Curated OER
Snow Globe Family
Kindergartners sequence the parts of a story using a snow globe as a setting. They will listen to Snow Globe Family and retell the parts of the story noting the beginning, the middle, and the end. Then they will make their own snow...
Curated OER
The Similarities and Differences of Setting
Sixth graders identify components of the setting in science fiction text. In this compare and contrast settings lesson, 6th graders read Only You Can Save Mankind and identify similarities and differences between science fiction...
Curated OER
The Importance of Setting to a Story - Pesky Critters
Students watch a video segment about Florida's wetlands and complete an essay about setting. In this setting lesson plan, students watch a video about critters in the Florida wetlands. Students complete a setting worksheet and complete...
Curated OER
Folktales and Ecology: Animals and Humans in Cooperation and Conflict
Story elements such as conflict, character analysis, resolution, and moral are discussed and charted as elementary children read folktales involving animals. An element of science is also introduced as learners discover what a keystone...
Curated OER
Drama from Animal Characters
Learn about animal habitats, characteristics, and writing in a different perspective. The class composes a narrative from the perspective of a fresh water animal, they include a problem and the animal's reaction to the problem. The...
Curated OER
Rachel's Life is in a Hole
Explore how lack of access to water impacts peoples' lives in poor countries. Through text reading and discussion, middle schoolers are presented with the story of a young girl who lives and functions with limited water resources. They...
Curated OER
Adventure Writing: Oregon's Landscape as a Setting
Students identify geographical features of different regions encountered by migrants on the Oregon trail. Students research how the Oregon landscape may have affected life and 19th century westward migration. Students write a narrative...
Curated OER
Cave Stories - Tales of Adventure
Students list three things about caves that interest them and list reasons why writers choose caves as settings for stories.
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Stories of Hope: Dragonfly and Mosquito
Students identify and interpret the value of the dragonfly as a predator of the mosquito. They create their own folktales using the dragonfly or a creature of their choice to solve the malaria problem or another issue. Students also...
Curated OER
Elements Commercials
Student teams use a digital camcorder and iMovie to create a commercial about an element. They also use the Internet and their textbook to gather the following information about their element: the name, the symbol, the atomic number, the...
The New York Times
Writing Fiction Based on Real Science - NYTimes.com
Refuse to alienate your scientific-minded young scholars during your creative writing unit. Learners explore how literary writing can reflect observable fact, and be based in actual science. The links include examples of fiction and...
Curated OER
Asthma and Allergies
Your health class reads two biographical stories: one about a girl who has allergies and the other about a girl who has asthma. They watch a quick cartoon on the KidsHealth website about immunity and take the related online quiz. You...
Curated OER
Life's Lessons: Survival of the Fittest
Students analyze Jack London's use of anthropomorphism to identify the importance of adaptability in life. In this literature lesson, students use the novel The Call of the Wild to identify key elements in survival. Students...
Curated OER
Fitting Trash into Yesterday: A Fifth Grade Activity
Fifth graders explore the concept of waste management. In this recycling activity, 5th graders discover the history of waste management and discuss how the U.S. should respond to the issue of ever-increasing waste.
Curated OER
Magical Images of the Estuary
Students investigate picture taking techniques while visiting an estuary. In this picture taking lesson, students examine the "Magical Images of the Estuary" handout. They think of and list important picture taking techniques before...
Curated OER
Because of Winn Dixie: Water Management Practices
Fourth graders read the book Because of Winn Dixie and define the characters, setting, and plot. In this Winn Dixie lesson plan, 4th graders also identify quality water management techniques addressed in the story.
Curated OER
Totem Poles -- Storytellers of Long Ago
Third graders discover the main purpose for totem poles was to communicate with others. In groups, they compare and contrast the four types of totem poles and the various symbols used. They write their own stories based off of pictures...
Curated OER
Properties of Color
Second graders explore the properties of primary color and investigate what happens when primary colors are mixed. They listen to the story The Crayon Box That Talked and list the colors. They experiment mixing primary colors and...
Curated OER
The Contest Between the Sun and the Wind
Students investigate the relationship between the sun and wind. In this reading comprehension lesson, students read the book The Contest Between the Sun and the Wind, and observe the effect of the Sun and wind on our planet....
Curated OER
A QUESTION
Students engage in scientifically oriented questions. They give priority to evidence, draw conclusions/formulate explanations and connect/evaluate explanations with scientific knowledge. Students communicate and justify proposed...
Curated OER
Constrating Cinderellas/ Connecting LA Cenerentola
Learners contrast the traditional Cinderella character with a modern, independent and socially conscious Cinderella. To activate prior knowledge by eliciting from the students some of the familiar story elements of the traditional...
Curated OER
The Inside Current
Eighth graders explore ocean currents and wind patterns. They discover the concept of systems to show how change in one component of a body of water, causes change in other components in that system. Students describe positive and...
Curated OER
"Hoot" by Carl Hiaasen
Students complete a variety of activities that revolve around the book "Hoot" by Carl Hiaasen. They view and discuss stills from the move "Hoot" and compose original storylines, conduct Internet research about the life of Carl Hiaasen,...
Curated OER
Creature Feature
Students work in pairs to create a creature and its habitat out of construction paper. Then students write a narrative to describe the animal and its habitat.