Missouri Department of Elementary
Same and Different
A take on "If You're Happy and You Know It" opens a lesson about similarities and differences. Scholars speak in-depth on the unique characteristics that make up their classroom. The teacher or counselor records responses. Class members...
Curated OER
House and Holmes: A Guide to Deductive and Inductive Reasoning
Test your pupils' reasoning skills with several activities and a quick mystery to solve. Learners watch and analyze a few video clips that demonstrate reasoning in action, practice deduction with an interactive and collaborative...
EngageNY
Grade 9 ELA Module 3, Unit 3, Lesson 5
Class members examine examples that model how to develop and maintain a formal style and an objective tone in informative/explanatory writing. They also engage in a peer review activity and revise their work based on the feedback.
Trinity University
Explain Yourself: An Expository Writing Unit for High School
Introduce expository writing with a unit that asks writers to craft an essay to explain a belief, value, or priority that is important to them. Mini-lessons within the unit focus on crafting thesis statements and conclusions, selecting...
Curated OER
Lesson Ideas for Comparing and Contrasting Content
Here are three lesson ideas to help students learn how to compare and contrast information in any content area
California Department of Education
Writing Right
Prepare high school seniors for the job search process with a lesson that teaches them how to craft four different types of business letters: the cover letter, the informational interview request, a reference request, and a thank you...
Cleburne Independent School District
Grade 6 English Language Arts and Readiness: Persuasive
What is the best way to compare and contrast viewpoints on the same topic? A persuasive writing unit plan addresses targeted skills, vocabulary, instructional strategies, and suggested resources that would be perfect for developing writers.
Fluence Learning
Writing an Argument: Is Electronic Communication Helpful or Harmful?
Technology has undoubtedly improved the lives of people around the world—but has it improved communication? Seventh graders read two informative passages about the rise of texting and emailing versus in-person conversations before...
Curated OER
Following Instructions
Get scholars thinking about the scientific process with this fun experiment they can do at home. Learners practice reading directions as they underline each instruction in a procedural paragraph. They create a flow chart and record...
New York City Department of Education
What Did I Do to Be so Black and Blue: How Did Jazz Influence Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man
How did jazz influence Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man? Class members read some of Ellison's non-fiction writings about blues and jazz, listen to records, watch videos, and engage in student-centered discussions. They then produce podcasts...
Humanities Texas
Primary Source Worksheet: Lyndon B. Johnson and Martin Luther King Jr., Excerpt of Telephone Conversation
Imagine listening in on a conversation between President Lyndon B. Johnson and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., as Johnson outlines the support he needs from King to pass the legislation required for programs essential for "The Great...
EngageNY
Drafting Body Paragraphs
That's just the style. Learners begin with a mini-activity about formal writing style. They then use what they learned about formal writing to begin the body paragraphs for their End of Unit 1 Assessment Prompt: Adversity in the Middle...
Curated OER
Organizing by Writing
Middle schoolers analyze how to use writing for generating and organizing their thoughts before communicating them. They use the questions on the first handout to organize a three-minute introduction of themselves to their small group....
Curated OER
Oh, I Believe in Yesterday
Who is Aimee Mann? Read the New York Times article "P.S. I Loved You," included here, and have your readers answer a series of reading comprehension questions. Afterward, encourage your class to brainstorm ways in which they...
Curated OER
Formal and Informal Letters
In this formal and informal letters worksheet, learners change eighteen informal words into formal words. Students then complete one informal and formal letter with fill in the blank answers.
National Endowment for the Humanities
“House by the Railroad”: A Painting and a Poem for the Common Core
Introduce your class to ekphrastic poetry with an exercise that asks them to examine Edward Hooper's painting House by the Railroad and Edward Hirsch's poem "Edward Hopper and the House By the Railroad." After a close reading...
Curated OER
Test Your Writing Skills
In this letter writing skills worksheet, middle schoolers examine 15 phrases from letters and determine whether each phrase is from a formal or informal letter. Good, solid writing practice!
Curated OER
Formal and Informal Language
Words carry connotative baggage and some suitcases are bigger than others. Learners consult the Chambers School Dictionary to identify the formal, informal or slang words used in a series of exercises.
Missouri Department of Elementary
Happy, Sad, Scared and Mad: All Belong To Me
"What are feelings?" and "Why are feelings important to understand?" are the essential questions of a lesson plan that boosts self-awareness. Scholars discuss the four basic emotions—happy, sad, scared, and mad—in...
Missouri Department of Elementary
Healthy Touches and Private Touches
Scholars identify the difference between healthy touches and private touches. A discussion leads pupils to recognize several trusting adults. Peers role-play scenarios in which they use three rules to remain safe.
Curated OER
Diction: Formal and Informal Language
Coke or Pepsi? Is it the taste or the advertising that determines preference? As part of a study of diction, class members examine two passages, one formal and one informal, about Coca-Cola and Pepsi. In addition, they consider word...
Curated OER
Writing an Analytical Essay From a Supreme Court Case
Critical thinkers read a summary of a United States Supreme Court case, including important background information and the court's final decision. They form an opinion in agreement or disagreement regarding the case and then write an...
English Enhanced Scope and Sequence
Differentiate between Formal and Informal Language
The Pledge of Allegiance, the Gettysburg Address, the National Anthem, and the Preamble to the Constitution all get close attention in an exercise that asks learners to rewrite these formally-worded documents into informal language....
California Education Partners
Tuck Everlasting
An assessment takes a close look at the story, Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt, and tests writing abilities. Over the course of two days, scholars read an excerpt, answer questions on a instructional activity pertaining to...