The practice of developing lyrics by elaborating with sensory details and examples continues in the third lesson on songwriting. This time class members examine Jesse McCartney's "How Do You Sleep?" Using procedures established in the...

A poetry activity takes a close look at home. Scholars discuss with partners what they are most grateful for at their homes. A timelapse video showcases potato tubers growing. While watching, pupils write down what they notice. Learners...

Encourage scholars to retell their favorite short story or folktale, adding personal details to make it their own. After reading their book of choice several times, story tellers retell a tale verbally to their classmates. 

Students are walked through an outline (Power Writing) and shown how to elaborate on a main idea in their writing.

Second graders practice their creative writing by using descriptive words.  In this language arts lesson, 2nd graders utilize their best descriptive writing to elaborate on one of 20 different bean bag characters.  Students...

Once Upon a Dime ... a group of middle schoolers wanted to learn about economics! Teach them complex economic concepts like supply and demand through a resource that effectively simplifies the explanations. Pupils work through various...

How can you tell if a prompt is expository or narrative? Help your learners identify key words in writing prompts to determine how they should craft their essays.

Fourth graders engage in a instructional activity which teaches the parts of an expository essay and how to organize and write an expository piece from a given topic. After a lecture/demo, 4th graders utilize a worksheet imbedded in this...

Yeast and sugar go beyond the pantry and into a fuel experiment. Use these common baking ingredients to assist your class in creating ethanol, a natural fuel. Pupils observe the process and gather information to elaborate...

What can layers of rock teach us about the climate? Young scientists solve a mystery about who stole a cookie by applying the law of superposition. Then, they apply the same concept to solve a more difficult mystery, trying to determine...

How is energy transferred within an ecosystem? What would happen to a food web if one of the organisms was removed? Elementary or middle school ecologists examine these questions and more in a comprehensive 5E learning cycle...

Some things are beyond comprehension. Scholars read an excerpt from "Comprehending the Calamity," a primary source text about the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. After identifying the gist, pupils complete anchor charts to analyze how the...

Brace for the aftershocks! Scholars read an excerpt from a primary source document about the immediate aftermath of the 1906 San Francisco fire and earthquake. Next, pupils complete an anchor chart, analyzing how the author introduces,...

Do the "Space Jam" Dance! A dance that is made up of basketball skills movements, such as: dribbling, defending with hands up, pivoting, shooting, and slam dunks. The dance step descriptions are very well written out with cues for...

As an anticipatory set, biologists listen to the story of Ruth Patrick, a scientist who used algae to detect water quality. They observe a demonstration of osmosis and diffusion. In their lab groups, they place Elodea stalks in...

Christmas trees can be as large and elaborate as the tree in Rockefeller Center, or as small and understated as Charlie Brown's tree in A Charlie Brown Christmas. But where did the tradition of Christmas trees come from? An engaging...

Scribble art allows learners of any age to problem solve in order to express their creative thinking skills. They create a simple scribble, then elaborate on it by adding color and shape. Full instructions and extensions are included. 

Students work in small groups and prepare an analysis of a short story to be presented to their peers. They research the story and create a handout or a visual aid that cites sources of information and summarizes the main points of the...

Ahoy, matey! Here is an engineering expedition that mini mariners are sure to be swept away by! After reading a brief description and history of periscopes, they work in crews to construct one. Use this activity to enhance a...

It is impossible to cool down a glass of water by adding ice. Young scientists explore heat transfer through videos, experiments, and interactive games. They quickly catch on that the water melts the ice and things aren't always as they...

If you are new to teaching agriculture classes, this outline may be helpful when you are preparing a lecture on parasites in livestock. In addition to lecturing on this topic, the lesson plan suggests that learners research the life...

Young scholars use classified ads to select a career. In this math lesson, students convert the listed salary to an hourly, yearly, weekly and monthly rate. Young scholars explain the process they used to find the various rates.

If only life came with an owner's manual. Pupils assemble with their research teams to discuss which of Steve Jobs' rules to live by most resonates with them. Scholars also read informational texts in pursuit of finding the gist and...

Improve reading comprehension with a set of ESL worksheets. Kids read through various passages, note which facts are true or false, mark their opinion on two statements, and write a short reply based on a writing prompt.