Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Missing Toy Writing Activity

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students listen to Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale, by Mo Willems. In this listening and writing instructional activity, students listen to the story and create a poster for their favorite toy if it were to go missing. They work...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Math Maven Fractions

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Learners solve fraction mysteries.  For this fractions lesson, students read Math Maven's Mysteries and use problem-solving and critical thinking skills to solve the mysteries. 
Lesson Plan
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Animal Coverings

For Teachers K
Students read a book. In this animal characteristics lesson, students read the book Animal Coverings, answer comprehension questions, and complete a chart where they match animals with their coverings.
Lesson Plan
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Role Model Medal

For Teachers 4th - 7th
Students investigate positive female role models. In this Women's History Month lesson plan, students read the book Mama Went to Jail for the Vote and think about how the character was a role model for other women. Students brainstorm a...
Lesson Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

Magna Carta: Cornerstone of the U.S. Constitution

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers use the Internet to read a brief description of Magna Carta (link provided). They "walk through" the document with the teacher, identifying four major themes. Students read and discuss "The Rhetoric of Rights: Americans...
Lesson Plan
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Costa Rican Sea Turtles

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students read "One Tiny Turtle" by Nicola Davies. Using the internet, they research the characteristics of turtles off of the Costa Rica coast. In groups, they complete a worksheet and define vocabulary words they are unfamiliar with. ...
Lesson Plan
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Edward Lear, Limericks, and Nonsense: There Once Was?

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students explore limericks. In this poetry writing instructional activity, students listen to and read a variety of poems written by Edward Lear. Students count syllables and identify meter by clapping as they read aloud. Students...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Chrysanthemum

For Teachers K - 3rd
Young scholars identify the main story elements in the book Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes. In this literacy lesson, students listen to the book and use a guided reading ball check for comprehension. Young scholars answer questions such...
Lesson Plan
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The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854: Popular Sovereignty and the Political Polarization over Slavery

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students read selections from the Declaration of Independence, Northwest Ordinance of 1787, and the Wilmot Proviso of 1846. They contrast the maps of 1820 and 1854 to analyze developments in the national debate over slavery. They...
Lesson Plan
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The Three Billy Goats Gruff

For Teachers 1st
First graders read key sentences from the story on sentence strips. They read the story with a partner and act out the story, taking turns acting the parts of the various characters.
Lesson Plan
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The Holocaust: Concentration Camps

For Teachers 10th
Tenth graders, after reading a variety of passages and watching a video on "Children Remember the Holocaust," explore the concept of brutality of deportation and analyze conditions in concentration and death camps. They review maps and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Can you think of pictures that will tell a story about rice?

For Teachers 1st
First graders use pictures and letters to create a rebus. In this writing sentences lessons, 1st graders analyze sample rebuses as a class and read a rice rebus independently. Students make three rebus sentences. Students play a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Literature for Lesson 2 - The UnderGround Railroad

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students examine the use of the Underground Railroad. In this Underground Railroad lesson, students determine the meaning of the word slavery. They study the Underground Railroad through the use of literature and Internet websites. They...
Lesson Plan
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Exploring the Mystery Genre

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students determine the story elements of typical mystery stories including characters and plot structure. They look at vocabulary that is common to mystery stories before reading and responding to mystery chapter books. Working in guided...
Lesson Plan
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Wolf Fact Cards

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students write a non-chronological report about wolves. They read and discuss wolf fact cards in small groups, complete a KWL chart, observe the teacher model the steps of writing a report, and conduct research and write an original...
Lesson Plan
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5 W Questions

For Teachers 2nd
Second graders practice asking the 5 W questions by reading a Boxcar Children book.  In this journalism lesson, 2nd graders read a single story from the Boxcar Children series and answer the 5 W's about each specific chapter....
Lesson Plan
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Write Me Two Ways

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders write numbers in standard and expanded form.  In this writing numbers in standard and expanded form lesson, 5th graders write integers up to billions in word form and standard form.  Students use number cards to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Myths, Folktales, & Fairy Tales

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Srtudents explore the folktale and folklore genres as well as the world of myths. They read myths and folktales to increase knowledge of world cultures and traditions and follow the writing process to create writing in different genres.
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Marine Life, Oceans, Lakes and Rivers

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students examine the types of organisms found in oceans. In groups, they read articles about the research done at certain sites. They work together to research their own water ecosystems and report the findings to the class. To end...
Lesson Plan
National First Ladies' Library

Writing (and Rewriting!) History

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers differentiate between fiction and non-fiction, discuss historical fiction, which combines both genres, choose historical novel from list and read independently, and write original short stories that combine elements of...
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Life in Korea During World War II: When My Name Was Keoko

For Teachers 12th
Twelfth graders review facts about roles of Asia and Japan in World War II, read When My Name Was Keoko to familiarize themselves with daily life and historic events during World War II in Korea, and participate in student-led...
Lesson Plan
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My Name is America

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Students read My Name is America about the Donner Party journey and create a scrapbook of what they read. In this Donner Party lesson plan, students also map out the journal they read about.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Bottle Top Sentences

For Teachers K
Students practice language. In this vocabulary expansion lesson, students match words on a sentence strip. They work independently to recognize and correlate words in a sentence to individual words out of sequence. This lesson includes...
Lesson Plan
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Holocaust Theme

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Young scholars complete a unit of lessons on the events of the Holocaust during WWII. They write daily journal entries, create a collage, view and discuss videos, read and analyze novels and poetry, and complete a novel project.