Curated OER
What Do You See at the Pond?
With What Do You See at the Pond?, young readers explore pond life and practice reading strategies. Learners first make predictions and then read the simple story independently. After a second read-through with a partner, kids come...
Curated OER
Student Dictionary
Third graders practice dictionary skills. They use a digital camera and insert pictures from a floppy disk into a document. They play a game in which they are handed an anonymous definition of each other and must find each other in class.
Curated OER
Who Could Have Been Who
Can word choice affect a candidate's likeability? Use a New York Times lesson to explore how a presidential candidate's likeability factor can fluctuate in public opinion polls. Young readers choose a presidential election from...
EnLiST
Trap Your Own Insects: What’s in Your Backyard?
Young entomologists construct three types of insect traps—pitfall, pollinator, and panel—before setting their traps out and observing what they caught. They then observe what types of insects the different traps attract.
Curated OER
A Positive Spin
Study word choice and connotation in advertising. Readers examine campaign ads, both negative and positive, from the 2006 mid-term election before discussing an article and analyze a campaign of any candidate they choose. Finally,...
Curated OER
What's Really True? Discovering the Fact and Fiction of Autism
Youngsters investigate autism and autism spectrum disorders. They access a variety of websites which present information on ASD's, and assess how accurate the information they've read actually is. They work in groups and utilize...
Curated OER
Latin Lingo
Did you know that the Greek and Latin root words that make up the scientific name of a creature often describe the animal? All the root words on this list relate to whales and dolphins. Learners examine the scientific names for dolphins...
Curated OER
Introducing New Vocabulary Words
Using context clues, synonyms, antonyms, dictionaries, and original sentences, middle schoolers work through a new list of vocabulary words. A SMART board file guides them through the process of learning and reinforcing the words. After...
Curated OER
Beautiful Noise Poetry
"What a beautiful noise comin' up from the street; got a beautiful sound, it's got a beautiful beat..." Use Neil Diamond's "Beautiful Noise" to guide your class through a Six Trait writing activity, in which they write an original poem...
Curated OER
PE Word Wall
Increase your middle schoolers' physical education vocabulary and knowledge of the rules of different sports by posting on the word wall. You will have to do all the work and remember to laminate things, so you only have to do it once. A...
Curated OER
Painting Places with Words Using John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men
Useful in an Of Mice and Men unit, or in a unit that focuses on descriptive writing, this lesson prompts young authors to impersonate John Steinbeck's writing style in the opening passages of the novel. A Six Trait writing activity...
Curated OER
What a Character!
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...
First Stage
A Charlie Brown Christmas
Charlie Brown may not feel the Christmas spirit this year, but your elementary students can use the season to practice important cross-curricular skills! A set of worksheets and activities based on A Charlie Brown Christmas guide...
Curated OER
Budgeting: You Can't Manage What You Don't Know
Learners discuss budgets. In this mathematics lesson, students watch an episode of Biz Kid$ about budgeting, participate in a guided group discussion, and create a pamphlet to teach others how to budget their money. Extension activities...
Curated OER
Borrowing Narrative Skills from Mr. Fletcher: Using a "Prompts in Reverse" Technique to Inspire Your Writers
Help your class find their writing voices with this lesson which uses the work of Ralph Fletcher to guide a "Prompt in Reverse" activity. Using the chapter "First Pen" from Fletcher's Marshfield Dreams, learners decipher what they...
Curated OER
What Could Be Better Than This?
Young scholars read the book What Could Be Better Than This and complete a word search, poems, and write an adventure. In this What Could Be Better Than This lesson plan, students read about an even that changes someone's life.
Curated OER
"Where in the West" Guided Reading Lesson
Students complete a vocabulary chart, review proper/common nouns, discuss and review comparative adjectives and make "self to text" connections before reading. For this language arts lesson, comprehension questions are completed during...
Curated OER
A Call for Change
"Come gather round people, wherever you roam..." Bring the voice of Bob Dylan to your class with this lesson plan, which takes Dylan's song "The Times They Are A-Changing" and analyzes both the message and voice in the lyrics. Your class...
Captain Planet Foundation
Square Foot Fall Garden
First graders learn the basic needs of plants and identify geometric shapes while planting a fall garden. Combining math and science in one activity, the resource guides kids through starting their class garden as they...
Curated OER
Schoolyard Field Guide
Fourth graders observe, plan, research, and create a field guide for the trees that are in their schoolyard. In this trees lesson plan, 4th graders make careful observations of what they see around their school and create a guide.
Curated OER
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?
Learners read the story Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? and read companion poems, make a bear book, blend sounds, and more. For this guided reading lesson plan, students take 5 days to read the book.
Curated OER
Egyptian Symbols: What story do they tell?
Students create a stele to represent what symbols are the most important to them. In this symbols lesson plan, students learn about Egyptian symbols, and then put their own important symbols into model magic clay according to their size...
Curated OER
Work, What are My Options
Students explore job opportunities in their chosen career field. In this career exploration activity, students complete a portfolio using the career investigation in the STAR event link. Students present the project to the class and...
Teach Engineering
Watch Out for the Blind Spots
Applying engineering concepts to the field of medicine, pupils design a device to help test peripheral sight. The class learns and follows a specific design process for engineers before separating into groups; each group builds...