Hawaiʻi State Department of Education
Poems That Dance
Combine the elements of dance with the actions in a poem. Learners review basic grammar, write an action-packed cinquain poem, and then choreograph a dance based on their cinquains. After the dances are done, they'll discuss the elements...
Hawaiʻi State Department of Education
Creating Narrative
Plot, setting, characters, and conflict are common to both drama and narrative stories. Kids create narrated tableaus that show their understanding of the plot, setting, and conflict of a story they've recently read. The lesson...
Curated OER
A'planting We will Go
Germination is an amazing process that results in amazing things. The book The Tiny Seed is the inspiration for a set of activities that will help build early literacy, observation, language, and writing skills. The class observes how...
Curated OER
Nonfiction Genre Mini-Unit: Persuasive Writing
Should primary graders have their own computers? Should animals be kept in captivity? Young writers learn how to develop and support a claim in this short unit on persuasive writing.
Novelinks
Oedipus the King: Organizational Patterns
Designed for teachers of Sophocles' Oedipus the King, this packet provides information about themes and literary devices used in the play. Appropriate for first-time and veteran teachers of Sophocles' tragedy.
My Access
“Banning Books” Lesson Plan
To Kill a Mockingbird, Hunger Games, Brave New World. Welcome to Banned Books Week. As part of a study of censorship and book banning, class members investigate censorship, the purposes of censorship, and First Amendment rights,...
Curated OER
Learning Life Lessons through Fables
Explore a variety of fables to learn life's lessons through engaging stories. Add rigor to the learning process with activities that include matching a a fable to the story's moral, short answer exit slips, and a three-column graphic...
School Improvement in Maryland
Building a Pyramid
After reviewing the structure and powers of the three branches of the US government, groups investigate a problem and research what is being done to address this criticism.
Odell Education
Scientific Process and Experimental Design
The scientific method keeps you from believing only what you want to believe — it expands your mind. The lesson introduces the eight steps in the scientific process and how to design an experiment to biology scholars. Live insects...
CHPCS
The United States in the 1920s: The New Negro Movement and the Harlem Renaissance
Music, writing, and activism all tell the story of history! The resource uses these elements and more in a presentation to discuss the Jazz Age and Harlem Renaissance. Your class views biographies, discusses important events, and...
Little Stones
How Can Poetry Make People Think and Care?
Can beautiful words change the world? Literary scholars discover how to paint their visions of change using poetry in a series of three workshops. Each independent topic gives participants a chance to examine their feelings about...
K20 LEARN
Diversity Quilt: A Lesson on Culture
After brainstorming the various aspects of cultural identity, class members interview each other, examine video clips, and read stories to discover how these aspects reveal one's cultural identity. Individuals then craft a quilt square...
Echoes & Reflections
Contemporary Antisemitism
Despite the recognized atrocities of the Holocaust, anti-semitism continues. The 11th and final installment of the Teaching the Holocaust series explores the long-term effects of the Holocaust on modern anti-semitism, asking pupils to...
Curated OER
World War II Time Line
Young scholars locate information on WWII in reference books. They as a group place key events of WWII in appropriate sequence on a time line and discuss key events that occurred during WWII as a class.
Curated OER
Weaving
Second graders, after reading the book, Warm as Wool, take part on a discussion about weaving with a guest speaker. They identify at least one specific idea they learned from weaving.
Curated OER
WWII Economics
Students simulate a classroom rationing program resembling an environment similar to the coupon/stamp rations conducted during WWII. The simulation last 3 days resulting in an observable outcome in relationship to the coupon rationing...
Curated OER
Who's Been Persecuted, and How Does it Feel?
Learners participate in a role-playing activity which depicts groups that have been persecuted. Using these perspectives, they discuss how it would make them feel and develop empathy for other groups. They write an essay about the...
Curated OER
Using Dreams in Writing
C.S. Lewis’s That Hideous Strength provides the model for using dreams in narrative writing. After a discussion of the purpose of dreams in Lewis’s tale, class members craft a story in which their dreams play an essential role.
Curated OER
Community Helpers
Kindergartners learn who community helpers are and what contributions they make for the community. They will hear a story outlining various community helpers, their jobs, and tools, create a graphic organizer connecting community...
Curated OER
Multimedia Book Report
Young readers plan and draft a book report focusing on the five key components of a novel: plot, character, setting, conflict, and theme. After completing a story board, pupils then prepare a PowerPoint book report that is shown to the...
Curated OER
Developing Listening Skills With Folktales
Students answer questions about a folktale that is read to them. In this listening skills lesson, students practice listening to folktales and answering questions about what they hear. They listen to repetitive readings of the same...
Curated OER
Civil Rights: Rosa Parks Centers
Research the Montgomery Bus Boycott and Rosa Parks. Set up different centers and have learners rotate through the activities aimed at researching Rosa Parks. They read The Bus Ride that Changed History: The Story of Rosa Parks, write a...
Brethren High School
Romanticism Through the Eyes of Art, Poetry, and Technology
Use this simple collaborative activity to introduce the definition, art, and poetry of romanticism. Educators will have to provide the poetry, images of the art, and the survey for the learners, but by using this resource, they won't...
Curated OER
Enemy Pie
Third graders pair up with a partner via an online classroom. They analyze half of the story "Enemy Pie" and communicate with their online peer to predict the outcome of the story.