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African Dance: Drumbeat In Our Feet
Second graders read "African Dance: Drumbeat in Our Feet". In groups, they identify the message of the story and discuss a personal experience that relates to a part of the book. They practice reading fluently as a class and making...
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Sum It Up
Students write summaries of books to exemplify comprehension of the stories. They create a story web to outline the important details of the story. In groups, students make story webs for separate chapters for the book. After the webs...
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Japanese Culture
First graders research information about Japanese people and culture. They read a Japanese story listening for rhyme schemes. They create their own rhyme schemes. They discuss Japanese food and sample rice cakes. They read Haiku and then...
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Common Theme in Folktale: 900 Versions of Cinderella
Seventh graders examine various stories that have a Cinderella theme. In this Language Arts lesson, 7th graders compare and contrast stories. Students write various journal assignments in regards to the stories.
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The Patchwork Path
Fourth graders investigate slavery by reading a book with their classmates. In this abolitionist movement lesson, 4th graders read the story The Patchwork Path, and discuss the creation of the Underground Railroad. Students create...
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Cause and Effect
Students identify cause and effect relationships in a short story. After reading a short story, they participate in a discussion of how one event in a story can lead to several others. Students are then paired for a matching task that...
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The Magic Orange Tree
Fifth graders provide examples of folktales and their themes. They define a moral and give an example of a moral of a story. They read the story "The Magic Orange Tree" a Hatian folktale. They discuss events of the story and complete a...
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African Folktales Lesson
Students explore what a folktale consists of as it relates to oral tradition. In this folktale lesson, students are told the African folktale, Why the Sun is Lives in the Sky and make personal inferences about what the folktale is...
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Lizards
Fourth graders recall lizards from the text and report their important traits. The teacher adds the information to the map. They watch the map expand while it organizes all of the lizards and their characteristics.
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The Grouchy Ladybug By Eric Carle
Second graders complete a unit about ladybugs based on Eric Carle's, The Grouchy Ladybug. They complete comprehension questions, categorization activities, Venn diagrams, and choral readings of Susan M. Paprocki', Little Red Bug. As they...
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Leo and the Butterflies
Second graders read a book entitled, "Leo and the Butterflies." They discuss the rainforest and butterflies. Students observe the pictures and predict what will happen in the story. They examine reading strategies for decoding unfamiliar...
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Inferring Themes
Fifth graders practice making inferences on various types of reading material. As a class, they develop a definition of the word "theme" and discuss themes for some of their favorite stories. They use the context of the reading...
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Dramatizing Fables
Young scholars familiarize themselves with fables by listening to several of them. They define fables. They identify the moral of a specific fable. They identify characters, plot and sequence of events. They create a mask of a character...
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Visualizing: Hill Fire
Students use visualization while reading Hill of Fire. In this language arts instructional activity, students read the story and draw a picture of what they see while listening to the story. Students use manipulatives to create the...
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I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
Students complete QAR activities for Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. In this literary analysis lesson plan, students read chapters 2 and 3 and complete reading check questions. Students discuss chapter highlights and the...
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You Gotta Have A Hat
First graders compare versions of the folktale, 'Caps for Sale.' After listening to both stories, 1st graders utilize a Venn Diagram imbedded in this lesson to produce a graphic organizer detailing the similarities and differences...
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Using "Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears" to Teach Cause and Effect
Students discuss cause and effect relationships and the chain reaction involved before listening to the story "Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears". Students create flow charts to show the chain reactions of causes and effects in the...
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Ten Characters from American Folklore
Young scholars read short stories about ten characters from American folklore. They match a statement about each character with the correct character. They then rewrite one of the ten stories in their own words (optional).
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Night of the Twister
Students use reading strategies for Night of the Twister. In this reading strategies lesson, students name five major catastrophes and books about each. Students complete a vocabulary section, make inferences and predictions, read the...
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Pay it Forward
Students explore the basic concept of micro-financing. In this economics/literacy lesson, students listen to One Hen by Katie Smith, in which a small loan changes the life of the main character. Students employ comprehension strategies...
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Water
Students complete activities to examine the properties of water. In this water science lesson, students read a book about water's forms and study a map or globe of the Earth to investigate water. Students discuss living things that need...
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Break the Pentomino Code!
Students read and analyze the book, Chasing Vermeer. They discuss the main story elements, analyze how pentominoes are important to the story, use a pentomino code to decipher a message, and create a secret code of their own.
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Unearthing the Secrets of the Garden
Students analyze the literary class, The Secret Garden. In this literature unit lesson, students complete a unit of activities to help them with their reading comprehension of the book The Secret Garden. Students complete webs,...
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How Far to Freedom?
Young scholars research the life of William Parker to learn about the Underground Railroad. In this US history lesson, students research William Parker and the Underground Railroad. Young scholars research the Christiana Resistance and...