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Saint Patrick's Day
Students read an article about Saint Patrick's Day and answer short answer questions about what they read. In this Saint Patrick's Day lesson plan, students answer 17 questions total.
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Synonymous Sharks
Students locate and read an Internet article on sharks. They write a summary of the article, and complete a Concept of Definition Map using information from the article.
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NASA's Mars gamble pays off
Students read an article about NASA and Mars and complete short answer questions about the article. In this Mars lesson plan, students also create a scale model of the solar system.
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Thoughts to the President
Students write a persuassive paragraph to the President stating their opinion on a topic. To do this, they start the message with a topic sentence such as "War is _____." The blank should contain a word or phrase expressing the student's...
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Facts and Opinions
In this fact and opinion worksheet, students decide if statements are facts or opinions, write facts and opinions, and more. Students complete 6 activities.
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I, Spy
Fifth graders utilize the library in order to find the answers to three questions about The Revolutionary War. For this writing and library skills lesson, 5th graders pretend they are a Spy, and write the answers in a fictional letter to...
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"Let's Write a Song"
Fourth graders analyze, brainstorm and practice playing a melody/pattern with rhythm, tempo, dynamics, and instrumental pieces of many styles. In addition, they create an original piece of music.
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Writing Persuasive Paragraphs
Fourth graders discover a fun-filled way to write persuasive paragraphs. After reading stories about mice and weasels, they choose which animal to be their topic. Students use a web outline to organize their opinion, four supporting...
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"Let's Write a Song"
Fourth graders brainstorm ideas that answer the question, "What is a song?" They determine the parts of a song, read lyrics, and listen to a song while identifying the chorus. They repeat the procedure with a new song before working in...
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Creative Writing - I AM A FISH
Ninth graders write a letter to the editor about the impact of people on marine life from the point of view of a fish.
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Mini Research Report
Sixth graders select a topic to research. They gather information from at least 3 sources and take notes according to the categories chosen. Students write a rought draft using the notes. They edit, revise and publish the information....
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Choosing the Right Strategy
Fourth graders record words in their word journal that were difficult to decode from a magazine or newspaper article. In this words lesson plan, 4th graders also write down what strategy they used to decode it.
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Different Ways We Celebrate
Students examine a variety of ways that families celebrate winter holidays. They complete a graphic organizer comparing Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa, and write a five-sentence paragraph about one of the holidays discussed. Students...
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My Favorite Things
Students create a body portraits to depict their favorite things. In this self-expression lesson, students use drawings, paintings, and magazine clippings to fill in their life-size body portraits with pictures representing their...
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Take Service Learning Online
Fourth graders research ways to use technology to raise awareness for refugee camps and the conflict in Darfur. In this world conflict and technology lesson plan, 4th graders work in groups as researchers, writers, and artists to create...
Media Smarts
Truth or Money
Two compelling texts about tobacco companies' influence over editorial content in print media introduce readers to the concept of advertising censorship. After study and discussion, class members compose a mock "final column" by a...
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Guided Reading Organizer for Chain Reaction
The class uses Chain Reaction, a magazine, to build a better understanding of Latin and Greek roots found in scientific vocabulary. They use two attached worksheets to help them read a scientific article, using visual clues and their...
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Two Sides, Same Coin: How Political Beliefs Influence Language Use
Learners read several magazine articles on the same topic written from different political perspectives, paying particular attention to the diction, syntax, and arguments presented in support the point of view expressed. They then select...
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Nonfiction Text: Comprehension Practice
A New York Times article about a 15-year-old style maven who in 2011 launched the fashion magazine "Rookie," based on her blog, makes high-interest nonfiction reading for secondary learners. This page asks 9 comprehension questions...
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Life as a Legend: Marilyn Monroe: What is Beautiful?
Learners consider the notion of beauty and what impact the media and popular culture have on it. In this cross curricular lesson, students examine print ads, write down and share their thoughts on them. Then learners form literary groups...
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Super Summarizer!!!
Emerging readers summarize a nonfiction text using a five step process. After a brief demonstration of the five-step method for summarizing text, they read a nonfiction article and write their own summary. A checklist of each summary is...
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The Learning Network Fill-In: When the Food Writer Is a Ghost
Introduce your class to ghostwriting while practicing comprehension. From The New York Times' The Learning Network, this article covers the topic of ghostwriting for cookbooks. There are blank spaces and a word bank. Learners can use the...
Virginia Department of Education
Researching and Narrowing Topics
Internet research is becoming more common, so why not conduct an online research project in your classroom? Use this resource to get you and your class started. The lesson includes basic instructions and a list of questions to help...
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Author's Purpose
A simple activity for young readers, this introduces the idea of author purpose. Learners analyze various types of texts (newspaper articles, magazines, books, advertisements, etc.) and determine if the author's purpose for writing was...