A reading of Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt by Deborah Hopkinson launches this study of slavery, freedom, and the Underground Railroad. After a discussion of the importance of showing respect for others and of helping each other in...

Read various texts to compare the themes across each text. Learners write a journal entry describing the most beautiful scenery they've seen and use a map of the United States to locate the Sequoia National Park and Muir Woods. They then...

If you're working through A Lesson Before Dying, by Ernest J. Gaines, you might be interested in this resource. Pupils fill this page out after reading each chapter in order to create a short summary and clarify plot points and...

Blend art and family into one lesson with an activity involving oil pastels and watercolors. After viewing a few famous portraits of families, learners create masterpieces that represent their own families.

Historical fiction can be a valuable asset when learning about the past. Integrate several novels written about the Civil War into your social studies unit, with groups of four working collaboratively to comprehend the novel from...

How many people live on the planet, anyway? The first resource in a six-part series covers the topic of the world population. Scholars work in groups to conduct research and make population posters after learning about the global...

Most of us have heard of Rosa Parks, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and Martin Luther King, Jr. But what about Claudette Colvin, Virginia Durr, Freedom Summer, or the Birmingham Children's Crusade? A five-lesson unit prompts class...

Pupils read a Tonolese folktale and outline the elements of the story. In groups, they discuss the various morals presented in the story and if they are unique to the Tonolese culture. To end the activity, they identify the positives and...

Fourth graders read stories and pick one with characters they find interesting. Then students create a dialogue of writing a letter from one character to another. The letter must relate to the original story in some way that can easily...

Tenth graders complete literature analysis activities using Guy de Maupassants "The Necklace" and the Grimm Brothers "Cinderella." For this literature analysis lesson, 10th graders discuss the life and career of Guy de Maupassant...

Young scholars analyze four versions of the Cinderella story. In this fairy tale analysis lesson, students read four versions of Cinderella and work in groups to identify the plot for each. Young scholars illustrate the stories and...

Learners identify cause and effect relationships in a short story. After reading a short story, they participate in a discussion of how one event in a story can lead to several others. Students are then paired for a matching task that...

Students analyze the storytelling methods in wordless books.  In this visual storytelling activity, students write a story that correspond to a specific wordless picture book.  Students create their own wordless picture book...

Fourth graders investigate the style of diary writing as its own genre of literature. They read Harriet The Spy in order to have a text for this literature study. Students use the skill of prediction to preview the story, and then...

Learners review the characteristics of various characters in fairytales. As a class, they review the story details and create a concept map using a software program. They create their own wanted poster of the villians in the fairytale to...

Fourth graders develop strategies for identifying geometric and number patterns. For this mathematical patterns lesson, 4th graders use pattern blocks to make repeating patterns with numbers and shapes. Students then explore number...

First graders preview "The Great Kapok Tree" by discussing the cover and the tree. They read the book and acknowledge the animals. They play a sequencing game in groups to identify the order the animals appeared in the book.

Students begin their examination of landforms. Using a map, they locate and identify the major landforms on Earth. They discuss how landforms affect the lifestyle of the community and determine which goods and services the community...

First graders experience literature which shows how communities live around the world. In this global community lesson, 1st graders read books such as Whoever You Are, by Mem Fox and create a work of art based on their feelings about the...

Middle schoolers are introduced to pre- and post-reading strategies. Individually, they read excerpts of a story while making predictions about what they believe is going to happen next. After reading the selection, they answer...

Sixth graders examine and categorize a selection of title representing fiction genres. In this fiction genres lesson, 6th graders analyze and identify a variety of titles in the fiction genre. Students then find these types of fiction...

Students read "Be A Perfect Person in Just three days," and participate in a host of activities. Connected to technology, they use online sources to create word searches and puzzles from vocabulary words. In addition, students create...

Students read a version of Ramayana and explore the elements of the epic hero cycle. In this Ramayana analysis lesson, students retell the basic narrative of the Ramayana and identify the main characters. Students identify elements of...

Students write a science fiction story.  In this science fiction lesson, students read selections of science fiction and compare them to supernatural stories from the Bible.  Students identify themes and discuss elements that...