A carefully crafted three-day lesson integrates poetry and visual art. By analyzing and comparing Langston Hughes' poem "Mother and Son" and Romare Bearden's collage "The Dove," readers explore the theme of hope. The lesson activates...

Begin this activity by asking third graders to bring from home pieces of cloth that represent something important to them. (Have extras for students who need them.) They reflect on important events in their lives, compose narrative...

Fifth graders research one of the 50 U.S. States that they were unfamiliar with.  In this U.S. Geography lesson, 5th graders utilize encyclopedias as well as the Internet to research a chosen U.S. State in order to write a report....

Readers reflect on enjoyable stories they know, brainstorm criteria that make a story "good," analyze a New York Times article about innovative children's performances, re-envision classics on their own, and peer edit drafts. Use this as...

A challenging lesson on writing a book for children awaits your fifth-graders. They must use laptops, document cameras, and a projector to create and present an original piece of writing. A checklist that has all of the requirements for...

Think about a moment, frozen in time. Now take a critical look at the painting, Better, Homes, Better Gardens. This painting works to provide learners the opportunity to analyze art, critique artist's choices, and write a story inspired...

Sixth graders explore language arts by writing dialogue. In this vocabulary choice instructional activity, 6th graders identify synonyms and the importance of using a thesaurus while writing dialogue in their own original work. Students...

In Guatemala, around AD 600-900, a vase was created. This vase is the inspiration for a instructional activity that incorporates expressive language skills, writing skills, and social studies. Children analyze the images on the vase and...

Engage your class in art analysis of Indian Look-Alike by Melanie Yazzie. Using this work of art as inspiration, writers compose a poem or short story. After a peer review session, the teacher conveys information about the work of art as...

Students brainstorm animals with unusual characteristics such as a giraffe with a short neck or a zebra without stripes. They write paragraphs about their animals and work in peer editing groups to refine their stories.

Students write a funny story and illustrate it in a comic strip. In this comic strip lesson, students study comic strips and determine the plot of each story. Students then write a short story and illustrate it using a comic strip...

Ninth graders write a letter to someone who is deserving of thanks. Peer and self-editing takes place. After the writing process is completed and a copy is made for the portfolio, envelopes are distributed, addressed, sealed, and mailed.

Students research the surrealism movement and its primary artists. Language is also analyzed, and students will create their own original poem utilizing surrealistic techniques.

Fifth graders write a paragraph titled "All About Me" in the computer lab after they have drawn graphic organizers to fill in background information about themselves and used a "10-Point Writing Checklist" to do peer editing.

Learners write their own story using as much descriptive language as they can. They peer edit each other's stories and create illustrations to accompany their writings. They place their story in a booklet and give it to a needy recepient.

Let's build a dream house! By examining promotional materials and photographs of early suburban developments, scholars consider what led to the development of this particular American dream. The resource includes case studies of three...

A lesson examines the holidays, Día de los Muertos and Halloween. After an exciting clip from the movie Coco, class members review vocabulary and discuss what they know about Halloween. The conversation leads into the history of Día...

Explore self and social construction with a hands-on art project. After studying and discussing bullying and other social experiences, individuals create three paper dolls that represent specific social constructions. Included here is a...

Students write reports, including a summary of their research findings and their historical journal entries, to be shared with friends and families, and publish their reports.

Sixth graders write a creative story and turn it into a digital storybook. In this digital storytelling instructional activity, 6th graders write a creative story, illustrate the story, and then use computer technology to turn their...

Students determine how to use a digital camera, edit the photos using PhotoShop Elements, and how to make a PowerPoint presentation. They use the PowerPoint as a digital portfolio which is an archive of their work. Finally, they write a...

Your class can build strong, well-represented opinions about the music they hear. They listen to, and share thoughts about, a piece of classical music. Then they write a piece of music or a poem, and analyze their peers' work and their...

Students analyze art to determine themes for the Great Depression Era. In this Great Depression instructional activity, students identify themes for the era and research evidence for the themes to present to the class. Students interview...

Learners review the elements for a successful play review. In this play review lesson, students work in groups to complete peer responses, a consensus activity, and tally activity. Learners write a play review. A Peer Review Sheet is...