Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address provides the text for a series of close reading exercises that model for instructors how carefully crafted guiding questions can help readers think critically about what they read, thus developing...

A read-aloud anthology boosts reading comprehension with classic tales. Thirteen lessons introduce and present a reading; pupils discuss the reading, then participate in extension activities. Take-home materials are available for most...

Three quizzes are designed to assess readers' knowledge of events in Octavia E. Butler's Kindred. All questions are fact-based rather than asking readers to infer or interpret the text.

Frances Ellen Watkins Harper's poem "Learning to Read" is the focus of a lesson that teaches middle schoolers how to do a close reading of a text. The lesson introduces them to a brief biography of the poet, includes a video reading, and...

It's time for scholars to be on their own. Individuals work independently reviewing sources to answer their research questions. Learners read "Are Your Clothes Made in Sweatshops?" to help complete the mid-unit assessment. After...

Take your guided reading lesson plans to the next level with a collection of printables, templates, and reference tools equipped to support the reading needs of your readers. Included is a detailed information page, grouping sheet,...

Show what you know! Scholars complete a mid-unit assessment using text evidence from Frederick Douglass. The teacher then presents expectations for independent reading assignment. Leaving the class, pupils turn in an exit ticket...

Introduce your freshmen to reading comprehension strategies and key literary elements with a year's worth of lessons and exercises. Each lesson focuses on a specific literary device and includes a definition of the term, a passage that...

Light and sound are the running themes of a read-aloud anthology. Over three weeks, third graders listen to discuss readings in preparation for completing extension activities. Pupils work through the writing process to compose an...

The last read-aloud anthology in the series showcases frontier explorers. First graders listen to texts about Daniel Boone, crossing the Appalacian Mountains, Lewis and Clark, dangers on the prairie, and more. After reading, pupils...

Third graders listen to read-alouds and participate in extension activities about European Explorers—Christopher Columbus, Juan Ponce de León, Hernando de Soto, Francisco Vasquez de Coronado, John Cabot, Henry Hudson, and Samuel de...

Hints for how to improve listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills are contained in a cross-curricular reading comprehension worksheet designed for primary graders. After reading a short passage loaded with tips, kids respond to a...

Here's a poster that highlights the skills needed for the close reading of primary source documents when gathering evidence to support historical claims.

Pay close attention! After finding details in a picture, scholars begin to find details in videos and text. They work together in groups, discuss in pairs, and carry out independent reading to answer guiding questions. Organizers, tools,...

An excerpt from Michel de Montaigne's essay "On Cruelty" provides advanced readers an opportunity to polish their close reading skills. Scholars read the passage twice and then respond to the provided questions.

A reading guide designed for Jennifer Fleischner's nonfiction text, The Apaches: People of the Southwest, provides readers with three levels of comprehension questions meant to encourage higher-level thinking.

Scholars reflect upon their reading strengths and challenges to create personal reading goals. Participants use goal-setting verbiage in an accordion-style graphic organizer, a first step in writing a letter that details their reading...

Dig deep. Scholars dig deep for meaning while reading Middle Ages Excerpt 1. They begin by finding unfamiliar words and adding them to a word catcher. Pupils then take a close look at adversity in the text and complete an...

Elevate children's reading comprehension skills with this collection of guided reading resources. From paper dice with basic comprehension questions printed on them to a system for using sticky notes to identify key...

To generate interest in reading Neal Shusterman's young adult science fiction novel Unwind, class members engage in a Directed Reading-Thinking Activity (DRTA) that asks them to examine the front and back covers, the blurbs, and "The...

John Knowles' A Separate Peace provides readers with an opportunity to develop their close reading and analytical skills as they look for what Knowles feels are the factors that shape our identity.

Thirteen short-answer questions follow a brief food web activity in a formative assessment designed to test knowledge of ecosystems and the energy that flows through them.

Take another look—there are probably more details than readers realize. Scholars analyze nine texts in a five-part unit that contains 21 activities to find textual details. Activities include close reading, independent reading,...

A read-aloud anthology provides informational texts about ecology to boost reading comprehension. Third-graders listen and discuss readings where they answer questions and focus on vocabulary. Pupils complete extension activities,...