Curated OER
Mandalas
Young scholars explore meditation. In this relaxation and religious studies lesson, students identify reasons for meditation and practice relaxation. Young scholars color a mandala, a richly colored design used as a focal point during...
Curated OER
A River Runs Through It
Students study the novel A River Runs Through It. In this language arts lesson, students apply a pre-reading strategy to help them better comprehend the text. Students use guided imagery and write down what they saw. Students apply this...
Curated OER
The New Deal
Learners practice their reading comprehension skills by reading about Franklin Roosevelt and the New Deal programs. They answer questions related to the reading to test for comprehension.
Curated OER
The Leaves of Autumn
First graders express the words of Autumn through creative dance movements.
Curated OER
Teaching Imagery with Gary Paulsen
Students read excerpts from memoirs written by Gary Paulsen as examples of how to write a narrative piece. They identify figurative language used and then they write a memoir of their own that contains imagery and figurative language.
Curated OER
English Exercises: The Ozone Layer
In this online interactive English worksheet, students watch an embedded video about global warming, read a selection about the ozone layer, and then respond to 18 fill in the blank and short answer questions. Students may submit their...
Curated OER
Journeys
Students write a story using their journey to school as the setting. In groups, they discuss their experiences and browse through books to get ideas for their story. They practice using a thesaurus to find new verbs or adjectives they...
Curated OER
Understanding Self and Others
Students investigate other people's perceptions and interpretations of the world. They write a letter, taking into account another's historical point of view. The students also compare and contrast differing points of view through...
Curated OER
What Is Smart Growth?
Students practice planning for the development of an area using the goals of Smart Growth as a guide. They analyze how regions can affect government policies. They role-play citizens who recommend how an area should be developed.
Texas Education Agency
Texas Gateway: Literary Text: Close Reading of Prose: Practice 2
This activity focuses on close reading, the careful, sustained reading of a text. One strategy to help you read closely is to ask yourself questions such as What is your overall impression of the passage? What mood does the passage...
Polk Brothers Foundation Center for Urban Education at DePaul University
De Paul University: Center for Urban Education: Community Progress [Pdf]
"Community Progress" is a one page, realistic fiction passage about how students created a mural for their school, which generated lots of attention from the press, parents, and other schools. It is followed by constructed-response...
Polk Brothers Foundation Center for Urban Education at DePaul University
De Paul University: Center for Urban Education: Grant Park [Pdf]
"Grant Park" is a one page, nonfiction passage about Chicago creating a landfill by putting the trash from the Chicago fire in 1971 into the lake, on which they built Grant Park. It is followed by an open-ended question which requires...
Polk Brothers Foundation Center for Urban Education at DePaul University
De Paul University: Center for Urban Education: Community Progress [Pdf]
"Community Progress" is a one page, realistic fiction passage about how students created a mural for their school, which generated lots of attention from the press, parents, and other schools. It is followed by constructed-response...
Polk Brothers Foundation Center for Urban Education at DePaul University
De Paul University: Center for Urban Education: Mama's Happy Christmas [Pdf]
"Mama's Happy Christmas" is a one page, fictional, reading passage about children creating a play for their sick mother on Christmas day. It is followed by constructed-response questions which require students to provide evidence from...
Polk Brothers Foundation Center for Urban Education at DePaul University
De Paul University: Center for Urban Education: Early Chicago Environment & People [Pdf]
"Early Chicago Environment & People" is a one page, nonfiction passage about the Native Americans who lived in what is now Chicago. It explains how they lived and how Chicago got its name. It is followed by constructed-response...
Polk Brothers Foundation Center for Urban Education at DePaul University
De Paul University: Center for Urban Education: Early Chicago Environment and People [Pdf]
"Early Chicago Environment and People" is a one page, nonfiction passage about the early Native Americans who settled in what is now Chicago. It is followed by questions which require students to provide evidence from the story; it...
Polk Brothers Foundation Center for Urban Education at DePaul University
De Paul University: Center for Urban Education: Mama's Happy Christmas [Pdf]
"Mama's Happy Christmas" is a one page, fictional, reading passage about children creating a play for their sick mother on Christmas day. It is followed by constructed-response questions which require students to provide evidence from...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Neh: Edsit Ement: Their Eyes Were Watching God: Folk Speech, Figurative Language
In this lesson plan, students will consider Their Eyes Were Watching God: Folk Speech and Figurative Language. Worksheets and other supporting materials can be found under the Resources tab. This lesson provides students with an...