Fourth graders view examples of help-wanted ads as they plan and create their own writing in the fourteenth instructional activity of this unit on colonial trade. The engagement of the class is captured when the teacher shares an actual...

Does your language arts class have a hard time with writing transitions? Use this organizational writing lesson to create three effective transition sentences that middle schoolers will use in their research of renewable resources.

Middle schoolers aren't too young to feel strongly about politics, social issues, consumer rights, or environmental problems. Demonstrate the first steps toward social change with a project about action-oriented writing. Eighth...

As a summative assessment for this unit on colonial trade, fourth graders listen to and read informational texts in order to demonstrate their ability to take notes, write summaries, and draw connections. Young scholars first listen as...

I Have A Dream ... that after the lesson, all individuals master the reading, writing, researching, listening, and speaking skills the biography project helps them develop. Martin Luther King, Jr. serves as a topic example for a model...

How does one use a graphic organizer to plan writing? Introduce your writers to different types of graphic organizers by dividing the class into groups and assigning each group a particular organizer. Then, as they research chocolate...

In instructional activity 13 of this unit on colonial trade, young researchers learn about apprentices as they prepare to write help-wanted ads for the specific trade they have been researching. To begin, the class listens closely as the...

Want to explore the process of writing a persuasive essay and tie it in with the upcoming elections? Class members use Venn diagrams and the hamburger model of persuasive writing to write a five-paragraph essay on elections and...

Students create a graphic organizer and instructional rubric using word processing software. They conduct Internet research at the History Alive website, and publish an essay.

Enhance a unit on historical fiction with an engaging writing lesson. Learners bring the Industrial Era to life as they compose their own historical fiction pieces based on primary source images of Pittsburgh steel workers. 

Poems carved into the wooden walls of the Asian immigrant prisons on Angel Island provide upper elementary graders an opportunity to study not only the story behind the poems but to also focus on the figurative language employed by the...

Students create a title page, organize information, and write the introductory paragraph to a research paper.  In this research writing instructional activity, students discuss the elements of the title page and outline, then write...

Learners conduct research on a selected topic, organize the research information, and write a report. They read and discuss the rubric, brainstorm to develop criteria for determining credible sources, complete a KWL chart or web, and...

Young scholars write their own fables. In this writing fables lesson, students use handheld computers to write a fable. The class designs a spreadsheet to organize common elements of fables. Young scholars also edit each others' work.

Students explore the trail followed by Lewis and Clark on their journey across the United States. In this United States History instructional activity, students complete several activities to establish the Lewis and Clark Expedition,...

Gun, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond is a seminal work of historical nonfiction from the late 20th century. Use the author's claims and supporting evidence to guide your high school seniors through their research project, culminating...

It's important to cite sources! Scholars take a closer look at their research about DDT by examining how to cite sources. Learners take turns sharing information that would be used to cite sources to complement Rachel Carson:...

Students read and analyze journals written by Lewis and Clark. They watch and discuss a video segment, complete a graphic organizer, and write a journal entry written from the point of view of someone involved with the Lewis and Clark...

One of the keys to success in school is organization. This resource leads learners through the process of creating an outline for a chapter from a social studies text. In addition, they review facts they have learned in their class...

Scholars begin to work independently on their research ideas from the first six lessons. They use their previous work in the first six lessons and a research checklist to guide their work. To finish, they complete graphic organizers,...

Here's a fresh take on a mythology unit. Use the myths of the Mayan and Aztec peoples of Mesoamerica instead of the more traditional Greek and Roman stories. This abstract suggests possible approaches and resources that can be...

Let's focus on a holiday from around the world! Young researchers choose a holiday from somewhere around the world, and conduct research to answer questions about the holiday. It can be used anytime during the year!

Students, after reading Fahrenheit 451, brainstorm inventions that could have been in the novel. They present their invention to the class and writing an expository essay about their creation.

Young researchers use the Internet or books to find out about colonial women during the American Revolution. They organize information in a graphic to demonstrate their understanding of the research they gathered before writing a...