EngageNY
Informational Essay Planning: Studying the Essay Prompt and Gathering Evidence
Using a Gathering Evidence note-catcher, readers record evidence in A Mighty Long Way and Little Rock Girl 1957. They then use the evidence to analyze and discuss different mediums with their peers. Lastly, they look at a writing prompt...
US Environmental Protection Agency
A Mock Town Meeting on a Proposed Tank Farm
Intended as a follow up to the Protecting Your Drinking Water activity, young environmentalists use their assessment of the a hypothetical town's water supply to debate the installation of underground chemical storage tanks. With the...
EngageNY
Analyzing How Literature Draws on Themes from the Bible and World Religions: The Golden rule (Chapter 3)
Scholars use their Golden Rule Note-catcher to examine passages from To Kill a Mockingbird. They then take a gallery walk to compare and contrast the quotes before sharing Think-Write-Pair-Share ideas on how the quotes demonstrate the...
EngageNY
Comparing Text Structures: To Kill a Mockingbird and “Those Winter Sundays” (Chapter 6 and 7)
Scholars carry out a close read of the poem "Those Winter Sundays" to determine its point. They look at the words used and the structure of the stanzas and then compare the poem's narrative structure to chapter 6 of To Kill a...
EngageNY
Jigsaw to Analyze Mood and Tone in To Kill a Mockingbird (Chapter 8)
We have an appointment! Scholars meet with another discussion appointment to discuss the text structure of the poem "Incident" by Countee Cullen. They use a Note Catcher to guide their thinking and compare the structure to chapter 8 of...
EngageNY
Examining How Word Choice Contributes to Tone and Meaning: Close Reading of “Wet and Crying”
Scholars participate in a Write-Pair-Share activity while answering questions about the meaning of words in "Wet and Crying." They use their Write-Pair-Share note-catchers to guide their thoughts and then share with the class. After...
EngageNY
Peer Critique of “Inside Out” and “Back Again” Poems
Class members closely examine the use of words in the poems "Inside Out" and "Back Again" to determine if different words would create more powerful poetry. They then conduct peer reviews of the poems they created and offer suggestions...
EngageNY
Text to Film Comparison: Taking a Stand at the Jailhouse (Chapters 14-15)
Readers look closely at Scout in chapter 15 of To Kill A Mockingbird. Learners use turn and talk and Analyzing Scout's and the Reader's Perspectives Note-catcher to compare their perspectives to Scout's. They then make a comparison to...
EngageNY
Close Reading: Fishbowl Comparing Atticus and Mr. Gilmer (Chapters 17-19)
Class members participate in two circle group discussions to compare Atticus and Mr. Gilmer in chapters 17-19 of To Kill a Mockingbird. They use a note-catcher to guide their thinking. For homework, readers begin looking at chapters 20-21.
EngageNY
Author’s Craft: Poetry and Prose
During a drama circle, scholars closely examine the play created in the play A Midsummer Night's Dream. The pupils read Act 3 Scene 1 and turn and talk to their partners about the scene. They then complete a handout and discuss the...
EngageNY
Mid-Unit Assessment and Author’s Craft: Narrative Techniques
Scholars work together to compile a list of things good writers do to perfect their craft and write the ideas on a whiteboard. They then discuss the differences between passive and active sentences and use their knowledge to identify...
EngageNY
Author’s Craft: Analyzing Narrative Techniques (Pages 73–113)
Scholars discuss a reading selection in Unbroken by writing to a partner about text selection. After completing the writing, learners revisit the use of active and passive sentences by reviewing a second Active and Passive Sentences...
EngageNY
Adding to Cascading Consequences and Stakeholders: Hunter-Gatherer Food Chain
Could the hunter-gatherer food chain feed everyone in the United States? To consider the question, pupils use their research and add to the Cascading Consequences chart based on Michael Pollan's hunter-gatherer food chain from The...
EngageNY
Close Reading: The Montgomery Bus Boycott Speech
How did Martin Luther King, Jr. sway people with his speeches? Scholars carry out a close reading of the Montgomery Bus Boycott speech and use the Close Reading Guide to help them work through the powerful text. While reading, they...
EngageNY
Analyzing the Power of Different Mediums: Little Rock Girl 1957
Scholars begin the instructional activity by watching a video of media history and discussing it in a Turn and Talk. They then look at the texts A Mighty Long Way and Little Rock Girl 1957 to make a connection to the role of the press in...
EngageNY
Reading for Gist, Answering Text-Dependent Questions, and Determining Author’s Purpose: Industrial Food Chain
A Reading Closely: Guiding Questions handout leads readers to discover the gist of The Omnivore’s Dilemma. While reading, pupils look closely at the words in the text and discuss their meaning. They use dictionaries when needed to answer...
EngageNY
Reading for Gist and Answering Text-Dependent Questions: Local Sustainable Food Chain
Readers use sticky notes and a Reading Closely: Guiding Questions handout to record the gist of a different section (pages 161-166) in The Omnivore’s Dilemma. They then pair up and share their ideas. To end the lesson, readers complete...
EngageNY
Establishing Routines for Discussing A Long Walk to Water (Chapter 6)
Middle schoolers use a reader's dictionary to locate words they do not know in chapter 6 of A Long Walk to Water. They then turn attention to gist and work on a Salva/Nya anchor chart to record what happens to the characters. Finally,...
EngageNY
Comparing Historical and Fictional Accounts: Second Sudanese Civil War (Chapters 14 and 15, Plus Rereading “Time Trip”)
Let's compare! One pair of scholars adds to the Salva/Nya anchor chart by gathering evidence about the characters from chapters 14 and 15 of A Long Walk to Water. The rest of the class pairs work on adding to the Survival anchor chart....
EngageNY
Writing an Argumentative Essay: Crafting a Claim
As scholars prepare to craft their essays based on Katherine Paterson's Lyddie, they learn about using compelling reasons in their writing. Next, they develop a claim about whether Lyddie should sign a petition to speak out against...
EngageNY
Writing the Children’s Book: Day Three
Illustrations are a key feature of children's books. Using the resource, pupils learn about adding illustrations to their children's books. Next, as they complete their storyboards and work on their second drafts, they consider their...
EngageNY
Gathering Information about Screen Time: Assessing and Reading Internet Sources, Day 2
Calling all researchers! Using the resource, scholars continue conducting independent Internet research about a chosen research question. As they browse the web in search of articles to answer their questions, pupils paraphrase their...
Curated OER
Get-together, Meeting and Reunion Exercise
In this recognizing vocabulary usage in context learning exercise, students read the meanings of get-together, meeting, and reunion and use them to fill in the blanks in sentences. Students write 12 answers.
Curated OER
Using Current Events to Understand Elections
Eleventh graders explore the the major phases of the electoral process for president. In this US Government lesson, 11th graders compare and contrast the delegate system of nomination and the electoral college.