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Simile Stories
Fourth graders view song lyrics and identify similes in the song text. For this similes lesson, 4th graders define and identify similes on a worksheet. Students write their own similes using various adjectives.
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Introduction to Traditional Oral Narratives
Learners are introduced to the idea of traditional oral narratives and divide them into genres. They explore the genres of context, motifs and variants. Each student finds oral narratives in their own lives and practice retelling them in...
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Diary of Anne Frank: Act 1 Scene 1 & 2
Eighth graders read act 1 scenes 1 & 2 of the play Diary of Anne Frank. In this Diary of Anne Frank lesson plan, 8th graders discuss how the setting of the play affects the mood of the story and answer short answer questions.
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Imaginative Interpretations
Students explore how works of art can be inspired by stories by creating their own work of art inspired by a narrative text.
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Behind the Cover
Students develop questions they would have liked to ask an author about their written works. They read an article about their forefathers and research a back story to a written work of their choice. They create posters to illustrate the...
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The Notorious Hope Diamond: What Makes an American Legend?
Students view and discuss a video on the legend of the Hope Diamond then compare and contrast other tales such as Paul Bunyan, Pecos Bill and Johnny Appleseed. They analyze basic characteristics of these legends then use descriptive...
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Heroes Or Role Models?
Students recognize that "heroes" and "role models" are not synonymous terms. By analyzing heroes of other cultures and periods, they determine that many heroic figures, mythic or historical, rather than providing a model of a societal...
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Setting the Stage for Service Related Learning Relationships
Students understand the stereotypes and realities of older people. In this philanthropic instructional activity, students in groups read and report on the positive images of older people in children's books. Students address the needs...
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Bible: Christian Responsibility
Students read The Yellow Star: The Legend of King Christian X of Denmark and view A Debt to Honor to identify ways that Christians helped the Jewish people during the Holocaust. In this Holocaust lesson, students discuss the mythical...
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Wolves At Our Door
Young scholars investigate the wolf. In this animal adaptation lesson, students examine the social characteristics of the wolf. They discuss the role of human intervention in reestablishing the wolf population.
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How Grandmother Spider Stole the Sun
Students explore U.S. history by reading a Native American tale in class. In this cultural storytelling lesson, students read the story How Grandmother Spider Stole the Sun and discuss the characters and themes of the Native American...
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Language Arts Exploration
While an interesting lesson idea involving the exploration of a story about an Asian American boy named Imduk, a teacher would need to have assess to the Scott Foresman reading program to make this work. If not, a teacher could use...
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Legends and Fables
Fourth graders identify and discuss the differences between legends and fables. They define fable and legend, then as a class take turns reading our books. Students select two of the stories, and complete a Venn diagram, comparing one...
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Studies of the Ancient World
Sixth graders, after taking a pretest, write a paragraph describing the difference between Athens and Sparta and write an article about the ancient Phoenicians, describing their contributions to world history. They compare democracy in...
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African American Traditions: Cameroonian and African-American Folktales
Students compare Cameroonian and African-American folktales. In this folktales lesson, students participate in a jigsaw activity that requires them to read "The Owl Never Sleeps as Night," "Why the Lizard Often Nods," "Tappin, the Land...
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Inspired by Muses, Graces and Fates
Students examine how artists express the Muses through the arts. In this art and history activity, students work cooperatively to identify the Greek Muses, Graces and the Fates. Students will identify the attributes of each, participate...
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Analysis of Character in a Short Story
Ninth graders examine a character from the short story, John Steinbeck's, "Flight." students respond to questions about the story and illustrate the character's journey.
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Islamic Roots of Judaeo-Christian Culture
Students discuss the stereotypes associated with the major religions of the world. Using primary sources, they summarize the information and role play various roles to the class. They participate in a debate between the different points...
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Pigs Don't Wear Pants
Pupils engage in the writing process and differentiate between what is real versus fantasy. They identify the rhyming words and follow the steps of writing to complete the page for the class book. The prompt is checked looking for errors...
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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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Impromptu Speeches
Students formulate an impromptu speech about a given topic. In this public speaking instructional activity, students choose a topic from a deck of pre-written index cards and quickly present an impromptu speech. Students use a rubric to...
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Knighthood and Chivalry
High schoolers explore the Arthurian legends to determine the steps young men must take to become knights. After completing a series of academic tasks, students are dubbed "knights" in a classroom ceremony.
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Information Sensation!
Third graders, in groups, choose a research topic and generate questions to narrow their focus. They research the answers to their questions and develop correctly cited source cards that display appropriate bibliographic format.