Through casual talk and structured interviews, 6th graders tap into the wealth of their senior pals' experiences. They write descriptive essays and narratives based on conversations with relatives or neighbors. They read selected...

Students research the native attire of a chosen culture, write an essay reflecting the role of the attire in the given culture, and create a significant piece of attire from that culture that be modeled in a fashion show.

Third graders compile their writings into pop-up books after reading "The Jolly Postman: Or Other People's Letters." The book contains letters, invitations, essays, and narratives they have written previously. The project also includes...

Seventh graders experience the satisfaction of writing for a purpose; their self-selected piece be published for an audience. They write using techniques appropriate to the selected genre.

Young scholars practice persuasive writing by creating a travel brochure.  In this creative writing lesson plan, students research a popular tourist destination they would like to visit and create a brochure enticing readers to...

Students create a writing selection with a well-developed plot. They use a personal photograph in which they are visible to base their autobiographical writing. They write a description of the events surrounding the photograph in the...

Students write an essay. In this comparison lesson, students read about a child's typical day on a fair trade cocoa farm in the Dominican Republic. Students write about a typical morning of a child in the US and make comparisons.

Learners analyze Frederick Douglass' narrative about Christianity and slavery. In this Frederick Douglass lesson plan, young scholars read his slave narrative and analyze its word choice, imagery, irony, and rhetorical appeals. Learners...

Sixth graders examine the use of slavery in the United States. Using a map, they draw the route of the Tecora and Amistad voyages. Individually, they write an essay describing their opinions on whether the Africans on the ships should be...

Students construct a model house or school. In this physics lesson, students research about who wind up clocks work and write an essay about it. They determine the center of gravity of different objects.

Fifth graders write a narrative essay describing what happened in the classroom after a nystery person has visited.

Students study the appropriate formats for giving examples in American discourse style. A ladder approach is used to demonstrate the concept. They write paragraphs about abstract concepts, such as beauty, wealth, and love, using methods...

Fourth graders write about the forced Potawatomi migration. In this primary source lesson plan students are read journal entries from an emigrating party of Potawatomi Indians. Students reflect on the items the Indians might have taken...

Students write narrative essays about getting a famous person's autograph (a classmate) and then combine their work with pictures to enhance the stories. This technique can be used with any writing project.

As part of their exploration of the American dream, class members examine primary source materials to compare immigrant experiences of those arriving early in our country's history to those arriving in the US after World War...

Scholars learn all about the Puritans in the third installment of a 16-part lesson series. After watching a video, they read and discuss biographies of Puritans and Quakers from American history, write journal entries and poetry, and...

Students practice biographical and autobiographical forms of writing: autobiography, biopoem, character traits, classmate biography.

Sixth graders choose from a list of researchable inquiry questions. They engage in all phases of inquiry/research process.

Fourth graders read the passage, "Florida's Fabulous Frontier Females" and write two narrative essays, one expository, using examples of differences in life in Florida during frontier times and today. They then complete one descriptive...

Oskar Schell's narrative about his expedition to find out more about his father serves as a model for writers who are crafting their own narratives. Class members choose two characters from the novel and collect examples of the methods...

Give your class a taste of the Common Core with a practice test that includes both literary and informational reading passages. Pupils respond to related multiple choice questions and longer written response questions. See the...

Young scholars complete various biographical and autobiographical writing activities. They write an autobiographical essay, biopoem, biographical essay, and design and decorate a bag presenting character traits.

Students describe events that happened on the Oregon Trail and in the daily lives of Native Americans by writing a narrative essay of a family traveling through Nebraska based on Thomas Hart Benton's paintings.

Third graders read three to five genres and choose one as a favorite. They write an essay persuading the class to read the genre. This lesson serves as a nice introduction to different styles of literature.