Curated OER
Writing Pattern Books
Have your older students assist young children with writing in this community service and literacy lesson. Middle schoolers become partners with a local elementary school. They assist the grade school children in writing a pattern book...
Teach with Movies
Teaching Students to Write a Narrative
Encourage narrative writing with a clever exercise. Class members watch episodes from movies and describe what happened to a character, including details about the setting, plot, and characters. Writers then craft a narrative about a...
BW Walch
Vending Machine Bans Increase in Schools Nationwide
Does a ban on vending machines infringe on student rights, or do school officials have an obligation to monitor foods sold on school grounds? Your class members will explore the educational, health, and financial issues related to...
Curated OER
Letter Writing and Abigail Adams
Third graders learn the importance of letter writing for communication. For this letter writing lesson, 3rd graders identify how letter writing was important in the life of Abigail Adams. Students understand what a primary source is...
Nancy Fetzer's Literacy Connections
Expository Paragraph
Upper elementary and middle school writers learn how to craft an expository paragraph by following the six steps detailed in a 48-page instructional guide. Learners learn how to write six different types of informational paragraphs: to...
Curated OER
Big Snowball Fight
Students complete pre reading, writing, during reading, and interdisciplinary activities for the book Big Snowball Fight. In this reading lesson plan, students complete journal entries, answer short answer questions, have discussions,...
Curated OER
Daily Lesson Plan for the Struggling Writer and Speller
Special educators know that it isn't all about the lesson plan, but rather the strategies and practices you choose to use. Here are a set of research-based practices and tips you can use to inform your choices when teaching learners who...
Curated OER
Animal Report
Fourth graders research an animal of their choice and take the information in outline form, and write paragraphs to complete a final report form, draw a picture of their subject, and mount for display.
Curated OER
Clown Accordion Book
Clifford The Big Red Dog is well-known to many Pre-K and Kindergarten children. In this lesson, the listen to the book, Clifford Learns About the Circus and So Do We! Then, they learn how to make an accordion book that spells the word,...
Curated OER
Phineas Gage: Assessment Strategy
Close up your study of Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science with a letter-writing assignment. Pupils prepare by journaling and sharing with a partner. They then compose letters that focus on a big idea from the...
Curated OER
Let's Sing, Read, and Write
Learners sing and read the old favorite song Wheels on the Bus, and write new song text for a poster and a class book.
Curated OER
Endangered Animals
Introduce young learners to endangered animals. They write a report of an endangered animal and create an illustration for their report. They create a poster for their report as well and present it to the class.
Curated OER
Harry Potter: Study Questions
Elementary learners explore fiction storytelling through partcipating in a survey. They identify the characters, themes and plot of the Harry Potter series while discussing their opinions in class. Learners conduct a survey about their...
Curated OER
Mini Me Society Economy Those Doggone Resumes
Third graders practice writing resumes. In this resume lesson, 3rd graders discover the attributes of resumes, complete an activity that exhibits their likes, and write their own resume as they follow the model provided in a PowerPoint...
Curated OER
Presidents: Bibliography
Give credit where credit is due! After listening to a lecture/demo about why creating a bibliography is important, what should be included in a bibliography, and how to craft a bibliography, class members draft one for their own research.
Curated OER
Six Ways To Recall Spelling Words
Students practice their weekly spelling words. Using six methods of recall, students practice spelling their words orally and using pen and paper. They demonstrate their recall of the spelling words by completing a spelling test at the...
Dream of a Nation
Big6 Research Project
Do research projects at your school look like a class of eighth graders staring at a blank screen? Use the Big 6 research method to guide middle schoolers through the process of finding a topic, searching for and evaluating sources,...
Curated OER
Animal Report (Lesson 1 - Task Definition - Grade 4)
Fourth graders brainstorm about the word "research" and choose an animal to research. They use Big Six skills to find information about the animal and then write a report about it.
Curated OER
Endangered Animals (Lesson 1 - Task Definition - Grade 3)
Third graders use The Big Six to gain an understanding of the phrase 'endangered animal.' They select an animal, research it and write a report about it. They also make a poster of the animal.
Curated OER
Phineas Gage: Four Corners Discussion Strategy
How far do your pupils think we should go in the name of science? Class members respond to questions relating to chapter three of Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science and then participate in a four corners...
Curated OER
Animal Report - Outlines
Fourth graders are introduced to the outline format and how to organize information from notes into a finished outline. They use a form to compile researched information into an outline in preparation for writing a final report.
Curated OER
Big Pig
Learners study the/i/ sound and letter recognition using Elkonin letterboxes and letter manipulatives. They work with tongue twister that contains words with many examples of the /i/ sound. Next they buddy read "Liz is Six" before...
Curated OER
Getting Your "Hands-On" a Great Outline
Students write with controlled and/or subtle organization. They learn three ways to arrange a formal outline. Students demonstrate this knowledge by creating an outline as class. They cover the concepts of anticipation, investigation,...
Curated OER
Draw a Map
Students draw a map. In this map drawing lesson students draw a map to show where a character is from and where they are going in the story. Students are writing an odyssey.