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Sorting Candy
Lower graders sort and group objects by their different properties. They watch a video about sorting then, sort and organize candy in different groups. Young scholars compare how others sorted their candy. Finally, they decide which...
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Growing Caterpillars
Explore multiplication through caterpillar study. Learners will view a caterpillar video clip and work with a group to determine how much they would weigh if they grew to be 3,000 times their size as does the caterpillar. They will...
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How Much Does Soap Cost?
Explore multiplication and division using real life problems, including how to find the cost of soap per bar. Individuals or small groups work to find answers. They then share with the class how they found their answer.
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Meet Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov!
Learners listen to music and review instruments of the orchestra. They explore musical terms, solo, texture and theme of the music and discuss other features of the music. Students research and discuss the life of Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov.
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Penny for your thoughts
Students look at a variety of pieces of art and discuss them according to moods or feelings expressed. They pick a piece of art that they like and then write a poem or story to go with it.
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Cow Parade
Students create individual works of art using cow cut-outs as their canvas in this hilarious lesson ideal for the High School Art or Art History classroom. The lesson includes resource links and can be adapted for any animal or mascot.
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Narratives
Add to the narrative writing experience. Elementary or middle school writers listen to the teacher read a descriptive passage, then reread the same passage silently. They highlight sensory details and figurative language, then orally...
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My Mind is Blank
Investigate prewriting activities in this brainstorming lesson. Middle schoolers are divided into groups and are assigned a topic. They decide which prewriting technique to choose from, including free write, looping, brainstorming,...
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Recipe for Sensational Sentences
'Cook-up' sensational sentences with your class. They expand sentences by adding more descriptive words. Then discuss the importance of using appropriate grade level language in daily speaking and writing.
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BINGO with Greek and Latin Roots: Unit 1 Narrative Writing
Play BINGO! Reinforce knowledge of word roots with an adaptation of this classic board game. The teacher draws a root word from a bag and learners fill in a square with a word that has the same root base. Instructions and Bingo cards are...
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Transition Words in Expository Writing
Create to learn! Your class can create posters of transitional words and phrases to help them compose an explanatory text. They work in groups and focus on one type of transition (time, place, importance, etc.). They also create a poster...
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Main Idea/Supporting Details Scavenger Hunt
Engage your class in a scavenger hunt to find the main ideas and supporting details in a text. They follow the teacher while s/he models how to determine main idea and find supporting details, and then they work independently. A fun way...
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Varied Beginnings: Research Process / Narrative Writing Techniques
What's the best way to start a story? Learners write a memoir using effective openings. They research the process and work through a list of hooks to use in their writing. They use at least two hooks to begin their personal memoir. A...
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Using a Venn Diagram to Compare / Contrast: Double Bubble
Create a "Double Bubble" to organize information in a Venn diagram-like graphic organizer. There are a few options included to differentiate this assignment, but unfortunately, there are no topics for selection. Provide your emerging...
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Venn Diagram for Compare/Contrast
Use this instructional activity to focus on a compare and contrast writing structure in your middle school language arts class. Here, young writers compare and contrast two texts using graphic organizers. They use a double bubble format...
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Can you Follow Me? Conventions
Use the present tense to create written assignments. Critical thinkers take a passage written in past or future tense and rewrite it in present tense. They then write a set of instructions in present tense.
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Narrative Writing
Learners create new sentences using adverb clauses identified from a book. In this narrative writing lesson, students write new sentences from some of the dependent clauses used in a book read to them by the teacher. Learners put the...
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The City Life or the country Life: conventions: Comparative and Superlative Forms of Adjectives and Adverbs
Reinforce knowledge of adjectives and adverbs by game playing. To better understand English conventions young writers, use flashcards to identify the base word and its comparative or superlative form.
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Author's Purpose: Research Process/Narrative Writing Techniques
Determine the author's purpose in writing a memoir. Eighth graders work in groups to elicit author's purpose in memoirs, taking care to note how subtle the message can be hidden throughout the work. This lesson is a good way to...
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It’s Your Birthday! – Conventions: Revision and Proofreading
Happy birthday! Celebrate everyone's birthday with this writing activity, which prompts seventh graders to research historical events in a country at the time of their birth to create an essay. Working in pairs, they proofread each...
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Sentence Combining
Students combine simple sentences into compound, complex, and compound-complex sentences. In this combining sentences lesson, students are given short, choppy sentences and combine them into more mature sentences. Students must use...
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The Weight of Primates
Second graders practice their problem solving skills. In this addition and subtraction skills lesson, 2nd graders solve word problems that require them to find differences and sums. This lesson features the use of a video titled "Blossom...
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An Easier Way to Count: Using Groups of 10
Students explore their counting skills. In this counting lesson, students group objects in sets of 10 to practice counting them. Students also practice graphing the sets of objects they count. This lesson incorporates the use a video...
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Half - A Fractions Lesson
First graders explore the fraction half. In this fractions lesson plan, 1st graders watch a video that show the half fraction. They divide a Kit Kat bar in half and do a fraction activity sheet.