What experiences lead people to change and how do they do it? After reading about Cole's encounter with Touching Spirit Bear, readers complete the second out of a series of five activities to predict future events in the text. The...

How do you bring a nation back together after there is civil war? Readers learn how the United States Civil War concluded with a passage focused on the latter part of Abraham Lincoln's presidency. Multiple choice questions check pupils'...

A continuation of the previous lesson, which is part of a larger group of lessons on human rights (see additional materials). Here, in Lesson 7, your class will explore more articles from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. After...

Accompany a reading of Dr. Seuss' tale, The Lorax, with a five-item worksheet. Questions challenge scholars to list characters' names, use text details to answer inquiries, and describe the moral of the story. 

After reading excerpts from Frederick Douglass' autobiography, pupils will draw on what they've learned about the cruelty of slavery to write and present an anti-slavery speech or editorial.

How can we heal our hearts through forgiveness?  The third activity in a series of six prompts readers to answer questions about Words by Heart by Ouida Sebestyen. Not only does it activate background knowledge on the...

You won't find any wrinkles in your instruction with this unit guide on Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time. The 34-page document includes everything from instructional questions and learning tasks aligned to Common Core...

Using Visual Thesaurus software, class members participate in a computer-based spelling bee. Then they work in groups to analyze the words and use deductive reasoning to infer spelling patterns. They then present one of their "rules" to...

After reflecting on jobs people perform in the present day, scholars discuss what they believe jobs would have been like in Colonial Virginia during the American Revolution. Small groups then perform a jigsaw using informational packets....

While many often associate Ben Franklin with his kite electricity experiments, budding historians find out he contributed much more. They discover Franklin's political savvy by examining primary sources in the informative installment of...

Help scholars discover new ways to build their vocabulary. Groups create a game involving their vocabulary words. Using the jigsaw model, the groups shuffle and play the games of the other groups. Save the games and use them for other...

There's something about the classic volcano demonstration that can grab any learners' attention. Scholars begin with a reading and grand conversation about volcanoes, construct an erupting volcano using vinegar and baking soda, then...

Historians explain what happened during the Holocaust, but only primary sources portray the true horror of places such as Auschwitz. Using accounts from those who survived the camps, as well as a Nazi government official's memoirs, class...

When is it a moral obligation to disobey the law or to fight back? Using primary sources that document the "Christiana Riot" of 1851, learners consider these questions. The firsthand accounts tell the story of the riot, which happened...

Sixth graders are introduced to the jigsaw method of summarizing text. In groups, they create their own summary and work together as a class to create just one class summary. To end the lesson, they read the class summary and review the...

The beauty of a poem is lost without an understanding of its tone. Middle schoolers connect author's purpose and word choice to four poems in a literary analysis activity, which prompts them to note each poem's tone and meaning.

A poet's word choice can be the difference between a poem that is merely sad, and a poem full of heartbreaking regret. Middle schoolers discern the tone in four different poems, noting the relevant textual evidence that supports...

High schoolers examine the Reconstruction programs instituted following the American Civil War, the potential for change these efforts offered, and the realities that occurred. Guided by a PowerPoint presentation, class members read a...

Use fables as a fun way for English Language Learners to gain confidence and fluency in their reading and speaking skills. After reading a fable in class, they retell their story to a group of their peers. When this jigsaw activity is...

Whose land is it, anyway? Young scholars debate the question using primary sources from a case where Maryland indigenous people petitioned for land rights after they lost their original tribal lands. An included chart helps organize...

Students identify and define new words as they are introduced to specific trees, leaves, animals and animal habitats, engage in literacy-related play by playing games that focus on animals and trees mentioned in book, A Tree for Me, and...

Ninth graders explore the elements in poetry. In groups, they complete a jigsaw puzzle and discover the strategies for completing a puzzle and reading a poem are similar. Students read short poems and identify key elements in a poem...

Students discover their learning styles. In this language arts lesson, students read about the various learning styles. Students determine their learning style and discuss how they can use this knowledge.

Students examine number sense by participating in identification activities. For this number value lesson, students practice counting from 1-10, identifying number flash cards, reading clocks and multiplying basic numbers. Students...