Curated OER
I'm a Changed Pig
Introduce your class to fairy tales with this lesson. After reading the fractured fairy tale, "The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig," third, fourth, and fifth graders write a personal narrative as a response to the fairy tale....
Historical Thinking Matters
Spanish-American War: 3 Day Lesson
Why did the United States choose to invade Cuba in 1898? As part of a 3-day lesson, your young historians will first develop working hypotheses to answer this question, then work with a variety of historical primary source documents that...
Curated OER
Making Movies to Demonstrate a Process
Young scholars use Windows Movie Maker to complete a how-to description activity. In this how-to and technology lesson, students create a slide show using Windows Movie Maker. Young scholars bring in the materials for the demonstration,...
Curated OER
Final Topic Selection
Read The Quicksand Book by Tomie dePaola while taking notes about the story. Perform a read-aloud, and work your way through the text with your youngsters. With this plan, learners also write about ideas from a previous day, and detail...
Curated OER
Super Summarizer!!!
Emerging readers summarize a nonfiction text using a five step process. After a brief demonstration of the five-step method for summarizing text, they read a nonfiction article and write their own summary. A checklist of each summary is...
California Department of Education
Due Dates, Deadlines, and Decisions
Get high schoolers thinking about their post-secondary plans with a lesson plan that teaches them how to navigate the application and financial aid process. They create a junior/senior calendar identifying time-sensitive tasks,...
Curated OER
Summarization Superstars
How do you read when you know you're going to be summarizing a text? Summarize a nonfiction text with your upper elementary schoolers. Your pupils independently read a nonfiction article and write a summary paragraph using the six-step...
Curated OER
Synthesis of Information
Locating and synthesizing information is an essential part of the research process but can be overwhelming for many young writers. Eliminate some of the stress and confusion, this resource suggests, by separating these steps. To focus...
Curated OER
Writing an Autobiography
Students identify life goals as they write an autobiography. They write a strong introduction for their autobiography. Students write a sequences of events using their Life Map as a graphic organizer. They write facts accurately...
Curated OER
About the Author: Kate DiCamillo
Students examine the writing process of Kate DiCamillo, the author of "Because of Winn-Dixie." They read author's comments, watch a slideshow narrated by the author, complete a free-write activity, and discuss Kate DiCamillo's top five...
Curated OER
Essay Prewriting Lesson Plan
Students explain the steps to making a sandwich to their teacher while he/she completes the steps. After the demonstration, they identify any part of the process that could use clarification. They are introduced to the practice of...
Curated OER
The Canadian Expedition
Fifth graders research and write a pen pal letter about the geography of a Canadian town. Students create a script for a phone call with their pen pal and perform it with a friend for the class.
Curated OER
Lesson Five:Determining Ideas and Adding Details
Second graders create their own writing pieces. In this narrative instructional activity, 2nd graders use a graphic organizer to come up with ideas and details. They practice writing topic sentences.
Curated OER
Summertime Travel
Third graders write about a summer event they participated in. In this paragraph writing lesson, the teacher models how to write about a place they have visited. Students then write their own paragraphs. Students will point out on the...
Curated OER
Proofreading and Revising Articles for a Class Newsletter
Students submit their newsletter articles and a newsletter team proofreads them. Revisions are suggested. Writers revise their articles. Using a template from a word processing program, articles are typed in final form.
Curated OER
Ultimate Writing and Creativity Center
Third graders engage in a writing lesson on constructing an introductory paragraph and is also a literature extension activity to be used after reading Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.
Curated OER
Design a New Dollar Coin
Students create a design for a new coin after researching people who have impacted history. Students must write a persuasive essay about why this person should be memorialized on the dollar coin and present their person to the class.
Curated OER
Formal Essay Process
Students identify and use the four types of brainstorming techniques used in essay prewriting. They select an appropriate attention getting statement to attract the essay reader. Students explore the purpose and methods of selecting...
Curated OER
Mini Research Report
Sixth graders select a topic to research. They gather information from at least 3 sources and take notes according to the categories chosen. Students write a rought draft using the notes. They edit, revise and publish the information....
Curated OER
Creative Writing
Fourth graders participate in an observation hike in this lesson. They orally share observations from their hike, and develop a paragraph in a shared writing exercise. Finally, the write their paragraph about process writing in their...
Curated OER
A Court Case with Real Appeal
Students analyze the United States' current appellate process, with a critical eye focused on possible inequities within the system. They then write letters to a Manhattan district attorney giving their recommendations on how he should...
Curated OER
Citing Sources
Fifth graders demonstrate how to cite sources when writing a research paper. In this research writing lesson, 5th graders view a demonstration on how to cite sources using an included graphic organizer. Students practice citing sources...
Annenberg Foundation
Service Learning in the Social Studies
Active Citizenship Today (ACT) is a "unique social studies service learning program" that requires students to learn about the public policy associated with community issues they identify in their local community. This web site provides...