Focus on similarities and differences with a jigsaw activity that requires pupils to compare Waiting for the Biblioburro to other texts they have read. To prepare, class members first respond to text-dependent questions, moving on to...

Pesticides—unnecessary pollutants or positive application? Learners watch a video about DDT and read Rachel Carson: Sounding the Alarm on Pollution for their mid-unit assessment. They complete graphic organizers, answer multiple-choice...

Scholars discuss the many ways they use persuasion in their everyday lives and brainstorm specific ideas for encouraging someone to do something. With the list of persuasive techniques they made, young writers complete a graphic...

"Sí, se puede!" Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta believed organizing farm workers and changing their working conditions were possible. Scholars examine provisions of the Bracero Program, videos, and the United Farm Workers' (UFW) work....

Writers work to create drafts of their end-of-unit assessments relating to A Mighty Long Way and Little Rock Girl 1957. Using computers to create the first versions of their essays, writers emphasize ideas and evidence before focusing...

Time is of the essence. Pupils spend time completing the first draft of their essays based on Katherine Paterson's novel Lyddie. Using everything they've learned throughout the unit, they craft their arguments about whether Lyddie...

Writers work on creating a plan for their end-of-unit essay of Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass using a Frederick Douglass Essay Planner to help guide their thought process. They then regroup as a class to...

Put it all into words. Scholars work toward writing an argumentative essay. They begin by examining and marking strong words in Are We Medieval? A Literary Argument Essay Prompt. Learners then use Qualities of a Strong Literary Argument...

This is a formal affair. Scholars take a look at using formal writing in essays. They analyze the model essay Are We Medieval?: Opportunities in the Middle Ages and Today? They then begin working on the first draft of their own...

Mutations are not just deformed creatures we see in movies—they happen every day! Scholars study the different types of genetic mutations in the 12th installment of a series of 18 lessons. A creative activity uses candy and other food...

Go on a traveling adventure throughout Australia, Oceana, and Antarctica! This textbook excerpt offers a full unit of study that can easily be supplemented by extra projects or research materials. Learners study maps, read about...

Acquaint your class with informational text through a close reading. First, examine a couple of pages together, looking at text features and content. The whole class focuses on marking down a brief summary of each paragraph before...

Listen to the low, stifled sound that arises from the souls of your ninth graders when overcharged with awe. Inspire them with a captivating instructional activity about "The Tell-Tale Heart." Learners analyze how Poe uses the story...

Explore vocabulary and notation related to triangles and congruence. The fifth instructional activity in the 29-part series helps pupils build their knowledge of triangle relationships. Individuals identify corresponding parts of...

Using patty paper, classes determine that only one triangle is possible when given two specific angle measures and a side length. As the 10th instructional activity in the series of 29, young math scholars add these criteria to those...

Given a diagram of connected or overlapping triangles, individuals must find congruent parts using various properties. Pictures include reflexive sides and vertical angles amongst the marked congruent parts.

Wrap up your literary analysis unit with a discussion activity as tenth graders prepare for an end-of-unit assessment. After they have read and annotated Christopher Marlowe's "The Passionate Shepard to His Love," Sir Walter Raleigh's...

Examine the surface area of composite figures using an exploratory approach. As a continuation of the previous lesson plan of the 29-part series, young scholars develop plans for finding the surface area of composite figures. Examples...

Readers take all the information they gained from the last 19 lessons and complete an essay describing how King develops his purpose and claim in "Letter from Birmingham Jail." Pupils use a rubric and checklist to help guide their...

Be sure to place value on place value understanding. Young mathematicians learn to divide decimals by whole numbers when compatible numbers are not available. They use place value discs in place value charts, then connect this strategy...

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...

Escape to investigate hyperbolas. Pupils take a look at what happens to the elliptical orbital path of a satellite that exceeds escape velocity as the opener to the eighth lesson in a unit of 23. Scholars analyze basic hyperbolas and how...

It's the halfway point—there's no turning back now. Scholars work on the mid unit assessment for Flush. For the assessment, learners analyze the point of view and plot development by annotating the text using sticky notes and underlining...

Learners complete the end of unit assessment by writing an opinion essay about how Jackie Robinson changed America. They use evidence from the text, Promises to Keep, to support their opinions.