Classrooms in Action
Common Core Sample Template for Multi-Day Lesson Plans or Units
Make sure you've covered all your bases when designing a Common Core unit. From essential questions and standards alignment to instructional supports and reflections, this template will guide you toward completing a comprehensive,...
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Literary Terms: Take Me to the Theater!
Take your class to the theater! First graders will examine characters that actors play such a villians and heroes. Then participate in creating plays and performing in them. They will also research what it takes to create scenery, props...
Teaching Tolerance
Musical Movement Showcase
Young performing artists create a song or choreograph a dance to illustrate a theme in a text they are reading. Step-by-step directions are included.
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Sink or Float
Using a variety of objects, learners conduct buoyancy experiments. They make predictions on which object will sink or float and test their predictions. They use a graphic organizer to record their findings.
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Stewart's Boxes
Learners collect memorabilia and create shadow boxes in the style of David Stewart. They also compose a poem and explain their identity in an oral presentation. This is a rare lesson that works quite well for a variety of age levels.
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Alphabet Sideshow
Students practice sound and recognition of letters in alphabetical sequence. They gain an understanding of letter sounds and order. They create a slide show with graphics and text. They present their slide show to the class.
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Special Places in Our Community
Learners compare and contrast cities whether they are large or small, rural or urban. They use digital photography to take pictures of the different types of cities.
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Johnny Appleseed Pops Up
Students recount details from the book Johnny Appleseed to create their own pop-up book about his life.
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Reader's Theater: Presenting Asian Folktales
Students create and perform folktale plays. In this reader's theater and Asian literature instructional activity, students work in groups to rewrite Asian folktales into scripts and perform the folktales for their class in a Reader's...
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Little Boy Blue
First graders read nursery rhymes and celebrate Mother Goose. For this drawing conclusions and predicting lesson, 1st graders create new ending for the nursery rhymes. Students gather data and make a graph showing their favorite rhyme.
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Enormous Turnips
First graders complete activities with the story The Great Big Enormous Turnip by Alexel Tolstoy. In this language arts lesson plan, student view the story as a Cloze passage and work with a partner to fill in the blanks. They check...
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All About Aesop
First graders explore the genre of fables. In this fables lesson, 1st graders use various reading strategies to raise comprehension skills. Students make prediction and complete a prediction journal. Students understand that fables have...
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Mind Reader
First graders engage in a game which helps them recognize the word wall words. In this word lesson, 1st graders are given clues to follow, to determine the word on the wall. Students are assessed based on teacher observations. Students...
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What is a Seed?
First graders identify the parts of a seed. For this plant biology lesson, 1st graders are given a seed and identify each part of the seed by using a hand lens. Students plant a seed and graph the growth.
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Estimating
Young scholars complete a worksheet. In this estimation lesson, students view various ties and estimate the number of objects or pictures on it. Young scholars complete a worksheet on estimation and then make their own tie...
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How to Deal With Class Size Increases
While class size increases make it more challenging for teachers to meet students' needs, there are ways to make things a little easier.
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Practice Makes Perfect
And the consensus says...Teach your class to use peer feedback to refine public speaking skills. They cut out a magazine picture and develop an oral story about it to present to the class. They share several meaningful objects with the...
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Using a Thermometer
First graders use their senses to formulate questions and make predictions to determine what is in the "Wonder Bag". They hold pieces of ice and examine while listing descriptors on a chart and then take their own temperature using an...
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Animal Research Project
First graders are introduced to the topic of researching by the librarian. Using a worksheet, they use various sources in the library to choose one animal from various groups. They complete a fact sheet on each animal and report their...
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How Much is that Name?
Learners explore money counting. In this money problem solving lesson, students calculate how much money their name is "worth" using the corresponding alphabet letters which have been assigned a coin value.
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Why Plants Are Important to Us
First graders explore plant life. In this plant lesson, 1st graders examine various plant life and categorize them. Students graph their data and make journal entries regarding their work.
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Silly Sentences
Students read and illustrate silly sentences. In this sentence structure lesson, students draw illustrations to reflect the parts of one of the silly sentences. Students pictures should show all the parts of their...
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Fairness
Students distinguish between that which is fair and that which is unfair. They offer solutions as to how to remedy a seemingly unfair situation. They also engage in a role play situation and offer solutions.
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History of Famous Women
Young scholars explore famous women who have made contributions to the world.