Curated OER
Ode to the Ordinary
Ninth graders identify an ordinary object and write an ode for the subject. In this poetry writing lesson, 9th graders select an ordinary object and define its uses. Students then write an ode for the poem.
Curated OER
Storyboard Frames
Students focus on the main events of a book by drawing a storyboard. They draw a picture of every main event thought of and write down a description underneath each one.
Curated OER
Proofreading and Revising Articles for a Class Newsletter
Students submit their newsletter articles and a newsletter team proofreads them. Revisions are suggested. Writers revise their articles. Using a template from a word processing program, articles are typed in final form.
Curated OER
Writing a Formal Thank You Letter
Students research various formats for writing thank you letters in resource books and through a provided Internet site. They use these resources to write a thank you letter to a recent outside speaker who visited their class.
Poetry4kids
Evoking the Senses in a Poem
Budding poets choose a topic for a sensory-filled poem. Authors describe that topic using detailed language based on the five senses. Then, switch the senses to create a fanciful poem intended to add a touch of fun to the objective.
Curated OER
Treasured Comments
Students write positive comments to classmates. They decorate a box or envelope, write one positive comment to share with each student in the class, and read the comments written to them by the other students.
Curated OER
Adjectives Mastery
In this descriptive adjectives worksheet, students observe a picture of a poodle dog, write adjectives describing it, and create complete sentences using their adjectives. Students write 12 answers.
Curated OER
Buddhism-Nirvana Day: Meditation Article Planning Frame
In this Buddhism belief worksheet, students plan a strategy for writing a descriptive essay about meditation. After filling in an idea for an opening sentence, 4 key points, and interesting ending, students will have created a plan for...
Hawaiʻi State Department of Education
Chiaroscuro Apple
I absolutely love this idea. Kids explore the chiaroscuro technique as they draw, then bite, then write about an apple. They discuss chiaroscuro, depth, shade, perspective, and texture. Then they draw their apples, write a descriptive...
Curated OER
Making a Magical Story
Fourth and fifth graders use their knowledge of developing character, dialogue, and setting to produce an original story. An excerpt from The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe is used as inspiration to get everyone's creative juices...
Curated OER
Exploring Countries and Cultures
Fifth graders choose a country associated with a family member and research its location, government, language, economy, history, holidays, foods, sports, and famous people. They write to inform using this data and draw a map identifying...
Curated OER
Characters' Feelings Or Motives
Fourth graders use the text, "Fair's Fair" to examine how characters' feelings and motives are built throughout a text through descriptive phrases. They look at what a character does and says to record on their writing frames. Finally,...
Student Handouts
Ten Things I Learned This Year
As you approach the end of the school year or New Years Eve, encourage reflection amongst your class members and gain a quick glimpse into the content and ideas that they remember the most.
Australian Centre For the Moving Image
Dreamworks Animation Character Design
Dive into animation creation using Dreamworks® animated films. Compare and contrast characters, wonder and ponder why the plot is so important, and think of background and themes as your creativity unrolls onto paper.
Curated OER
Out of the Dust: Biopoem
As part of their study of Out of the Dust, readers create a biopoem for one of the characters in Karen Hesse's 1998 Newbery Medal winning verse novel.
Curated OER
Strategies for Organization and Elaboration of Personal Narrative
Personal narrative writing is usually a favorite form of writing for youngsters because they get to write about a personal experience. The lesson here asks pupils to take a piece of narrative writing and improve it by following...
Curated OER
School Autobiography
Young scholars brainstorm for fifteen minutes independently, sketching out what they remember or how they want to organize their data. they write a journal along the lines of "what do you remember about kindergarten? Write to a...
Curated OER
Car For Sale!
Young scholars practice their writing and editing skills by developing a plan for and then writing a grammatically correct description of an item (car or otherwise) that they would like to sell.
Curated OER
Biography
Transform a written biography into a video biography! Introduce your learners to the biography format by reading them a few examples (some suggestions are included). Then discuss the factors that make a good biography. What information...
Take the challenge
Connecting with Natural/Open Spaces
Get your class outside, away from the television, and maybe even learning something about nature while they're at it. Individuals will chose an open, natural space to spend time in for several days. Each day they will complete a page in...
Curated OER
Fall Similes
Fall is like a beautiful painting come to life—or is it more like an overflowing cornucopia? Practice writing similes with a lesson on figurative language. As learners review simile structure, they come up with their favorite similes for...
Curated OER
Cup Capacity Tool: Measuring Cup
Students examine containers and their capacity. They fill a one-cup measuring cup with water and pour cups of water into other containers. Through observation, students discover how many cups make a pint, and how many teaspoons make a...
Curated OER
Historical Agency in History Book Sets (HBS)
Study historical events by combining the study of historical fiction and non-fiction. Learners read about true past events in historical fiction novels and then research non-fiction accounts of the same events. What are some differences...
Curated OER
Introduction to Ludwig van Beethoven
"Ode to la Tortilla" and "Ode to Joy"? Sure! Use Gary Soto's poem to introduce learners to the ode format. After examining the descriptive words Soto uses, class members study a poster of Ludwig van Beethoven, suggest words that describe...