Imagine a learning community committed to using Costa and Kallick's Habits of Mind as the basis of curriculum design. The resource book is packed with lessons that are designed for and identify the standards and...

Young scholars investigate new vocabulary words with a fun, collaborative activity. Given a deck of word cards, pairs of students flip over one at a time and independently look up the term in a dictionary. They then take turns rolling a...

Teaching about fiction genres can  be challenging. The lesson plan here, designed for library media specialists, offers a fun way to do it. In the lesson plan, learners visit the library and learn about the different types of...

Let's get organized! Pupils organize the information they have gathered about overfishing into a Quote Sandwich graphic organizer in preparation for their informative consumer guides. Next, they engage in a pair share activity to discuss...

The twelfth instructional activity of this unit builds on the skills developed in the previous instructional activity, as fourth graders continue their quest to become experts on colonial trade by listening to interviews with historical...

Voices from the past. Young scholars listen to a podcast interview with a historical re-enactor as they continue their research in the eleventh instructional activity of this unit on colonial trade. Applying their close reading skills,...

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...

Fourth graders work in small groups to become experts on different colonial trades in the eighth instructional activity of this unit. Working toward the long-term goal of writing a piece of historical fiction, young scholars read...

In the tenth instructional activity of this unit, young scholars learn to categorize information as they continue researching their colonial trade. During guided practice, the teacher models how to read informational text slowly while...

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...

Make your scholars more aware of stereotypical portrayals in film and television. Discuss the definition of "stereotypes" and how they are used to present a story. High schoolers look at specific television shows and complete a chart...

Instill the positive study habit of reflecting on learning by reading this passage with your class. The passage describes how reflection can be a powerful learning tool, and how learners can start reflecting. After reading, class...

The library is such a valuable resource for kids of all ages. Help elementary readers learn all about parts of the library, text features for both fiction and nonfiction text, and different ways to find books that they want to read.

Building on the previous activity in this unit on colonial trade, the ninth activity has young experts continuing their research and writing summaries of the information they find. To begin, children participate in guided practice where...

Students research, analyze and study a variety of resources and activities to broaden their horizons on careers and service learning through classroom, community and career activities. They scan all possible choices they have at their...

As young consumers of media, it is important for high schoolers to explore concepts of bias and prejudice, and how they may be present in media. After discussing ideological messages that media can contain, individuals complete a warm-up...

If you are considering adding or expanding a unit on utopian and dystopian literature you simply must check out this fabulous resource. Packed with plans, activities, project-based and 21st century learning opportunities, the unit...

Aspiring journalists learn about media literacy, journalism, and the press. Units come complete with handouts, assignment rubrics, notes, and extension suggestions. Each unit also comes with a list of vocabulary words and learning...

Look it up. Scholars use a dictionary and thesaurus to verify the meaning of the research vocabulary words they defined in the previous activity. They then use sticky notes to write a synonym for each word. Finally, individuals choose a...

We are living in a technical world. Scholars learn how to examine digital resources for their research on DDT. They explore a list of websites using a Digital Resources on DDT sheet. Learners examine their research notebook to...

The Hunger Games. Maximum Ride. Why is so much of young adult literature so dark? What is the appeal of dystopian literature to young readers? The six activities in this resource ask kids to reflect on some of the reasons this genre has...

How do media representations influence our attitudes? Examining advertisements through the filter of gender representation forms the basis of this, the second of three lessons that address gender stereotypes. Resources include links,...

Using or considering using Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God? Then this packet is a must for your curriculum library. The examination of how Hurston combines folklore and folk language to create the voice of her...

What do cereal, fog, and space shuttles have to do with newspapers? A collection of science investigations encourage critical thinking using connections to the various parts of the newspaper. Activities range from building origami seed...