Virginia Department of Education
Identifying Audience and Purpose
Use a fun and creative activity to introduce junior high learners to how writing changes for different audiences and purposes. The activity begins with a reading by the instructor where teens visualize a food fight in the cafeteria. In...
Florida Alliance for Arts Education
Theatre Arts
What skills do storytellers employ to bring to life the characters and events in their tales? After listening to a recording of a Haitian folk tale, class members consider how tone of voice, pace, and gestures can be used to enliven a...
Curated OER
Storytelling
Show young readers how to put some personality and voice into their storytelling with an in-depth assignment. Kids practice saying the same thing, such as counting from one to ten, in different tones and perspectives, and then work on...
Curated OER
Hoops! There It Is!
Fifth graders view and discuss the use of voice in writing through the in-your-face, aggressive, powerful messages of the Nike advertisements and the book Hoops as examples of the intensity words can have and how voice is expressed. A...
Curated OER
Much Ado About Illumination
Learners analyze the language and characters in the Shakespeare play, Much Ado About Nothing. In this Shakespeare play lesson, students read section of the play and discuss the speech of Benedick and Claudio. Learners record the speech...
Curated OER
Exeter Model
Eighth graders analyze what makes poetry reading interesting to an audience. They read five short poems. Student free write their interpretations of those five poems. With the help of one line from their free writing, 8th graders start...
Curated OER
Boogie Woogie with a B: Using Alliteration while Exploring Patriotic Tunes
Are you looking for a way to bring writing into your history lesson - or history into your writing lesson? This cross-curricular activity is helpful and fun, no matter what class you're teaching! Using "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" by the...
Curated OER
Exploring Careers
The world is full of possibilities for your ELLs. Help them explore their career options with a lesson that incorporates Internet research and expository writing. Not only will they learn more about their careers of choice, but both...
Scholastic
Tell Us a Tale: Teaching Students to Be Storytellers
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.
Curated OER
Writing Process-- Revision and Editing
As guided practice, class members work together to revise a model persuasive paragraph. Then they practice independently with their own writing. The included rubric looks at prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, nonfiction text...
Curated OER
Book Trailers
Students develop a list of criteria for a book trailer. In this book trailer lesson, students review book trailers, create storyboards and use Photo Story 3 to create book trailers. Students create a mini-webquest to review copyrights.
Curated OER
Mandela The Man
Ninth graders explore civil rights by reading several biographies. In this Nelson Mandela lesson plan, 9th graders discuss the trials and tribulations Nelson Mandela had to face in South Africa and how they were similar to the problems...
Curated OER
Lecture 6 - Oral Interpretation - Verse
Students discuss how oral interpretation varies with prose and poetry. They select a piece of prose or poetry to present to the class, and then assess each other on the organization and delivery of their speech as well as on their...
Curated OER
Show And Tell Speeches
Fourth graders choose a category to speak about for about two to three minutes. They deliver a show and tell presentation in front of the class. They complete a rubric on classmates for their accurateness of their presentation. They...
Curated OER
Mardi Gras Madness
CStudents create a sensory chart in on the topic of Mardi Gras. They design a brainstorm web using Inspiration and complete creative writing assignment. Students write a poem about Mardi Gras that is presented to the class at the final...
Curated OER
PhotoStory 3 Lesson Plan
In this lesson, PhotoStory 3, young scholars create a story board of an original poem through the use of PhotoStory 3 presentation. Students write a poem and use it to develop their storyboard. Young scholars publish and share their...
Curated OER
Basic Letter Response to a Writing Prompt
Students respond to a writing prompt using appropriate letter format. For this letter writing lesson, students discuss the format for letter writing and use the worksheet format to write the heading, inside address, and salutation....
Curated OER
Renaissance Realities
Students analyze passages by Niccolo Machiavelli and Francis Bacon as an analysis of Renaissance ideas in contemporary situations. In this Renaissance writings lesson, students read excerpts from Machiavelli's The Prince and multiple...
Curated OER
Create Your Island Paradise
Sixth graders create a descriptive essay and map describing their island paradise. They try to evoke the reader's senses: seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, and tasting. They revise their paragraphs using their partner's feedback.
Curated OER
Now You're Speaking My Language; Deciphering the Symbols of Early Civilizations
High schoolers explore early attempts at written language. For this early civilizations lesson, students investigate first attempts at written communication. Among the civilizations covered are Mayan, Greek, and Egyptian.
Curated OER
Color My World
Fourth graders write poems using color to describe their feelings and environment. After viewing a sample student poem imbedded in this plan, 4th graders utilize The Student Writing Center educational software program to type their poem.
Curated OER
Animalopedia Poetry
Students reseach animals while working in groups. They write poems to be included in a class Animalopedia book.