Beginning with anticipation guide strategies is a powerful method for improving reading comprehension. First, list initial ideas for a topic the class will be reading about. These ideas are formulated into statements, some of which are...

First graders practice summarizing with the book Sheila Rae the Brave by Kevin Henkes. In this summarizing lesson, 1st graders read the story over 3 days and answer comprehension questions. They write a summary about what they book was...

Students explore language arts by reading and reflecting on literary examples. In this fiction writing lesson, students read several different cultural versions of the story "Cinderella" and discuss their interaction with the story and...

Middle schoolers read a poem and complete a TPCASTT chart. They make a prediction about the title (T) , paraphrase each line (P), identify poetic devices and nuances (C-connotation), explore mood and tone (A-attitude), point out shifts...

Writing is not a one and done process. In fact, the stages of editing and proofreading, the focus of a flyer from a larger set of writing skills handouts, play a major role in creating a strong paper. However, as the reference sheet...

Be a team player. Scholars gather in their expert groups and discuss group norms and roles. They look at their research topics and determine how they will divide the work among themselves. Groups look over their research folders and ask...

A lovely guided reading lesson plan awaits you and your students. They read the book,Corn is Maize: The Gift of the Indians, by Aliki, summarize the important events of the story, and describe how corn has helped develop culture in America.

Building on the previous activity in this unit on colonial trade, the ninth activity has young experts continuing their research and writing summaries of the information they find. To begin, children participate in guided practice where...

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If you'd like to quickly access a simple graphic organizer designed for a class to divide and conquer a larger subject, then check out this resource. Assign class members to study a specific topic within a historical theme or event, and...

Here is a fine lesson on reading and understanding expository text designed for 4th graders. With a partner, learners read a passage of text about a machine called a wheelright. This machine was commonly used in the colonial...

The last instructional activity in this unit about human rights consists of a final assessment. To demonstrate the skills your class has acquired throughout this unit, they will work with a new article entitled "From Kosovo to the United...

Give this skills-based assessment halfway through your unit on Esperanza Rising. After a brief review, class members take the test, which asks them to show that they know how to analyze the novel independently. They are asked to...

Make connections between Esperanza Rising and human rights with the activities outlined here. The instructional activity starts out with a brief quiz and review of the novel. After that, pupils circulate and share quote strips that you...

W.W. Jacobs' story "The Monkey's Paw" provides plenty of foreshadowing which readers use to make predictions in this tightly composed, sound instructional plan. Your class reads the story, recording predictions and checking for veracity...

What can you contribute? Scholars read text to determine how ants contribute to the rainforest. First, they categorize and sort facts gathered from reading. Next, readers focus on specific terms in each paragraphs of the text Ants by...

Learners explore comprehension strategies as they listen to Zoom Broom by Margie Palatini. As the story is read, teacher and pupils will stop occasionally to make text-to-text, text-to-self, or text-to-world connections. They also...

Where did the falcons go? Scholars read the article Welcome Back which describes the disappearance of falcons due to the use of pesticides. During a second read, learners annotate the text by marking unfamiliar words and facts about...

Students practice the skill of summarizing in writing the content of a passage or text and point out the main points in the story. They revise their skills on note-taking that they took the semester before and fine tune them more...

Young scholars explore the basic concept of micro-financing. In this economics/literacy lesson, students listen to One Hen by Katie Smith, in which a small loan changes the life of the main character. Young scholars employ comprehension...

Young scholars describe the contents of the First Amendment while telling about an example of speech that is protected by the Constitution and that which is not. They attempt to apply the First Amendment to situations that could occur in...

Examine how Martin Luther King Jr.'s final paragraphs of "Letter from Birmingham Jail" summarize the ideas throughout the piece. Readers discuss word usage and new vocabulary and complete guided questions to better understand how the...

Explore nonfiction writing with your class. They will identify elements in nonfiction by reviewing elements of fiction. Then they use biographies, memoirs, menus, Time for Kids, and text books to identify elements of nonfiction. They...

Identify literary elements in fiction. In this reading comprehension instructional activity, learners read the book Pigsty and record literary elements onto a graphic organizer. They specifically discuss the main characters and events in...