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Haiku: Observation and Writing in the Japanese Garden
Learners observe a Botanical Gardens. Upon returning to the classroom, students write their own Haiku based on their observations.
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Reading Comprehension Strategy Ideas
Young scholars participate in pre-reading activities, journal keeping, vocabulary lists and other reading comprehension boosters. These activities can be applied to many genres.
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Nonfiction Lessons That Motivate
Incorporating nonfiction lessons into literature instruction can be interesting and engaging for all students.
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Checkmate
Students start identifying the cause and effect relationships in games of Chess. Using the internet, they research the history of the game and how the roles for each of the pieces. They develop a skit based on the roles and...
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Comparing Fiction and Nonfiction
Fifth graders compare and contrast an informational article with a fictional story. They read the story "The Contest" as a class, and discuss the different types of literature genres. Next, they complete a vocabulary worksheet and a...
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Portraits Visual and Written: Louisa May Alcott and Samuel Clemens
Learners discover the life and work of an American author, either Samuel Clemens or Louisa May Alcott. In this study of visual and written portraits instructional activity, students take a look at the authors through four different...
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Story Starters
Young scholars orally tell different types of stories using the assistance of props. For more advanced students, stories may be told according to a specific genre, or the story may have to include a given condition, setting, situation or...
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Rural Voices Through Photography
Students research the history of the Depression particularly in the ways it was documented by photography. Then they take their own pictures in the style of one of the best documentarians, Dorothea Lange.
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Gettysburg: The Civil War's Costliest Battle
Students research the Civil War and the Battle of Gettysburg. In this Gettysburg lesson, students analyze journals and letters written by the Gettysburg soldiers. Students define Civil War soldier vocabulary words. Students compare and...
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Library Scavenger Hunt
In this library scavenger hunt worksheet, students read a list of literature genres and items found in the library, find the items in the library, and check them off when the items are found. Students locate eighteen items.
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Responding To Rembrandt's Work Through Poetry
Students write poetry in response to Rembrandt's landscapes and portraits. They create accompanying illustrations based on interpretations of Rembrandt's work and present them along with the poems in book format.
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Fantasy, Fables, Myths, Legends & Fairy Tales
Students identify the differences between fantasies, fables, myths, legends and fairy tales. In groups, they create their own versions of the different genres. They practice identifying the examples, as well.
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Cooperative Jigsaw Expert Report of Fables
Pupils research literary elements of fables. In this literature instructional activity, students analyze literary elements of fables. Pupils work collaboratively using a jigsaw strategy to analyze literary elements.
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Using Southeast Asian Folktales to Teach Reading and Writing
Young scholars use maps to locate the countries of Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia. In groups, they compare and contrast the three countries in regard to their culture, morals and values. They read various examples of folktales and write...
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Slave Narratives
Students use a database to find and read examples of slave narratives. In groups, they read the various narratives and discuss their feelings about them. They also research the time period in which the narratives were written to end...
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Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss!
Students examine the life and works of Theodor Seuss Geisel. In groups, they compare and contrast the stories, characters and illustrations he used. They complete a book review on one of the books and share them with other students in...
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Writing Book Reviews
Students explore new authors and genres they might like to read. The understand the ingredients of a book review. They write book reviews using persuasive language to recommend books.
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Amazing Autobiographies
Students read a wide range of literature from many periods in many genres to build an understanding of the many dimensions (e.g., philosophical, ethical, aesthetic) of human experience. They apply knowledge of language structure,...
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Poetry
Fifth graders preview different poetry selections form different poets to narrow their criteria for a favorite poem. They use the web and written sources to find a favorite poem and then give an oral interpretation of their poem in class...
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Most Wanted Villians
Students review the characteristics of various characters in fairytales. As a class, they review the story details and create a concept map using a software program. They create their own wanted poster of the villians in the fairytale to...
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Historical Fiction: A Wealth of Interpretations
Students read a book from the Dear America series and contrast different points of view. They respond to the book either by participating in a literature circle or completing a journal entry. They compare and contrast two books or a...
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Students Information And Interest Survey
In this personal information instructional activity, students fill out this form to give details about their personal history, prior experiences and preferences. This could be used for information gathering or as an icebreaker activity.
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Mice Squeak; We Speak
Students create a poster. In this vocabulary lesson, students use vocabulary words such as squeak, creak, squeal, squawk and quack to identify the sounds and noises of each word. Students come up with rhyming words and create a word...
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Cinderella Stories From Around the World
Fifth graders are read a variety of Cinderella stories from around the world. In groups, they complete a comparison chart for each story and how it compares to the American version. To end the lesson, they participate in a fairy tale...