Class members read a handout to learn about using I-Messages—honest statements that begin with I to get their points of view across. Next, learners practice using I-Messages with partners to better communicate without hurting...

Character analysis isn't always earth-shattering. Using a graphic organizer, pupils analyze Moon Shadow's point of view following the earthquake in Laurence Yep's Dragonwings. Also, scholars co-create an anchor chart showing the...

Scholars build background knowledge to understand the life and work of the union leader and labor organizer César Chávez. As they read teacher-selected resources, they complete a Building Background Knowledge worksheet and engage in...

As part of their study of the 1963 March on Washington, class members do a side-by-side comparison of the original text of Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream Speech" with a transcript of the speech he delivered. The take away from the...

This packet, the third in the series of support materials for the Houghton Mifflin Harcourt thematic units on animal adventures, contains skill-building activities designed for learners who need extra support mastering the...

Earthquakes, hurricanes, volcano eruptions, and more. To enrich their study of nature's big events, kids map tectonic plates and major earthquake locations, identify emergency response agencies, and storyboard a film about volcanos.

It is best to know all about the skeletons in the closet. The third segment in a five-part series focuses on bone structure, development and growth, and functions. Class members connect what they learn to their study of...

Working in small groups, scholars continue reading an informational text about either Roberto Clemente or Althea Gibson. As they read, pupils create graphic organizers in their journals to help map their ideas logically. 

Consider the elements and principles of design closely while examining works of art. Learners select an image from the provided pieces to write about in relation to the elements and principles of design. They then sketch and sculpt their...

A language arts instructional activity helps young writers identify elements that make up historical fiction. First, it guides them through elements of fictional pieces with vocabulary cards. Then, pupils work collaboratively to...

Learning to craft quality questions is a skill that can be taught. Class members use the Question Formulation Technique to learn how to create and refine both closed-ended and open-ended questions. They then view West of the West's...

Memories of and interpretations of history change—that's the key takeaway from a lesson that has young historians compare the story of the Reconstruction Era as told by the historians of the Dunning School to the view of scholars today...

Pupils read informational texts about the Mary River Project, searching for the gist. As they read the expert texts, they complete a graphic organizer to identify and analyze point of view.

Scholars complete their study of the collective fear in Arthur Miller's "The Crucible" by conducting a mock trial to determine how many witches are in the class. Groups then analyze sections of the play for the literary devices used and...

What does commentary have to do with narrative? Before scholars explain the narrative choices in their Character Confessionals, they review provided commentary to explain the score they received on previous assessments. They review...

Readers have the opportunity to bring the words from an excerpt of Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass to life. They use strategies from the Storyteller’s Toolbox anchor chart as a guide and then work in pairs to prepare...

An effective way to demonstrate understanding is by synthesizing one's own work. Use a creative instructional activity designed for a unit on Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun for small groups to show what they know...

Students explore a variety of reading comprehension strategies and apply these strategies to both online articles and printed text. They compare and contrast the effectiveness of each strategy with each medium.

Students listen to books and answer questions using reading skills. In this reading lesson, students develop reading strategies such as decoding, understanding characters, and comprehension. Students relate characters and events in the...

Why did the Black Panther Party feel colonized, and what methods did they employ to achieve empowerment? Your class members will engage in an online PowerPoint presentation, analysis of several documents, and discussion in order to...

Your learners connect the new concepts of transformations in the coordinate plane to their previous knowledge using the solid vocabulary development in this unit. Like a foreign language, mathematics has its own set of vocabulary terms...

Was the Emancipation Proclamation a revolutionary document or just a military strategy? It proclaimed that all those enslaved in Confederate states would be "forever free." Logistically, though, it did little. The order, however,...