Curated OER
Silly Story Starters
Fifth graders brainstorm some ideas for each of the columns. As they call them out, write some on the sticky notes until each sticky note is used for each column They stay in the same groups; have each group draw one sticky note from...
Curated OER
Directed and Undirected Free-writing: An Activity in Brainstorming
Start the flow of writing with music! Help learners free-write and brainstorm by playing various selections of music. After each selection, scholars talk about the theme and mood and then practice free-writing on their own. Lighten up on...
Curated OER
Watch What You Say!
Explore how to use appropriate language for a variety of real-world settings. Here, middle schoolers determine the audience for various types of magazines, and identify words that are appropriate for various friends and family members....
Curated OER
Complete Sentences
This is a great way to polish the writing skills of your third and fourth graders. Have them read through the 16 sentences to determine which are complete and which are incomplete. Looking to extend the activity? Consider asking your...
Southern Nevada Regional Professional Development Program
Focus: Spelling Common Words
If you’re going to get a tattoo, make sure your artist writes it right because it’s hard to correct their inkings. That’s the big idea in this short lesson on commonly misspelled words like their/there/they’re and it’s/its. Images...
Curated OER
Tolerance: Words that Hurt/Words that Heal
Young scholars "role-play" the part of a person who says unkind things and are photographed while doing so. They then act out a story about making friends. They practice saying kind things and are photographed. Word bubbles are added...
Curated OER
Mother's Day Trip
Help your class develop their public speaking skills. They write original scripts for informative infomercials, plays, or poetry. They work to present their information with purpose.
Curated OER
The Middle East Peace Process: Israeli and Palestinian Negotiations
Learners demonstrate the complexity of the Middle East peace processand develop their negotiation skills. They role-play as negotiators for Israel and the PLO attempting to resolve four major issues.
Curated OER
Bueno Brothers' Bean Dip
Learners play a game in which they see how many words they can form from a scoop of lima bean letters
Curated OER
Lily and Miss Liberty
Learners discuss ways to earn money and why they might need it. Students create crowns to wear all day like in the story. Learners create a play using characters in the story. Students interview "eyewitnesses" at the unveiling of the...
Curated OER
Grammar Casino
Students correct, explain, and recognize grammatical mistakes. They complete worksheets, and play a Grammar Casino game. Students check sentences for correctness and discuss what is right or wrong about each sentence. Students justify...
Curated OER
Worksheet 7/7 A Pride of Collective Nouns
Play around with collective nouns! For this activity, learners read and study a story about a band of thieves coming to an island. Readers look for the collective noun groups in the story and circle all 40 of them. This exercise includes...
Curated OER
Othello Quotes
Studying quotations is a great way to explore the text on a deeper level. Use this document to have students identify the speaker of certain quotes and then extend the activity by having them write a paragraph detailing why a quotation...
Curated OER
Charles Dickens: A Tale of Two Cities
Twenty questions challenge the reader of A Tale of Two Cities. Moving beyond mere reading comprehension, this quiz looks at biographical information and writing style as well as plot structure and action. Use at the end of the novel as a...
Curated OER
Measure for Measure: Act III Scene I
Read this lesser-known play by William Shakespeare. When you get to Act III, provide your class with this two-page worksheet. First, encourage a self-to-text connection by having individuals record their top 10 priorities. Then, they...
Curated OER
Making Words
Young writers identify and generate words using the strategies of phonics on the Making Words computer program. Words are typed instead of having to use tiles or paper. Extension activities such as playing the memory game, drawing...