Curated OER
Building Vocabulary Quadrant Charts
This clever language arts activity invites pupils to read verses of poetry, then construct vocabulary quadrants on index cards. The cards are divided up into 4 sections: Word, Meaning, Opposite, Example. They choose a difficult word from...
Curated OER
Book Stars
Students create a Star Book report in 30 minutes or less using exactly 15 words, computers, and the Kidspiration or Inspiration educational software. This quick Language Arts lesson is ideal for assessment of each student's reading...
Curated OER
Create a PowerPoint:Based on The Giver
Are you reading Lois Lowry's The Giver in your language arts class? Have your young readers create a PowerPoint presentation about their life, and how they connect to the lives of the characters from the novel. They present information...
Curated OER
What is a Haiku? How Do You Write a Haiku?
Haiku poetry is explored in this language arts lesson plan. Yong readers identify the characteristics of haiku and read several examples. Students make connections between their study of Japan and the poetic form of haiku, and they write...
Curated OER
Lesson Plan for "Little Red Riding Hood"
Grow young performers with storytelling. Elementary schoolers listen to the story "Little Red Riding Hood" by Mike Lockett, highlighting dialogue as they listen, and then act out the story. This is based on a story told by Mike Lockett...
Curated OER
Classifying Information About a Main Idea
Elementary learners explore language arts by completing a text identification activity. They discuss the importance of a main idea in a story or paper and how to present it properly. Then they practice identifying the main idea in sample...
Curated OER
Learning Log
A simple idea, this exercise will help young learners practice metacognitive and language arts skills. At the end of each day of school, have each member of your class record, in their own words, what they learned that day. Merely...
Curated OER
Physical Education Word of the Week
Practice physical education vocabulary in your classroom. Working with language arts teachers, learners use dictionary skills to define and explain a word dealing with a concept in physical education. They also complete a task and have...
Curated OER
Making Sense of Homographs
What is a homograph? Develop your students' vocabulary with a word association tool. Language arts classes discover what a homograph is and how it can be used as a visual thesaurus. They discover the other uses for homographs...
Curated OER
Discussing Poetry In Class
Students investigate syllabic metre and rhyming techniques by analyzing poetry. In this language arts activity, students read the poem Considering the Snail and discuss the nature and mood of the poem with their classmates....
Curated OER
Venn Diagram for Compare/Contrast
Use this lesson to focus on a compare and contrast writing structure in your middle school language arts class. Here, young writers compare and contrast two texts using graphic organizers. They use a double bubble format for their...
Curated OER
Counting Sentences' Words
Explore language arts by completing a worksheet with class. They read the story Owl Moon and discuss the rhythm of the writing and how action verbs are used appropriately. Then complete a writing worksheet which discusses writing...
Curated OER
-ed Word Accuracy
First graders explore language arts by identifying the endings to specific words. In this suffix lesson, 1st graders add the -ed ending to familiar verbs and discuss the change in meaning. Students collaborate in small groups to practice...
Curated OER
I Can Write a Poem
Using an outline, learners write a poem. The poem is focused on highlighting their experiences. This is a great way to combine language arts and an exploration of self esteem.
Curated OER
Sentences In Motion
Explore the elements needed to make up a sentence (the sentence itself, the period, the comma, the question mark, and the exclamation point), with this language arts instructional activity. A loco-motor activity is embedded in the...
Curated OER
Long Vowel Phoneme - y
The long vowel phoneme /y/ is the star of this language arts lesson. Kindergarteners share the book, I Spy a Little Fly then brainstorm more words that end in /y/. Since so many of our words end in /y/, this would be a very...
Curated OER
Nonfiction Text Features
Identify features of a nonfiction article in this language arts lesson. Middle schoolers apply comprehension strategies as they read the parts of the article, and analyze the author's key points. Additionally, they examine information in...
National Constitution Center
Address America: Your Six-Word Stump Speech
Stump speeches are the focus of this exercise that combines politics and language arts. After learning about this type of speech, the class listens to Obama's 2008 presidential campaign stump speech and answers a series of questions that...
Curated OER
Collage to Writing
Practice expository and creative writing with your class. Pupils use magazines to find pictures, cut them out, and create a collage. This work of art is then used as a writing prompt. They describe the collage in either a creative or...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Sor Juana, la poetisa: Los sonetos
Examine two of Sor Juana's sonnets in depth. Learners first listen to an audio recording or a reading of the sonnets and then analyze the structure and form, paying attention to elements of the Baroque and el gongorismo. Assess student...
EngageNY
Grade 9 ELA Module 2, Unit 3, Lesson 1
"True-crime stories, murder mysteries, up-to-the-minute online news reports, and (as always) rumor and innuendo grab our attention faster than any call for justice, human rights, or ceasefires." Or so says Walter Mosley in his Newsweek...
The New York Times
I Don’t Think So: Writing Effective Counterarguments
When it comes to writing effective arguments, writers must do more than simply make a claim, counterarguments must be considered. Aspiring writers analyze counterarguments in editorials, and then learn how to write counterarguments in...
Newspaper in Education
Lesson 10: Studying Content-Specific Language
Stanchion, spar, spinnaker. Right wing, sweeper, hip check. Every subject has specialized vocabulary. Here’s a fun way to introduce your learners to this jargon. Provide class groups with newspapers and have them search pre-selected...
Curated OER
Describe common actions and objects in specific and general language
Having a diverse and well-developed vocabulary make for both good readers and good writers. The class discusses basic grammar, such as nouns, verb, and adjectives. They then view a series of pictures and work as a class to create simple...