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Millennium Santa!
Third graders decide what would make Santa look modern and in style. They write a descriptive paragraph that another student then reads. They try to draw the image conveyed in the writing. They read the paragraphs and match them with the...
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Summarizing Puts the Pieces Together
Students summarize a piece of fiction. After reviewing the correct way to read and summarize, students work in groups to summarize a piece of text assigned by the instructor. They write a summary paragraph by creating a story map and...
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Disease and Culture through Literary Time
Students select books to read that include disease as a plot or theme component. They fill out a matrix for the disease in their novel and write a five-paragraph paper about their book. Students use the rest of the week's classes to...
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The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Students participate in activities associated with the book, "The Very Hungry Caterpillar". They practice using new vocabulary and the days of the week. They create a book about what they ate on the different days of the week and how the...
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International Research Project and Feast
Pupils research countries around the world. They develop and write a research paper that includes maps, photographs, and diagrams. They describe the culture, society, economy, religious beliefs, government structure, and history of their...
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My Favorite Place
Students identify important buildings in their community. They discuss the variety of places and services available in their local community. Indivually, students write a paragraph describing their favorite place(s) in the community....
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Group Research and Reports on STDs
Students identify and list diseases that people can contract through sexual activity. They conduct Internet research on a chosen STD, write a one-page report, and create a visual aide to present to the class.
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My Living Arrangements
Young scholars identify various housing options, focusing on rental vs. purchase and short vs. long term. With a partner, students discuss their housing situation. Once their discussion is complete, young scholars write a brief...
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Newcomers
Explore emotions associated with moving to a new home with young learners. First they listen to the books Painted Words/Spoken Memories by Aliki and Going Home by Eve Bunting. Then they are invited to share their experiences as well as...
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Reintroduce: Main Idea
What would a main idea be without important details? Readers use a graphic organizer to record key details from an informational text (a fiction text would also work). Review main idea as a concept before beginning, asking scholars...
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Narrative Prompt - Lesson 2
Second graders review the structure of a narrative piece of writing. Individually, they write a narrative based on their best day of school. After being read different stories, they share their own narratives with the class. They are...
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Decision Making and Assertiveness
Fourth graders identify a problem and write a persuasive essay to the appropriate audience, to correct the problem. They demonstrate effective decision making based on positive self-worth. Students need to write a paragraph about their...
National First Ladies' Library
Red Hunts, Black Lists, and Communists
Students research and examine the unsavory history of the hunt for communists in the United States during the 1950s. They divide up into groups to review the Red Scare of the 1920s as a backdrop to the McCarthy era and write a short...
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Christmas Alliterations
Review and discuss how to correctly write alliterations and then write seven original Christmas alliterations to share with their classmates. This activity has a suggested extension that has them make a book illustrating their...
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Swallowing Stones by Joyce McDonald Unit Plan
Students read Joyce McDonald's, Swallowing Stones while investigating the literary elements used in the writing. They define a large number of vocabulary words to be applied when reading. Finally, they write a persuasive essay.
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Pirate Unit
Students complete a unit of lessons on pirates. They read and analyze the novel, 'The Stowaway: A Tale of California Pirates,' define key vocabulary terms, participate in a literature circle, and write a report on pirates.
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You can call me.........Speedy Gonzalez!
Students practice their decoding skills to increase reading fluency. They use timed reading to observe the rate at which they read. They work in small groups to read a book in a time situation.
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The Miracle Worker
Eighth graders participate in a layered curriculum novel study on "The Miracle Worker". The students can choose from a variety of studies and assessments. This make the lesson more differentiated for multiple levels.
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Whittle, Whittle it Down: Summarizing
Sixth graders are introduced to the jigsaw method of summarizing text. In groups, they create their own summary and work together as a class to create just one class summary. To end the instructional activity, they read the class...
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"The Minister's Black Veil"
Learners participate in a layered curriculum unit for a novel. The novel study allows for a variety of activities for assessment and differentiation. The difficulty of the assignments is chosen by the student.
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School Newspaper
Young scholars analyze the different parts of a school newspaper. In this newspaper lesson, students complete a semantic web activity for newspapers and explore a newspaper in groups. Young scholars create a write a report for the...
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The Secret School-Chapter 4
Fourth graders read The Secret School. For this language arts lesson, 4th graders discuss the characters in the story and read aloud using fluency while reading. Students write a summary of the chapter.
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Explorers Notebook Assignment
Seventh graders select a European explorer and accompany him on his expedition. They are required to record any pertinent information that describes the explorer's journey. Each student also write a letter to the monarch evaluating the...
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Transportation History
Pupils research the major developments in transportation. In groups, they use this information to plot them on a timeline. They also write a paragraph about how advances in technology have changed the world. As a class, they discuss...