Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Map the Path in My Father's Dragon

For Teachers K
Students listen to Ruth Stiles Gannett's book My Father's Dragon. They predict the outcome of the story. They discuss the events in the story. They sequence the events in the story.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cause and Effect

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Young scholars identify cause and effect relationships in a short story. After reading a short story, they participate in a discussion of how one event in a story can lead to several others. Students are then paired for a matching task...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Novel Idea

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders read a historical novel. In groups they reenact chapters of the novel.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Kinder-Pictionary

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st
Students create their own dictionary. In this spelling lesson, students make a dictionary with just words and pictures. They use these dictionaries when they are writing to remember how to spell words. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

One Sun, One Moon

For Teachers 1st
First graders read "Ten Black Dots" by Donald Crews and then create their own counting books focusing on the number 1 (one) and using yellow dots to represent the sun, moon and stars.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Woman Who Outshone the Sun

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders read the story "The Woman Who Outshone the Sun" from the Scott Foresman reading series. They create puppets and a setting out of a shoebox and retell the story with props. They research the Oaxaca region and the Zapotecs.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Powerful Language

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Learners study word choice by authors.  In this reading comprehension lesson, students read the book The Little Fir Tree by Margaret Wise Brown and discuss with their classmates the importance of an author's words.  Learners...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cooperative Jigsaw Expert Report of Fables

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students research literary elements of fables. In this literature lesson, students analyze literary elements of fables. Students work collaboratively using a jigsaw strategy to analyze literary elements.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Pinckney Benedict's "The Sutton Pie Safe" from Town Smokes

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed
Students read Pinckney Benedict's "The Sutton Pie Safe" to learn about family symbols and social commentary. In this close reading lesson, students read four journal prompts for the story and answer the listed questions for each section.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Mysteries of Twins

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders experience reading in the content areas by reading about heredity and practicing summarizing the reading.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Whodunit? Creating Mysterious Plays

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students examine mystery plays by reading a number of five-minute mysteries. They write and perform their own plays.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Weather Facts

For Teachers 4th - 10th
Young scholars study weather and weather measurement tools. In this weather lesson, students read and discuss weather myths and superstitions as well as weather terminology. Young scholars then work in groups to complete weather stations...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Folktales: "The Storytelling Stone"

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Pupils create a folktale after finding out the importance of folktales in different cultures.  In this folktales instructional activity, students determine the definition of a folktale and read a "The Storytelling Stone." ...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

After Hamelin

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers discuss the story The Pied Piper.  In this reading comprehension instructional activity, middle schoolers participate in a variety of activities designed to enhance and further their understanding of the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

When I Was Puerto Rican

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students are read passages from When I Was Puerto Rican and asked to respond to the passages in their journals. They decide on a topic for researching and they use this topic to develop their own memoirs.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What is Manga?

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Young scholars research graphic novels. For this manga lesson, students work in small groups as the read graphic novels in literature circle format.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Classifying Information About Main Idea

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
In this reading for understanding lesson, students underline information in a text that is important in identifying the main idea. This lesson provides good practice for students who usually have difficulty in finding the main idea in...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Damage Control

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students investigate artificially elevated regions or cities around the world to compare histories, cultures, and strategies related to potential flooding disaster.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

It's in the Paper! (Newspaper In Education Unit)

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders brainstorm a list of the kinds of information found in newspapers, present examples, and state how reading a newspaper is useful to them and people they know.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Native American Culture: The Light in the Forest

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders read the novel, The Light in the Forest. They work in groups to research and create artifacts for a Native American Living Museum. They complete a Powerpoint presentation of their virtual museum to classmates.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Celebrations

For Teachers 2nd
Second graders answer questions after listening to the the story "Celebrating Life Around the World" and verbally identify three ways in which people celebrate special occasions. They then make two verbal connections from their own...
Lesson Plan
National First Ladies' Library

Building a Federal Town: Washington, DC

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Young scholars create a timeline of the history of Washington, D.C. from 1787 to 1879. Using the internet, they read specified articles about the design of the capital and city of Washington DC. Middle schoolers write a newspaper article...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Day Eight Lesson- The Whale Rider

For Teachers 8th - 11th
Students examine cultural differences through the reading of The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera.  In this language arts lesson, students work in groups to analyze chapters 11 and 12 of the novel; these chapters highlight...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students use Maya Angelou's novel, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings to identify themes about adversity in the text. For this adversity, students read chapter 36 of the novel and discuss the examples of adversity in the book. Students...