Is it worth it? Scholars complete the end of unit assessment by participating in a fishbowl discussion to consider if the benefits of DDT outweigh the consequences. They reflect on their discussions by completing an exit ticket.

Young journalists try their hand at writing a news report. They go through the process of developing ideas, and collecting and organizing their information. The headline everyone works with is, "Mystery Disappearance of English Teacher:...

Use this page to quickly identify the central idea of a text and organize ideas for writing an informational or explanatory text. The worksheet is split into two parts. In the first part, pupils note down the main idea and supporting...

Practice Internet research skills. Each class member will need Internet access in order to follow along as you model how to search using key words and to do their own research on African and Asian elephants. Their notes will go into a...

Students use tables of content, chapter titles, and key words as a strategy for organizing non-fiction information. They write a paragraph with a partner using information from a graphic organizer.

Fifth graders demonstrate research techniques in addition to endeavoring to display focus and stay on topic. Using books and stories, they gather, organize, and share information about a topic. Additionally, they explain to the class...

The details in the new Common Core standard for producing informative/explanatory texts is different from what you have in your current curriculum, and now you are confused on what to do. Keep calm and carry on, because not only does...

Give me more details. Scholars complete an end of unit assessment by creating an information text box to go with their field journal entries about howler monkeys. Learners use the class time to work independently.

Begin class with a short comprehension quiz and review and then move into a new genre: two-voice poems. The activity provides information about this type of poetry as well as a video example made by eighth graders that you can show your...

A creative lesson shines a spotlight on Christmas celebrations throughout six different countries. Scholars read an informative text and share their new-found knowledge with their peers. After hearing about each country, pupils choose...

You want your class to meet all of the Common Core standards, and here is one way to tackle the first speaking and listening standard. Given a theme to focus on from "How Much Land Does a Man Need?" by Leo Tolstoy, small groups come up...

Explore ocean habitats with a lesson that showcases the home of manatees and loggerhead turtles in Belize. Here, pupils compare and contrast the homes of ocean animals to those of humans, listen to an original short story about...

As a summative assessment for this unit on colonial trade, fourth graders listen to and read informational texts in order to demonstrate their ability to take notes, write summaries, and draw connections. Young scholars first listen as...

Students examine the concept of developing ideas and organizing their thinking. They create concept maps and graphic organizers using Inspiration software, and develop a concept map for their own subject area.

In this organizing data worksheet, students complete the tally chart for 'Votes for Team Mascot' and then use the chart to answer the six questions.

From picture to words. Scholars analyze a picture of an ant and then list two facts they observed and any questions that may arise. Expert groups from the previous instructional activity then look at a diagram about either an ant or...

A, B, C ... let's alphabetize to get organized! Using the informative resource, scholars create an alphabetized glossary of key words for their graphic novelettes. Additionally, they create a table of contents and citations page. 

Young researchers use the Internet or books to find out about colonial women during the American Revolution. They organize information in a graphic to demonstrate their understanding of the research they gathered before writing a...

What happened first? Learners examine four sets of images to sequence events using ordinal numbers. There is an example to get them started, and the first two have three pictures to organize. The final story is more challenging with four...

Students explore reading nonfiction. In this nonfiction lesson, students practice using KWL charts to organize nonfiction information gained from reading. Students explore unfamiliar words from reading and recognize synonyms and antonyms.

Although the article that launches this lesson is about the history of the Periodic Table, the objective is reading comprehension. Using the eight-page informational text, learners answer five comprehension questions and craft one essay....

Emotional appeal or argument? That is the question. An informative lesson helps your class recognize the difference between a logical argument and an emotional appeal and learn how to craft an argumentative response. Writers develop a...

How do pupils relate paired passages to each other? Here's a resource that helps! The lesson includes a short story and a poem as a set of paired reading passages, followed by some analysis questions. It also includes an essay template...

Where would society be without the TV? Working together, scholars complete an anchor chart about the invention of the television. Additionally, pupils complete vocabulary cards for key terms from the unit and organize them on a metal...