main idea in...

How did the ancient people of Egypt preserve their dead so well that their bodies are still recognizable today? Learn the painstakingly complex process they used for preservation. Young scholars read and summarize a narrative detailing...

Pupils sequence the story The Napping House by keeping trace of the characters in order. In this sequencing lesson plan, students also retell the story as they sequence.

Students create a storybook using vocabulary from the topic "urban and rural life". They write about past events in a children's story. They present their story to the class at an author's tea.

Fourth graders examine the new vocabulary associated with the book, There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly before listening to a teacher read aloud of the book. They complete a choral reading of the story, sequence it, and write...

This nine-page packet, the first in the series of support materials for the Houghton Mifflin Harcourt thematic units on journeys, contains enrichment activities for learners who have mastered the basic concepts of the lessons....

Students explore language arts by completing a graphic organizer in class. In this story structure lesson, students read the classic tale "The Three Little Pigs" and discuss the main characters, conflict and setting. Students complete a...

Having students use a rubric to score a piece of writing is an excellent practice. They read a passage titled, "Firefighters," and discuss different summaries that were written about it. They evaluate several summaries then score them...

Help your learners read a text and summarize it using their own words. The main idea and important details of an article are discussed before individuals write their summaries. To support discernment about what to include in a summary,...

Students practice summarizing text by retelling what they have read. They read selected, leveled passages and use enthusiastic and createive ways to members of their group. Students complete a journal entry documenting their experience...

In this retelling a story learning exercise, learners tell their family four things that happened in school and then write the events down in four sentences. Students read their sentences to their family and write down any questions they...

Explore the cultural heritage through of your class through reading, writing, and speaking exercises. They create illustrated mini-books that express their unique cultural and personal experiences. They share their stores with the class...

Explore children's literature by researching a book and it's author. Youngsters read the story The Mitten by Jan Brett and discuss the animals and characters mentioned in the story. Then, they practice retelling their favorite portion of...

After reading a short story, learners will create dances that show homophones and verbs. Their dance sequences involve three verbs and transition movements in between each verb. Tip: Have the class dance out the sequence of events from...