National First Ladies' Library
Who Wants to be a Pioneer?
Students write a story based on their research of the Oregon Trail. Using the Internet and traditional sources, they engage in research about pioneer's experiences on the Oregon Trail during westward expansion. Students write a story...
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Scavenger Hunt Through Figure Skating History
Learners research the pioneers of figure skating and write a feature story for a Web publication. They write articles investigating "The Story Behind a Gold Medal" and graph the medals won by different countries between 1976-1996.
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Settling America in 1640
Second graders listen to a presentation on life in colonial America in 1640. They compare early colonial life to the present and use software to write a story showcasing their research.
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Wanted: New Authors!
Eighth graders write a short autobiographical sketch and produce an author page to be used throughout the year with their writing. They take digital camera photos and produce a PowerPoint slide show with their photos and information.
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Following a Monster
Students follow tracks of a monster who has walked through their classroom to see what he has done. They discuss sequencing vocabulary before using computer software students sequence the monster's visit using a concept map. In a word...
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Interrelationships Within the Marine Community
Fourth graders create an electronic story showing the interrelationship of species within the marine environment. They utilize the educational software, 'Destination Ocean' during this engaging lesson.
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Posting Personal Testimonies on the Web
Students read literature based on family heroes. They discuss the concepts of friendship, loyalty and death. They write their own stories of courage and post them to a webpage.
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Positively Precise Organization
Fourth graders go online to critique the organization of student writing. They access the Yahooligans website to view the writing pieces. They utilize a worksheet imbedded in this plan which guides their scoring.
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Animalopedia Poetry
Students reseach animals while working in groups. They write poems to be included in a class Animalopedia book.
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Wild Things Are Here
Students engage in a literature study for the book Where The Wild Things Are. The skill of prediction is practiced as they preview the story as a whole class. The teacher models reading fluency, pronunciation, and phonetic skills while...
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Freedom Train North
Fourth graders conduct a novel study of the book Freedom Train North. They identify the parts of a story that include beginning, middle, and end. Students also recognize the setting, plot, and theme after reading a part of the book daily.
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Publishing a Group Book
Young scholars examine various alphabet books. They write several sentences for their assigned letter of the alphabet, type them onto a word processing program, and create an illustration for a class alphabet book.
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Mythology Newspaper....The Trojan Times
Students are assigned to a writing group: news stories, obituaries and births, classifieds, comics, gossip, sports and editorials. The newspaper covers mythological figures in history. This is a very clever, meaningful lesson in mythology!
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Charlotte's Web Venn Diagram
Students, together as a class, construct a Venn diagram of characteristics they see in two classmates. Then, they independently create another Venn diagram comparing/contrasting two characters from the story Charlotte's Web. They share...
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Creating with Alice
Students explore Alice Programming Software. In this exploratory lesson, students design a unique storyboard which will guide the creation of their Alice World. Students write and create their own films.
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Guess What It Is?
Third graders write and present a descriptive 'powergraph' that describes a secret object using prior knowledge of adjectives, clustering graphic organizers, and presentation skills. Authors read powergraphs and classmates 'Guess What It...
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Nothing to Fear
Sixth graders read from the book, "Nothing to Fear," and discuss living in New York during the Great Depression. They write entries and summaries in their learning logs to share with the class. They work in groups to create a database...
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Contemporary Fairy Tales
Eighth graders listen Steven Kellog's, Jack and the Beanstalk, and Raymond Briggs, Jim and the Beanstalk. They use a Venn diagram to compare the two elements of the two stories. They write and publish an original contemporary fairy tale...
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Help! I Need Some Editing
Students 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.
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The Big Blue
Third graders create paper mache globes with balloons. They label the 4 oceans on their balloons with reference to large wall map, classroom globe, and Encarta Virtual Globe CD-ROM projected on large screen TV with Tvator or other...
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Audience-Smash Hits case study
Learners become familiar with the term audience after examining a story about the magazine Smash Hits and its decision to quit publication. After students study the magazine and methods currently used to receive music news, they design...
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Peace Be Still (The Peace of Jesus)
Young scholars listen to and discuss story of Jesus calming storm, write script containing interview questions, create background with props, make video of newscast, and illustrate memory verse or symbol of peace using KidPix software.
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To Infinity and Beyond
Pupils explore the planets in our solar system and create a brochure on each planet. They read the book, The Magic School Bus: Lost in the Solar System and write notes about solar system facts and watch a video. After the video, they...
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Photo-Based Reading Projects
Students practice using a digital camera and identify the various parts. As a class, they review recent vocabulary and signs used in their community. In groups, they take pictures of various items and write complete sentences describing...