Students explore the parallel development and increasing complexity of writing and the growth of civilization in the Tigris and Euphrates valleys in ancient Mesopotamia.

Add a great resource to your collection of The Grapes of Wrath curriculum materials. A thorough packet contains loads of useful suggestions, whether you use the novel as an anchor text, as a reading circle...

What's missing from most studies of the American Revolutionary War is information about the role African Americans played in the conflict. To correct this oversight, middle schoolers research groups like the Black Loyalists and ...

Students combine sentences to create compound sentences. They write about creating their own soda, then make their own soda, comparing and contrasting it with a national brand. They write a paragraph containing compound sentences.

What was life like for enslaved and free black people before the American Civil War? Explore the building tension between states and the freedom of individuals with a thorough social studies lesson. Learners of all ages explore...

Now is the time to identify the great teachers in your school! Discuss the characteristics of persuasive writing and analyze an example. Then, each pupil chooses a teacher who they feel should be named teacher of the year. They plan and...

Young scholars research the social context of Elizabethan England for Shakespeare's "Hamlet". They identify cultural influences on the play focusing on the theme of revenge and then analyze and compare film interpretations of the play.

Students take a closer look at the organization of written pieces. In this writing skills lesson plan, students examine transitions, repetition, parallelism, and other organizational patterns in writing. 

Students research the parallel development and complexity of writing and civilization in ancient Mesopotamia. In this ancient Mesopotamia lesson plan, students analyze the Cuneiform writing system in ancient Mesopotamia and how the...

Learners compare the consequences of the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco to Hurricane Katrina's impact on New Orleans as a basis for investigating the transformative effect of infamous United States natural disasters.

High schoolers write position papers on a form of alternative energy production. They use several class periods to develop and write their paper and them participate in an extensive peer review session.

Third graders relate the concept of individuality of geometric shapes to the individuality of topic sentences. They write and revise a persuasive argument essay using an established rubric.

Learners analyze photographs and poetry as forms of each other. For this poetry and photography analysis lesson, students use the photographs of Alfred Stieglitz and poetry from William Carlos William to explore how poetry and painting...

Students practice their public speaking skills. In this interdisciplinary lesson plan, students study speeches delivered by Lincoln, Wilson, F. Roosevelt, and Kennedy. Students write the text Obama's inaugural address and...

Middle schoolers research various events during the War of 1812 and then create magazine articles with supporting illustrations, students are in control of their learning.

Students examine discrimination and what it was like during WWII and today. In this writing and analyzing lesson, students read pasages from Anne Frank's diary and find connections between Anne's life and the life of people in...

Students investigate dog breeds and write a short story from a dog's perspective. In this dog research and writing lesson, students watch the film, "Dog: The Early Years. They apply critical thinking skills to determine which type of dog...

Models of and directions for how to write 20 different types of poems are featured in an NCTE resource. The introduction to each form highlights the embedded concepts. For example, tongue twisters encourage poets to use alliteration and...

Young scholars create a story about an unknown planet invaded by humans as a pre-reading activity for the novel, A Wrinkle In Time. They discuss good versus evil, and identify examples of the theme good vs. evil in books, film, and their...

Students investigate the process of writing an expository paper. The purpose of the paper is established in the introduction and the supporting details are sequenced in a logical order. The paper possesses punctuation and grammatical...

Young scholars analyze graphical forms of Eudora Welty and interpret the shorts stories in the representations. In this graphical representations lesson, students analyze the short story genre in comic strips. Young scholars then create...

Learn that stories have three parts by paralleling the introduction, the body and the conclusion to the life of an athlete competing in the Winter Games.

Students prepare for Youth Voices Forum by writing resolutions using actual format employed by United Nations. Students explore components of resolution, including formal language, and practice writing and critiquing resolutions.

Students write a brochure that educates incoming middle school students on how to succeed.