How do scholars prepare to take their next big step? The second in a series of six career and college readiness activities focuses on making a smooth transition from middle to high school. Groups research the resources available at their...

The seventh in a series of nine exercises focusing on songwriting models for young lyricists on how to find and develop their unique voice. Class members suggest songs that they feel sound authentic and contrast the wording with songs...

If you asked a fifth grader what went wrong in their day, you may get a more thorough answer than if you asked what went well. Help young learners find moments of gratitude throughout the week with a journal template that focuses on...

Give me a W! Give me an O! Give me a W! What does it spell? Wow! Teach youngsters how to write letters and numbers with colorful tracing activities that include encouraging audio and make writing enjoyable. Soon, they will be writing...

Make a study of the First Amendment and its relationship to freedom. Pupils rewrite the amendment and discuss the central idea before focusing on a specific phrase. After discussing, class members write a journal entry about the included...

What are the benefits of kindness and integrity? When is it difficult to be honest? Through discussion, writing, and hands-on experiences, your young learners will consider the definitions and importance of having honesty and integrity...

A civil rights movement lesson plan designed specifically with the Common Core State Standards in mind, young learners are introduced to the story of Ruby Bridges as the first African American child to attend an all-white elementary...

Explication may sound like a fancy word, but it's just a fancy way to say analysis. Using a handout on poetry explications, part of a larger series on specific writing assignments, writers learn how to break down and analyze a poem. The...

Take the last step in writing a literary argument essay using Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis in an activity focused on feedback. Using the stars and steps revision method, pupils consider teacher and peer feedback to revise...

Eyes on the finish line. Serving as the first part of the end of unit assessment, learners answer questions based on a text about how to write a graphic novel. Using what they've learned, they then create a storyboard about the invention...

Teams select a society to investigate and create a chart comparing and contrasting the status of girls in that society with their own. They then craft and illustrate a personal narrative written from the point of view of a girl living in...

A great way to bring poetry and parody into your language arts classroom, this lesson mimics famous poems based on Jon Scieszka's Science Verse. The activity not only allows the class to see examples of poem parodies, but to create their...

The djinni in this resource offers gold coins. Learners use the properties of exponents to make their decision as one offer increases exponentially. This makes a great group project. As the commentary suggests, start by having groups...

Combine a lesson on the elderly with grammar instruction. Before viewing a series of provided video clips, class members brainstorm a list of words related to senior citizens and organize these words into categories that correspond with...

How did the Emancipation Proclamation lead to the Thirteenth Amendment? Middle schoolers analyze primary source documents including the text of the Emancipation Proclamation, political cartoons, photographs, and prints to understand...

Scholars apply prior knowledge of statistics to write a conclusion. They summarize using correct academic language and tell the story of the data.

Would you rather have a big shiny diamond ring or a diamond shiny big ring? Word choice and the order of adjectives can affect what a writer is trying to say. Teach young learners how to clarify their writing with a set of...

How do you describe a jellyfish? Individuals write adjectives for Nomura's jellyfish, take notes, and check understanding with a formative assessment. Notes include the definition for adjectives, guiding questions to help writers...

Barbie has been an iconic figure in the lives of girls since the 1950s, but her existence has been full of controversy. A lesson plan on style, format, and genre explores that controversy by looking at three texts with different...

Play a game of capture the points. Young scholars receive a number line with specific points graphed and must write an inequality that captures all the points. The second task of the algebra project is to write an inequality with...

Pirates ahoy! Readers go on an adventure using a novel study for Treasure Island as they research and write about a modern-day pirate story. Additionally, scholars practice writing similes and alliteration before answering comprehension...

There is no I in team. Seven team problems provide classmates the opportunity to work with a partner on a task. Projects span the course and require pupils to apply their knowledge. Tasks range from writing the algorithm in English to...

As writers continue to revise their argument essays, the focus shifts to editing grammatical conventions, parallel structure, and varying syntax to add interest. After examining model sentences that demonstrate sentence variety, writers...

Trading in Colonial America is the focus of a lesson plan that boosts reading skills. As a class, scholars examine the informational text for crucial details, use their newfound knowledge to share information with their peers, and write...