Curated OER
Reading a Comparison-Contrast Essay
Turn your passive readers into active readers with an engaging lesson on reading informational text. Focused on compare and contrast structured essays, the activity prompts elementary learners to jot down questions and think-aloud...
Curated OER
Summary Lesson Plans
Students can learn how to write summaries with the help of graphic organizers, and summarization lessons.
Curated OER
PICTURE READING - PARAGRAPH WRITING
Students investigate the elements found in a media image. The image is used to compose a descriptive paragraph. They exchange papers to discuss the writing and make changes using constructive criticism. Students also make connections...
Mr. Mansour
Mouse and the Motorcycle: Chapter 1-3
Get the facts straight with a reading quiz on the first three chapters of Beverly Cleary's The Mouse and the Motorcycle. The questions address details from the plot and provides a writing prompt to predict what will happen next in the book.
Curated OER
Fairy Tale Book Report Form
Motivate you class with this resource. Learners read a fairy tale and then fill out this book report. They identify the name of the fairy tale, the author, the illustrator, and the setting on each of the blank lines. Then, they fill in a...
Curated OER
Beacons of Light
Students research Internet sites for lighthouses. In this lighthouses lesson, students learn facts about lighthouses in the United States. Students complete a related worksheet and share their information with the class.
Curated OER
Coming To America
Students investigate the history of America with the help of children's literature. The story is structured as a timeline that begins at the time of Columbus and progresses to the present. The teacher reads the story with the class and...
Curated OER
Oreo Cookie Writing
Students explore the concept of response writing. In this writing lesson plan, Oreo cookies are used as motivational tool and writing prompt. Students develop a summary of the events that took place when the Oreos were given out.
Curated OER
Trait Variations for Survival
Young learners examine how different traits could give one organism an advantage over another. In groups, they view two different organisms in different environments. To end the lesson, they complete a Venn Diagram on the two organisms...
Curated OER
Reading to Learn: How Do We Sum That Up?
Students explore the topic of summarizing. They read the book, Dolphins at Daybreak, to practice summarizing. They determine what information is important and choose sentences to summarize the passages they read. They write a summary...
Curated OER
Get the Facts
Students summarize nonfiction text. After reviewing the highlight and cross out process for reading in order to summarize, students independently read a nonfiction article. They write a summary paragraph using the three step process...
Curated OER
Summing it all Up...In Your Own Words
Students observe and demonstrate the steps to identifying the main ideas of a text. They listen to the teacher read a paragraph and model the steps of summarizing the main idea. Students then independently read a different paragraph...
Curated OER
The Bear Facts About Summarization
Students practice summarizing techniques in this lesson. They listen as the teacher reads from a non-fiction article, and the class creates a story map to highlight the most important facts from the article. They use the map to write a...
Curated OER
Summarization Know How
Students summarize a piece of text nonfiction text. After reviewing the correct way to read and summarize, students independently read a nonfiction article. They write a summary paragraph using the process outlined by the instructor...
Curated OER
Let's Sum It Up
Students summarize a selected piece of nonfiction text as a group. After reviewing the instructors preferred method for summarizing information by identifying the main idea and supporting details, groups write a summary paragraph of a...
Curated OER
Summing It All Up
Students summarize a selected piece of text nonfiction text. After reviewing the correct way to read silently, students read a nonfiction article. They write a summary paragraph using a concept map and the process outlined by the...
Curated OER
What's It All About?
Students summarize nonfiction text. After reviewing the process for reading in order to summarize, students independently read a nonfiction article. They write a summary paragraph and discuss the process for summarization with the...
Curated OER
Summarizing the Good Stuff
Students summarize a selected piece of text nonfiction text. After reviewing the correct way to read silently, students read a nonfiction article. Working in groups, they write a summary paragraph using the five step process outlined by...
E Reading Worksheets
Main Idea Worksheet 4
Does your class or do individual learners need more practice determining the main idea of a passage of informational text? Here is a learning exercise containing seven exercises that asks kids to read short paragraphs, summarize the...
E Reading Worksheets
Main Idea with Robots
Androids, cyborgs, and robonauts? Kids are sure to be engaged by the thematically related passages on a reading comprehension worksheet that asks them to summarize the passage in one sentence, and then develop an appropriate title that...
For the Teachers
Main Idea Outline
Find the main idea in an informational text with a versatile lesson. Three levels of differentiation help you implement the strategy in any age or class level, based on the ability and objectives of your learners.
Minnesota Literacy Council
Scientific Method
Here is a resource with a descriptive approach to explaining the scientific method. It's simple, but effective for both introduction and reinforcement of this concept.
Curated OER
Fun with Summarizing
Students practice summarization by creating a story map. After reading Freckle Juice, students working in groups, create a story map of the main events of the story. Groups use their story maps to summarize a chapter of the story and...
Curated OER
Summarizing What Counts
Students summarize a selected piece of text nonfiction text. After reviewing the correct way to read silently, students read a nonfiction article. Working in groups, they write a summary paragraph using questions provided by the instructor.