Here is a lesson plan that incorporates music writing, and reading literature. The class reads chapter eight from the C.S. Lewis classic The Magician's Nephew. Then, just like in the story, they use music as inspiration to create...

Looking for an activity to increase fluency? Third graders will practice reading comprehension by expanding their reading level. They will demonstrate for their teacher their current reading level and then decide on a goal to be reached...

Make origami ducks with your class to reinforce geometry concepts and vocabulary; develop fine motor and visual translation skills; and enrich study of Japanese culture, the pond habitat, or migration. Create a whole group "worksheet"...

Dive into an author study of one of the most beloved children’s book authors, Eric Carle. After reading some of his stories, including Papa Get me the Moon, A House for Hermit Crab, The Grouchy Ladybug, and The Very Busy...

Students demonstrate reading comprehension skills, including reading strategies, inference, literal meaning, and critical analysis.

Middle schoolers read library books daily for ten to fifteen minutes, log information on Free Reading Chart, giving a brief summary of what they just read, and write brief reactionary response to the reading.

Students practice the strategy of visualization to aid in their reading comprehension of text. They paint mental pictures from readings from their history books, "The World and Its People: the US and It's Neighbors," and short stories...

Who was Bill Picket? Interested readers work through an informational passage to find out about a famous "bulldogger" from the old West. They answer several reading comprehension questions and use a seven step process to decode new...

Guide your readers to explore character traits. As a class, discuss and record the traits of a commonly-known fairy tale character. Then do the same with the main character in the class novel. Finally, have learners use magazines...

Second graders read the story The Ghost Cather and complete activities related to the book. In this language arts lesson plan, 2nd graders complete comprehension questions, art projects, and more.

Young scholars practice their reading comprehension by reading a story in their class. In this story map lesson, students read the Marc Brown book Arthur's Tooth and discuss the story, characters and setting. Young scholars create a...

First graders demonstrate their ability to read with fluency, accuracy, and comprehension through phonemic awareness. They use a color-coding system to master the long and short vowel sounds and develop their skills in listening and...

Students investigate birthdays.  In this literacy cross curriculum lesson, students listen to the book Arthur's Birthday by Marc Brown.  Students re-read the book orally, graph birthdays, design a word search, and create...

Young scholars study dotted eighth/sixteenth note rhythm pattern using percussion instruments and alternating from "corral to corral" in groups of 4-6. They play the pattern while listening to selected American western theme songs.

Students study geography. In this Arizona maps lesson, students develop their map reading skills. They have class discussions and work independently with various copies of Arizona maps to practice those skills. This lesson mentions...

Introduce your class to drama! You cast each pupil as a different character from a story you have read. They are given a general outline of the scene, act out the scene multiple times, then discuss the weak and strong aspects of each...

Analyzing the sequence of actions in dramatic stories leads to deeper comprehension of story structure. The class identifies the main actions in each section of a story and develops frozen tableau's for the identified actions of the...

Students investigate equality by reading a historical fiction book in class.  In this civil rights lesson, students read the story Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry with their classmates and define the Jim Crow Laws that kept blacks...

Students participate in a reader's theater about the Civil War. In this performing arts lesson, students review the Civil War through a reader's theater. They practice reading their parts to work on expression and fluidity before...

Students view the AMERICAN MASTERS entitled Joni Mitchell: Woman of Heart and Mind, examine the concept of influence, and explore how Joni Mitchell and her work have influenced others. Students read, interpret, and analyze her lyrics by...

Sixth graders work independently and with a partner to demonstrate proficiency of steady beat, meter and basic note values while creating written rhythmic patterns for class performance. State and National Standards are addressed.

Young scholars create an awareness of how music creates a setting in a story or legend. They identify the instrumentation, dynamics and tempo used to create various settings for a musical story. They perform rhythmic patterns from...

Historical fiction novels give readers a chance to step into someone else's shoes. An educator's guide from Penguin Common Core Lesson Plans provides resources to accompany three historical fiction novels written by Ruta Sepetys: Between...

"Friend, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears..." Those words begin one of the most persuasive speeches in literature. Explore the elements of persuasion in a series of lessons related to William Shakespeare's Julius...