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Text Structure: Organizational Patterns
Explore plot structure by analyzing text samples with writers. They define terms such as problem and solution, cause and effect, and story arc. They also identify the sequences used in modern stories by reading samples and determining...
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Story Structure Slide Show
Analyzing the sequence of actions in dramatic stories leads to deeper comprehension of story structure. The class identifies the main actions in each section of a story and develops frozen tableau's for the identified actions of the...
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A Creative Presentation
Bring writing to life with this lesson in which elementary and middle schoolers create a display of the imagery they identify in a series of Gary Paulsen books. They read the suggested materials, identify imagery and descriptive...
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Mysterious Plot Problems
Your readers explore plot patterns in mysteries by identifying problems first in Two-Minute Mysteries by Donald J. Sobol and then in The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin. To gain access to the worksheets, graphic organizers and riddles...
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It's Your Opinion
Everyone has a different opinion about the characters they read about in books. Have your class explore forming an opinion and finding evidence to support it as they read and discuss what they think about a particular character. They...
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Class Vacation Book
Students, utilizing technology and its avenues, create, produce and publish a variety of works. They generate a bubble map to brainstorm words that describe a specific vacation spot as well as create a pattern book with graphics about...
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Food Webs in the Barnegat Bay
Students investigate the food webs in the Barnegat Bay. In this organisms activity, students use a graphic organizer to illustrate the types of consumers in the bay. Students use reference books to continue to research the animals found...
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Annotating Poetry
Use text marking and highlighting to explore the structure of a poem. After listening to Allan Ahlberg read "Please Mrs. Butler," learners locate stanzas and patterns on their copy of the poem using the text marking technique. Class...
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Creative Story Writing
Learners recognize predictable patterns in literature. They use the selected pattern to create their own writing using the same type of literary pattern. The new writing is proofread by other students and the editing is done until the...
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A Blast of Math
In this metric measurement learning exercise, students solve 20 fill in the blank questions related to metric measurement, converting metric units, area of rectangles, picture graphs, patterns, geometric shapes. Students then convert 9...
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Dome Home
Homes come in many different shapes and sizes. Building a model of a geodesic dome is the ultimate goal for the activity. Cutting and folding is the way to go here.
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The Importance of Site Maps in Archaeology
Students consider the importance of site maps in archeology. They interpret site maps, draw site maps of their classroom and home and then participate in simulated Paleolithic archeological camp activity.
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"Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters"
Fifth graders read and analyze the books "Snow White in New York" and "Mufaro's Beautiful Daughter." They analyze the characteristics of the characters in each story, write thoughts of characters in speech bubbles, and write a letter to...
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Discovering Japan Through Cooperative Research
Search a variety of sources to create a multimedia or book project about Japan. Learners use the independent investigation method to plan and conduct research about Japan. They use the information they discover to create a computer book...
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Cloze Instruction And Herringbone Technique
Students sort out important information and create a visual framework for reviewing in the future. They organize a large quantity of information thus helping with learning and remembering details, cause and effect, comparison and...
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Hazards: Fifth Grade Lesson Plans and Activities
After comparing earthquake and volcanic hazards to one another, fifth graders take a closer look at damage associated with a volcanic eruption. They then create a simulation of mudslides due to a volcanic eruption. Using different...
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Teach a Mini-Lesson Sentence Variety
Help your developing writers spice up their writing by studying simple, compound, and complex sentences.
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Insects A-Z!
Alphabet insects! Who has ever heard of such a thing? Get ready because your class is going to research insects that start with a specific letter of the alphabet. In small groups, they'll use the Internet and reference texts to locate...
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Happiness is A Warm Puppy
Learners investigate dog breeds and write a short story from a dog's perspective. In this dog research and writing lesson, students watch the film, "Dog: The Early Years. They apply critical thinking skills to determine which type of dog...
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Meet the Press
Students give their book reports as oral "Meet the Press" type interviews. They team up with another student "reporter" and answer questions about main idea, details, and the point of view.
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Help Me Learn About the Holocaust
Young readers select a book from a provided list to use as the basis for an intensive class study of Holocaust novels. After completing their novels, groups create a multimedia presentation highlighting the elements of literature...
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My Name is.....
Students utilize available technology to create, produce, and publish an alphabet pattern book. Students use publishing, multimedia and word processing for their writing. They create their own A My Name is Alice Class book based off the...
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The Important Thing About Technology
Students assess the advantages of modern technology tools by creating a page in a class book utilizing pattern writing as well as the writing process. They organize and develop a composition on a selected topic after going through the...
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Oh, Let the Rain Fall Down
Fifth graders explain the three phases of the water cycle in a narraive paragraph where they describe the journey of a single raindrop. They are introduced to five science vocabulary words and personfication.