Digital Public Library of America
Teaching Guide: Exploring Little Women
Louisa May Alcott's Little Women is a literary masterpiece as well as a timestamp of the formative mid-nineteenth century in America. Using a primary source set of photographs, letters, and portraits, readers discuss the ways...
Curated OER
Main Idea and Supporting Details
Second graders write topic sentences. In this writing lesson, 2nd graders construct a paragraph consisting of a topic sentence and 2-4 additional sentences. Students analyze their writing and publish a final copy.
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WRITING AN ARTICLE FOR A CHILDREN'S MAGAZINE
Middle schoolers engage in the writing of a magazine article. They focus upon the reading of a children's fiction book and create an informative narrative. They create main ideas and supporting details for the article. The supporting of...
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Three Reasons Why I Want To Be...
Students investigate the process of writing an expository paper. The purpose of the paper is established in the introduction and the supporting details are sequenced in a logical order. The paper possesses punctuation and grammatical...
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In the News
Third graders participate in a lesson that helps to improve reading comprehension. They move through several activities that help them understand how to express their opinions, support their statements and communicate these thoughts...
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Learning Paragraph Structure Through Design
Students examine paragraph structure, the writing process, and then design a model for the process. In this writing skills activity, students explore paragraphs using the SmartBoard. Students create a class T-chart about paragraph...
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In The Zone
Third graders identify ways that ocean animals grow, survive, reproduce, and adapt. They use computer Internet skills to acces and collect information. They create a PowerPoint presentation. They demonstrate writing skills throughthe...
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Worksheet for a Five-Paragraph Essay
In this five paragraph essay worksheet, students complete an outline in which they identify their thesis statement, main points, and supporting details. The worksheet effectively works as an outline for the essay.
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Panther Exam: Writing a Play
Students demonstrate their knowledge of panthers by writing a play on the subject. In this animal life lesson, students view a slide-show on school computers of a veterinary exam of a panther. Students utilize this...
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The Great Depression in North Carolina: Experiences of the People
Students explore the Great Depression. In this research skills lesson, students interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary sources. Students write their own WPA interviews after they have examined...
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Twisted Textbook
For this paragraph structure worksheet, middle schoolers read an excerpt about Europe and identify the sentences that focus on human characteristics as well as physical characteristics. Students rewrite the selection as two paragraphs...
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Descriptive Writing About a Picture
First graders word process a topic sentence, two detail sentences and a concluding sentence about an image. They import a picture and change the font color of their writing.
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Sensational Summarization!
Students observe and demonstrate a variety of summarization strategies. They silently read an article from National Geographic Kids, and as a class write a summary that includes the main idea and details and the five W's. Students then...
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Design Details (Fashion Lingo)
Students identify and define fashion details that are used in garment design. They play Bingo with fashion detail terminology. They create a fashion sketch using fashion details and write an essay.
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Wood
Students practice reading comprehension strategies. For this literacy and science lesson, students read a non-fiction article about wood and locate main ideas and details. Students construct a card game using information taken from the...
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Writing the Position Paper
Students write position papers on a form of alternative energy production. They use several class periods to develop and write their paper and them participate in an extensive peer review session.
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In a Nutshell....
Students examine how to summarize the most important details in a reading passage in order to increase their comprehension. They design a story web using the summarization skills. Before class, they complete a reading assignment prior to...
Pearson
Unlocking and Exploring Folktales
Designed with many of the Common Core standards in mind, this 10-lesson unit is brimming with ELL strategies, teacher's notes, and the best of core instructional methods for teaching the common elements of folktales, and exploring...
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Post-Colonial Writers Unit
How do cultural and historical background impact thought? To explore this essential question, class members view of portion of the film, The Passage to India, read an excerpt from The Magician’s Nephew, and Nissim Ezekiel’s...
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From Graphic Organizer to Composition - Grade Six
How does one use a graphic organizer to plan writing? Introduce your writers to different types of graphic organizers by dividing the class into groups and assigning each group a particular organizer. Then, as they research chocolate...
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Lesson Ideas for Comparing and Contrasting Content
Here are three lesson ideas to help students learn how to compare and contrast information in any content area
National Endowment for the Humanities
Lesson 2: Religion and the Argument for American Independence
Young scholars examine how religion affected arguments justifying American independence. They read and analyze primary source documents, and write an essay analyzing how Americans used religious arguments to justify revolution against a...
Owl Teacher
Five Themes of Geography Book Project
Young geographers choose a country to research and design a book explaining how their country applies to the five themes of geography, including three facts or details for each of the themes.
Curated OER
Creatively Creating Expository Essays
Students, after reading Fahrenheit 451, brainstorm inventions that could have been in the novel. They present their invention to the class and writing an expository essay about their creation.