Scholastic
Thanksgiving Lessons Grades 3-5
Students explore the first Thanksgiving. In this holiday lesson plan, students create a KWL chart on what they know about the first Thanksgiving and conduct Internet research on this topic. Students use a Venn diagram to compare and...
Curated OER
Identify Cause and Effect
Students listen to a story about school in a one-room schoolhouse. In this cause and effect lesson, students create a Venn diagram to find the similarities and differences in schools then and now. Students discuss how past events...
PBS
Malcolm X: Minister and Civil Rights Activist
Any study of the leaders of the Civil Rights Movement would be incomplete without an examination of the life of Malcolm X. Class members view a short biographical video and analyze primary source documents to gain an understanding of the...
Northeastern Educational Television of Ohio, Inc.
Roman World vs. Feudal World
Young historians compare the major features of the Roman and feudal worlds, such as religion, social hierarchy, and political tenets, using online resources and group discussion.
Columbus City Schools
Sedimentary Rocks
Turn your class discussion of rock formation from ho-hum to holy hornfels! Junior geologists gain experience in identifying rock types and rock origins, with an emphasis in hypothesizing the environment needed to form certain...
Curated OER
Ecosystems
An in-depth look at ecosystems is outlined in this 13-slide PowerPoint. Students will learn about different types of ecosystems on our earth. An activity is provided on slide eight, as well as three scenarios to analyze on slide nine....
PBS
Arthur's World Neighborhood: Building Global and Cultural Awareness
Kids become global anthropologists as they explore commonalities and differences both in their classroom and expanding across the globe. Throughout several activities, learners conduct partner interviews that culminate in Venn diagrams,...
Curated OER
Formal versus Informal Language
Engage in an activity that focuses on the concepts of formal and informal language use. Middle and high schoolers compare and contrast each style by using a Venn diagram that includes some examples. They read and hear a passage of lyrics...
Curated OER
Lord of the Flies
Address the ways Piggy and Simon try to prevent the other boys from becoming savages in William Golding's Lord of the Flies with an informative slideshow presentation. The slides portray an in-depth comparison of the...
Education Center
Terrific Teamwork!
After reading Officer Buckle and Gloria by Peggy Rathmann, have your first graders differentiate between Gloria's actions and Officer Buckle's actions. Using a Venn diagram organizer, kids cut out various events from the story and...
Rainforest Alliance
My Forest or the Rainforest?
The differences between tropical and temperate rainforests range from animals and flowers to climate and landscapes. Kindergarteners compare and contrast characteristics of their local forest to a tropical rainforest.
Curriculum Corner
Holidays Around the World
Celebrate traditions and cultures around the world with a set of worksheets and printables. Fourth and fifth graders can create booklets or simply participate in individual studies of specific holidays in different countries. From lined...
Curriculum Corner
Hibernation
What is hibernation? Which animals hibernate and which don't? A 40-page packet on hibernation includes graphic organizers, reading passages and pictures about animals that hibernate, task cards, templates for a hibernation booklet,...
Trinity University
I Didn’t Know that was Poetry
Poetry or prose? That is the question facing middle schoolers as they begin a month-long poetry unit by examining the characteristics that differentiate poetry and prose writing. Pupils learn about poetic devices and different types of...
Curated OER
Looking at Leaves Lesson 1
Fourth graders visit an outdoor area and compare/contrast two different leaves using Venn diagrams. They create tree leaf rubbings from their leaves and examine their vein structures or needle patterns.
Curated OER
Increasing Multicultural Understanding Through Folk Literature
Students read folktales from around the world comparing two of them using a computer generated Venn diagram. They create a game based on a folktale and use software to create a listening library of folktales.
Curated OER
Quarter Sorter
Graphing and sorting are such important skills for young learners to understand. Here, they will be given quarters to examine, they must come up with a sorting rule by which they will use to sort the quarters. They will sort their...
Curated OER
Sorting and Classifying
Fifth graders are engaged in sorting and classifying geometric shapes of various colors and sizes. They discuss the properties of these shapes and illustrate a range of classifications using Venn diagrams.
Curated OER
An Author Study on Kevin Henkes
To better understand how the author Kevin Henkes uses the theme of friendship throughout his books, learners engage in several compare and contrast activities. The class reads several Henkes titles and discusses the similarities in...
Curated OER
Gingerbread Baby's Point of View #8
Read the story Gingerbread Baby and use these various activities to connect to grammar, art, and point of view. In one activity, learners create character masks. They practice writing verbs on the back of the masks to tell what each...
Curated OER
What Is the True Story of the Three Little Pigs?
Cozy up and listen to a recording of The True Story of the Three Little Pigs and The Three Little Javelinas. Then, lead your class in a compare and contrast of the two stories by creating a Venn diagram.
Curated OER
An Introduction to Nonfiction
Examine the elements of nonfiction writings in this instructional activity. Learners list common features of nonfiction and compare nonfiction and fiction books on the same topic. Create a Venn diagram comparing and contrasting the two...
Curated OER
Down to the Sea in Ships...Really!
Students discuss the travel of ancient sailors and the use of ships. They complete a Venn diagram, and compare and contrasts the two points of view on ancient ship travel.
Curated OER
Comparing and Contrasting Heroes
Here is a language arts instructional activity that can be used with virtually any grade level. The only thing that changes is the reading level of the books. Learners compare and contrast different heroes and the characteristics they...