Curated OER
Letters from Lincoln
Fourth graders explore the childhood of Lincoln and pioneer life in early Indiana. Students respond to literature and write a story using historical fiction. Students explore the writings of President Lincoln and the pioneer community...
Curated OER
Tuck Everlasting and Economic Decision-Making
Sixth graders use a decision-making grid and list the alternatives and criteria for deciding to drink the Water of Immortality. They examine advertisements and list the product for sale, where it is sold, and why consumers should buy it,...
Curated OER
Reading to Learn Design: Soaring Through Summarization
Students are introduced to and practice techniques and strategies to master the art of summarization. They read, discuss and summarize chapter 3 in "Catwings," by Ursula K. LeGuin. Steps to follow for summarizing is included within this...
Curated OER
Compare and Contrast with Pink and Say
Sixth graders complete a shared reading of the book Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco and character analysis Venn diagram. In this character analysis lesson, 6th graders read the book and work in groups to compare and contrast the two...
Curated OER
Pulse
Students determine a baseline pulse rate then chart the changes in rate with exercise. They describe the changes and develop a rationale for their observations. The task assesses students' abilities to make simple observations, determine...
Curated OER
Honey ! I Blew Up The Bee!
Second graders complete a variety of bee-themed activities. They consider the importance of honeybees in food production, conduct Internet research, prepare foods using honey, complete puzzles and compile a portfolio of their work.
Curated OER
Tell Me a Whopper!
Sixth graders investigate tall tales as a literary genre. They listen to a number of tall tales to discover how exaggeration is used as a story element. They write and publish a tall tale using word processing software. They illustrate...
Curated OER
Creating a Multimedia Presentation
Students are divided into teams to make a presentation about their state. Each team is responsible for making one part of the presentation. At the end, all parts are combined to make one complete presentation. While creating the...
Curated OER
Story Retellings
Second graders complete story maps in order to retell stories to the class.
Curated OER
Whodunit? Creating Mysterious Plays
Students examine mystery plays by reading a number of five-minute mysteries. They write and perform their own plays.
Curated OER
The Land and the Water
Third graders read "The Land and the Water," a fictional short story and an article about John F. Kennedy, Jr. and compare and contrast fictional tragedy to a non-fiction tragedy. They fill out a Venn diagram and write an essay using...
Curated OER
Could You Repeat That?
Pupils participate in an oral story telling activity designed to show how story embellishments occur. They read "Beowulf" and identify incongruities that suggest additions and embellishments over the years.
Curated OER
Identifying Science Fiction
Students discuss works of science fiction that they read, highlight aspects that made each a part of science fiction genre, identify formal literary elements, and discuss ways each can be developed through science fiction.
Curated OER
There's a World of Science to Read Today!
Students read a current science article. They write a summary of the article, take notes, write and edit a summary, and print their work.
Curated OER
Out of the Dust (High School)
Fourth graders read Hesse's "Out of the Dust". They respond to questions about the novel and write a free-verse poem modeled after the author's.
Curated OER
Computer Lab Lesson Plan - Science
Students examine rocks and minerals. Using the internet, students research rocks and how they are formed. They use word processing software to list minerals and materials that form specific rocks.
Curated OER
Millennium Scrapbook
Third graders create a millennium scrapbook, collecting stories about the past millennium and including photos of local, national and international events.
Curated OER
Descriptive Essay
Learners review previously written essays, draw pictures of shapes, and write descriptive essays.
Curated OER
Predictions, Predictions, and More Predictions
Third graders pose questions about the subject of a short story based on the title and cover illustration; then read the story and determine if their questions actually pertained to the story line, and, if so, how the story answered the...
Curated OER
Mc Graw Hill: Informational Text: Compare Text Structures
This learning module focuses on comparing organizational patterns in informational texts including chronological order, compare and contrast, cause and effect, and problem and solutions. Click on each text structure for an explanation.
Polk Brothers Foundation Center for Urban Education at DePaul University
Depaul University: Center for Urban Education: Organize an Argument [Pdf]
This site provides a nonfiction graphic organizer that will help students organize an argument.
Scholastic
Scholastic: Informational Text: Reading Response: Compare Contrast [Pdf]
This graphic organizer can be use with students when they read an informational text. Using a Venn diagram to organize content, students will write important similarities and differences after reading an informational text and analyzing...
Lumen Learning
Lumen: Writing Process: Organizing
This lesson focuses on the organization of your paper including how to write a thesis statement, the elements of an effective paragraph, patterns of organization, transitions, and conclusions. It also provides a video of the Toulmin...
Tom Richey
Slide Share: Text Structures: Analyze Organizational Methods
This slideshow focuses on text structures for informational texts including how the author's purpose helps determine the organizational pattern to use and how the reader can use clues to identify the text structure used. Five...