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Language Arts: Digital Commercials
Students create commercials using a digital camera. After brainstorming their ideas, they spend three days writing their commercials. Students practice and edit their commercials and then present them for review.
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Once Upon a Genre
Students examine fractured fairy tales before responding by writing in many different genres including a persuasive essay, a personal narrative, a letter, an advertisement, and a resume'. They create a pop-up book with their written...
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Exploring A Streetcar Named Desire
High schoolers investigate the dramatic elements of a Streetcar Named Desire. In this drama lesson, students explore the theme of the Tennessee Williams play as they read the play and watch performances of some of the acts. High...
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Transforming Fairy Tales
Students use the computer to write, draw, explore the Internet, and combine all of these elements. They write their own fairy tales, use computer software to create drawings of the characters for their tales and use the Internet to...
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Mission Accomplished
Second graders describe the impact of certain figures in United States history, including Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. They describe experiences of early American explorers and compose narratives from the perspectives of others.
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Teaching Selected Poems from Jim Wayne Miller's the Brier Poems
Students explore the basic elements of poetry through Appalachian life poetry. In this poetry instructional activity, students read seven poems from Jim Wayne Miller's the Brier Poems and complete poetry analysis activities for each poem.
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Poetic Analysis
Students write a poetic analysis on a poem by Carl Sandburg. They take their previous knowledge of poetic devices and apply them to a piece of writing that displays their knowledge on a specific poem. They explain what they know about a...
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"Theseus and the Minotaur"
Learners analyze the features of myths and legends. They read the myths "Theseus and the Minotaur" and "Orpheus and Eurydice," identify the myth story elements, evaluate each story for the overall theme, describe the characters, and...
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Monster and Myths: Scripts
Students explore characteristics of the myth genre. In this myth lesson, students become familiar with various myths and the cultures they were derived from. Students compare in a graphic organizer. Students write original myths and...
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The Desert is Theirs: Adapting to Our Environment
Young scholars determine how animals and people adapt to the desert environment. In this desert lesson, students review vocabulary about the desert and how humans have to make changes to accommodate their environments. They listen to and...
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African American Poetry: Family and Traditions
Young scholars are introduced to the elements of African-American poetry. As a class, they are read different types of poems to discover there are different styles of poems and practice rhyming words. They share information on their...
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Holes
Students read and analyze the story elements of the novel "Holes" by Louis Sachar. They play a "Holes" matching game, complete a timeline of story events, complete a Cause-and-Effect graphic organizer, conduct research on Louis Sachar's...
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Tall Tales Today
Students explore the attributes of American tall tales. In this folklore lesson, students read several tall tales, describe the elements of tall tales, and then use hyperbole to write their own tall tales.
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Images of Children in Dorthea Lange's Photographs
Students research the photographs of Dorthea Lange. For this visual art lesson, students look at photographs of children taken by Lange and answer several questions. They write or tell stories to explain what they think is occurring in...
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Transforming Negatives to Positives
Students write diamonte poems that correspond to the double-exposed photograph they created. In this poetry and multimedia artwork lesson, students use the photographic process to create a double-exposed photo then create a diamonte...
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Paul Revere, American Patriot
Students research Paul Revere's life and role in U.S. history by examining first-person accounts, works of historical fiction, a popular narrative poem, and other resources. They create a mural depicting their findings.
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Critical Analysis: "Behind the Formaldehyde Curtain" by Jessica Mitford
In this "Behind the Formaldehyde Curtain" worksheet, students analyze the purpose and the meaning as well as summaryize the text. Students determine three elements that the author used to make her point.
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Swirling, Twirling, Glistening Jewels... Glass Art In Words
Students examine the art form of the glass sculpture. After viewing a three dimensional object, they write creatively describing the object through the use of metaphors. They use peer editing to check for grammatical and spelling errors.
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Dialect Awareness in Literature and Life
Eighth graders realize the impact of dialect in literature as well as their own speaking and writing by reading selections from Frances O'Roark Dowell's novel, Dovey Cove.
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Latino Literature: Poetry
Under construction, this lesson focuses on Canto Familia, a collection of poetry about Gary Soto's experiences growing up in California's Imperial Valley. Representative of the experiences of many Latinos, the poems also address themes...
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Puss in Boots/Jamil and the Clever Cat
Second graders read the story PUSS IN BOOTS identifying main characters, setting, and significant events. They then read the story JAMIL AND THE CLEVER CAT and compare it with the story PUSS IN BOOTS compiling a list of characters,...
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The Boy Who Cried Wolf
Second graders listen to the story, THE BOY WHO CRIED WOLF and in pairs, discuss the theme of the book and two things that they liked about it. They then read the book OOPS and discuss the theme of the book identifying the things they...
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Pick a Pet
Students design informational materials to educate people on the importance of matching a new pet to the family's lifestyle and living arrangements. Students use critical thinking skills to make a decision on the appropriate choice for a...
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Analyzing Poetry with TPCASTT
Middle schoolers read a poem and complete a TPCASTT chart. They make a prediction about the title (T) , paraphrase each line (P), identify poetic devices and nuances (C-connotation), explore mood and tone (A-attitude), point out shifts...