Following a reading of O. Henry's "Gift of the Magi," students write an expository essay based on the connotative definition of "gift." The essay is then presented as a holiday gift. The activity can be adapted to a variety of occasions...

[Accessible by TX Educators. Free Registration/Login Required] In this lesson, you will learn how to make the information in your expository essays relevant and your inferences valid.

Using a famous quote from Maya Angelou as inspiration, students learn and practice writing informative essay related to hisotric events.

By using the children's book, Squirrel's New Year's Resolution, as an example, students learn to write responses to the story and explain their own resolutions for the year. Site requires registration, but it is free.

[Accessible by TX Educators. Free Registration/Login Required] This lesson will teach you how to write and organize an essay so that it addresses different purposes, different audiences, and different contexts.

[Free Registration/Login Required] During this MEA simulation, kindergarten students will be given the power of slelecting a classroom pet. Students, working in collaborative groups, must collect data about different potential classroom...

Students meet both language arts and social studies objectives in this interdisciplinary unit on customs and cultures. In part 1 of the unit students practice research and writing skills to create a slideshow. In part 2 of the unit...

Improve understanding of expository materials by summarizing the main ideas. The summarization strategy helps learners recall the main ideas and specific facts of materials they read. There are five rules for writing summaries.

"New Leadership" is Harold Washington's Acceptance Speech as Mayor of Chicago on April 12, 1983. It is followed by an assignment which requires students to provide evidence from the text; it includes comparing Washington's election as...

"Why is Community Service Important?" is a one page, nonfiction, reading passage is part of a report that the Obama-Biden campaign prepared about service and volunteering. It is followed by questions which require students to provide...

"Changing the Ecosystem: Q & A" is a one page, nonfiction, reading passage about how the loss of the prairie to farming and population growth impacts the ecosystem. It is followed by questions which require students to provide...

"Prairie Ecology Questions and Activities" is a one page, nonfiction, reading passage about prairie ecology the interdependence of its plants and animals. It is followed by questions which require students to provide evidence from the...

[Free Registration/Login Required] During this MEA simulation, kindergarten students will be selecting an apple treat that will be sold at a farm stand. Students will work in small groups to assess different criteria for their choice....

Young scholars will access prior knowledge of the solar system by completing a graphic organizer. After participating in a teacher lecture and whole group discussion, the students will work in collaborative groups to create a...

Links to essays on poetry, literature, writing and reading by Dana Gioia.

Using what they learn about how heroes are depicted in art, literature, and music, young scholars create their own definition of a hero, and then write an essay based on a hero they wish to research.

This tutorial focuses on how to paraphrase using an excerpt from Poe's short story, "The Tell-Tale Heart." It defines paraphrase and plagiarism, presents examples, and explains what is incorrect about them. It is interactive asking for...

Here, parents and teachers can find tips for helping young readers understand the expository writing found in textbooks.

This instructional activity will provide students with an orientation to the Library Media Center and the Dewey Decimal Classification System. The students will access the Alabama Virtual Library and will participate in a library...

Links to 7 lessons and activities that build student skills in standard W.3.2c: Use linking words and phrases (e.g., also, another, and, more, but) to connect ideas within categories of information.

[Free Registration/Login Required] A site with links to 10 worksheets that can be downloaded and printed for student use while building skills with standard W.3.2.C: Use linking words and phrases (e.g., also, another, and, more, but) to...

Links to 8 lessons and activities that build student skills in standard W.3.2d: Provide a concluding statement or section.

Links to 12 lessons and activities that build student skills in standard W.3.2b: Develop the topic with facts, definitions, and details.

[Free Registration/Login Required] A site with links to 30 worksheets that can be downloaded and printed for student use while building skills with standard W.3.2.B: Develop the topic with facts, definitions, and details.