Discuss the importance of a lead in writing with your upper graders. They examine several examples of leads from literature and practice writing leads for pieces of artwork. They then select a topic from a list and write an introductory...

A fishing hook inspires this presentation about different methods for starting a composition. Have class members take notes or edit current drafts while viewing the slide show. The animation is entertaining, but gets repetitive by the...

In need of a scripted lesson anyone can deliver? Along with a teaching script, you'll find several scenarios for learners to consider. They'll discuss decision making and goal setting as they relate to each scenario. Guiding...

In this reading and writing analysis worksheet, students read a sample letter that hooks the readers. The students then discuss and adjust three other writing samples to make them more interesting.

How can you interest your reader? Here is a great instructional activity on reading and discussing the characteristics of a narrative. Elementary schoolers explore writing techniques to hook the reader. They identify their hook and share...

Hook your class into inquiry-based, hands-on learning with a activity on narrative leads. Pupils research different types of hooks and decide which one to use in their own writing. Carefully scaffolded to include all learners, the...

Art and science sometimes go hand in hand. A set of four activities for learners in grades 3-5 teaches engineering concepts as part of art projects. Class members build homemade robots, elastic puppets, musical instruments, and...

Dissect the parts of an advertisement with your class. Middle schoolers discuss advertisements and locate the hook in them. Then, they create an advertisement for a business, in which they include the name of the business, an...

Tween find out what it means to give and get respect. After reviewing the Recipe for Relationships studied in a previous lesson, groups create a dramatization of two-minute scenario in which an individual behaves inappropriately in a...

Here's an awesome unit that uses The Cay as the anchor text. The 16-page packet is loaded with teaching ideas, activities, and suggested adjustments.

Students Explain how an increased level of activity translates to cells needing more oxygen and how the lungs supply this oxygen by entering the blood stream. They also can explain that the heart is responsible for moving both oxygenated...

Here is a resource intended for a social studies class, but great no matter the subject. It's a complete outline for an essay. It includes space to write ideas related to the thesis, supporting details, transition sentences and words,...

We are all immigrants to this country and the study of immigration can help students connect to history in a personal way. Students will listen to audio clips from the Ellis Island web site, discuss the treatment of immigrants in the...

Clichéd and repetitive introductions got you down? Try this instructional activity on for size! Start off by instructing your class members on techniques for writing introductions and what types of introductions they should avoid....

Young scholars explore the importance of the opening and closing of a story. They assess that an exciting beginning gets readers attentions and strong introductions hook and lead readers into the book or story.Also, a good conclusion...

Support your learners during the speech-writing process with a five-page graphic organizer. Pupils have plenty of space to write in their evidence and arguments on this resource. The organizer provides some prompts for each section to...

Capture the interest of your reader with terrific topic sentences. To practice hooking the reader, your class will be given writing prompts, and they must create topic sentences for each prompt provided. Encourage them to use different...

Take a longer look at a formative time in history with a lesson that explores the causes of the American Civil War. After viewing a series of images and explanations for various forces at play, middle schoolers choose the images that...

If your writers have already mastered the basic five-paragraph essay, consider introducing them to a broader application of this format. Writers consider sections instead of paragraphs, context/claim, and synthesis. Although no models...

Students explore how sewer systems can contribute to water pollution and perform an experiment to see how well a water purification technique can protect against water-born microbial illnesses. They compare the bacterial growth from...

Where did the water go? Learners conduct an experiment to see how the difference in temperature affects evaporation rates. Scholars continue to investigate evaporation by comparing water and alcohol evaporation rates. Pupils experiment...

A lesson examines the holidays, Día de los Muertos and Halloween. After an exciting clip from the movie Coco, class members review vocabulary and discuss what they know about Halloween. The conversation leads into the history of Día...

Fifth graders use technology as assistance to collecting random data. Through the random data they will be able to explain the significance of getting a head or tail depending on what was previously landed on. They will then analyze the...