Curated OER
The Meaning Behind the Mask
Learners explore the world of African masks and storytelling. They create masks that tell stories of their own.
Curated OER
Self-Assessment: Habits of Effective Readers, Writers, Speakers, Listeners, and Viewers
Fifth graders study how to read fluently. In this reading lesson, 5th graders practice reading and recording any miscues. Students time each other and graph their progress each day.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Nathaniel Hawthorne and Literary Humor
Young scholars examine Nathaniel Hawthorne's style of humor and compare it to other humorists. They discuss the purpose of literary humor and determine how it develops characters and plots in stories. They analyze the use of different...
Curated OER
The Golden Spike
Students investigate modern transportation in the 19th century by examining artifacts. In this U.S. history lesson, students read the story Joseph's Railroad Dreams, and discuss the Golden Spike used in the first transcontinental...
Curated OER
The Day Jimmy's Boa Ate the Wash
Students read the story The Day Jimmy's Boa At the Wash and put the event boxes in order from the beginning to end of the story. In this sequencing lesson plan, students do this on the computer.
Curated OER
Imperialism in Africa
Students study imperialism in Africa. In this Imperialism instructional activity, students consider how democratic revolutions around the world led to imperialism in Africa.
Alabama Learning Exchange
Alex: Narrative Paragraphs
Students learn to use a one-main idea Think-sheet for producing a narrative paragraph. [Requires Adobe Reader.]
Scholastic
Scholastic: Writing With Writers: Descriptive Writing
Need help with doing a descriptive paper or personal narrative? Need a writing lesson plan? Meet Virginia Hamilton and follow her step-by-step guide to writing. When done, you are eligible for a certificate signed by this author.
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Writing an Opinion Based on Facts From a Text
Students will plan a paragraph that states their opinion and cites evidence to justify their opinion about an informational text. This lesson uses biographies since students can easily be able to write down factual information from the...
Writing Fix
Writing Fix: Organizing a Story With Purposeful Paragraphs
In this lesson plan, students organize and design a narrative based on three developing ideas.
Capital Community College Foundation
Guide to Grammar and Writing: Principles of a Composition
Writing a Paper? Here at the Capital Community College is everything you could ever ask for while preparing your essay. This site includes the writing process, structure, thesis statement, transitions, the computer as a writing...
Writing Fix
Writing Fix: Prose Poetry Paragraphs
Inspired by the vignettes of Sandra Cisneros, students will write about a familiar thing from their lives. Students will use the style of prose poetry to describe something familiar around their home, school or neighborhood. The final...
Writing Fix
Writing Fix: Short Adventure Stories
Inspired by the interactive plot ideas here, writers will create an original three-paragraph adventure story. First, each writer will create an original adventurer. Next, each writer will place the adventurer in a brief, organized...
ReadWriteThink
Read Write Think: Character Clash: A Mini Lesson on Paragraphing and Dialogue
Contains plans for a minilesson that teaches about proper dialogue format while writing, specifically paragraphing. In addition to objectives and standards, this instructional plan contains links to sites used in the lessons as well as...
Writing Fix
Writing Fix: Showing Creative Problem Solving
After reading excerpts in which Buck solves a problem in Jack London's The Call of the Wild, young scholars write their own three-paragraph animal stories imitating London's style and word choice. Teacher and student instructions are...
Alabama Learning Exchange
Alex: My Story Quilt
In this lesson, students will write narrative paragraphs about specific events in their lives. Then students will paint images and symbols from their paragraphs onto pieces of fabric, which will be used to make quilts.
Other
Old Dominion University: Writing Sample Placement Test: Sample Essay
This is a sample writing placement test narrative essay and a list of questions students should ask themselves about their writing. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.3
Sophia Learning
Sophia: Paper Writing: Transitions and Topic Sentences
This tutorial focuses on transitions including transitional devices, lists of common transition words and phrases, transitions between paragraphs with examples, and separate lists of transition words for descriptive, narrative, and...
ClassFlow
Class Flow: Writing Review
[Free Registration/Login Required] In this flipchart students will interactively review the following areas of writing: parts of a paragraph; unity, coherence, and elaboration; and the 4 types of writing.
Alabama Learning Exchange
Alex: Better Living Through Science
This lesson involves research on scientists whose accomplishments have impacted areas of nutrition, sanitation, or health care. Students will research an area of their choice, record information on a graphic organizer, and use the...
University of Victoria (Canada)
The U Vic Writer's Guide: Literary Term: Point of View
From the University of Victoria's writing tutorial site, this section provides a multiple-paragraph discussion of point of view.
ClassFlow
Class Flow: Expository vs Narrative Intros
[Free Registration/Login Required] This flipchart gives examples of expository and narrative introductions. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.6-8.2.a
University of Illinois
University of Illinois Urbana Champaign: Toefl Practice Site: Coherence and Unity
This site discusses coherence achieved through major and minor connector transitions. Examples are given, and there is a link to an exercise meant for the particular class this site was designed for, still useful practice for anyone....
Louisiana Department of Education
Louisiana Doe: Louisiana Believes: English Language Arts: Grade 3: Louisiana Purchase
Third graders learn about the Louisiana Purchase and the characteristics of pioneers during this time period. While exploring literary and informational texts, including quotes from primary source documents, 3rd graders discuss elements...