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Career Research
Students research a career they are interested in. They explore print and online want ads for job prospects, interview a person currently in that career, and make a class presentation about the career.
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Herstory in Michigan -- Women's History in Our Great State
Celebrate Women's History month in March by teaching your students
about the struggles and achievements of women throughout Michigan's history, the changes that have taken place in women's roles, and the difference one person can make.
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Message in a Bottle
Sixth graders write a short story about being stranded on a deserted island. After a brief geography review of locations at various latitudes and longitudes, 6th graders draft their story about being stranded. They use sensory and...
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Harriet The Spy
Fourth graders investigate the style of diary writing as its own genre of literature. They read Harriet The Spy in order to have a text for this literature study. Students use the skill of prediction to preview the story, and then...
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Ask the Oracle
Students invent an imaginary character that has the ability to time travel to China and create stories in the tradition of a traveler's tale, whereas their characters visit China's capital city, Beijing, and go to the Great Wall of China...
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I Am What I Think I Am!
Students study conative and cognitive strengths through characters in literature. In this conative and cognitive strength lesson, students read about a favorite character or historical person. They make a chart of the difficulties the...
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The Power of One
Students read stories about people making differences in the world and specifically the hunger plight. In this making a difference lesson, students read stories about people who impacted people and the plight of hunger. Students then...
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Greeting Card to A Character
Students create a greeting card from one character to another after finishing a novel. Individually, they use their imagination to write the paragraph using the text to support their ideas. They share their greeting card with the class...
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Ugly? Says Who?
Students explore biology by writing animal poetry in class. In this animal characteristics lesson, students research the Internet for facts about an "ugly" animal such as a bug or small critter. Students complete worksheets about animal...
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Critic's Choice
Third graders read three to five genres and choose one as a favorite. They write an essay persuading the class to read the genre. This lesson serves as a nice introduction to different styles of literature.
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Celebrations
Second graders answer questions after listening to the the story "Celebrating Life Around the World" and verbally identify three ways in which people celebrate special occasions. They then make two verbal connections from their own...
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Introduction to the Visual Thesaurus
Students examine the basic functions of the online Visual Thesaurus, exploring how simple words may sometimes have multiple meanings. In small groups they select words and explore the Visual Thesaurus, and write a short play using the...
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Chocolate Chaos
Second graders demonstrate the ability to examine the elements of a story (theme, plot, setting, mood) and characters, by discussing and writing about each. They have fun with chocolate related activities and enjoy reading about some...
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Literary Odyssey
Students read and compare excerpts from The Odyssey and The Adventures of Telemachus to create their own story based on a secondary character. In this literary analysis lesson, students read and compare the excerpts from the texts....
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Early Explorers
Fifth graders explain the reasons why Europeans decided to explore and colonize the world. In this European explorers lesson, 5th graders complete a wall matrix about the explorers and write a summary about the explorer of their choice.
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Fugitive Slaves and the Underground Railroad
Eleventh graders consider the impact of the Underground Railroad. In this slavery lesson, 11th graders examine primary documents as they conduct independent research to explore the role of the Underground Railroad during the fight for...
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Comprehension: Understanding "sequence"
Second graders read the story The Broken Bed and then sequence the story in their own words. In this sequencing lesson plan, 2nd graders also write narrative with a specific beginning, middle, and end.
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The Great Chicago Fire Survivors
Students examine documents describing the experiences of survivors of the Great Chicago Fire, and write condolence letters.
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What's in a Picture Book?
Students analyze Appalachian folktale picture books. They read and analyze various Appalachian picture books, answer discussion questions, and in small groups complete a handout, and write an essay analyzing the text and illustrations of...
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Cinematic Poetry
Eighth graders explore the genre of poetry through the creation of a multimedia presentation. Students write a poem and create an Avid presentation of their poem for the class. The poems and presentations are peer-reviewed.
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Where are your borders?
Students explore the meaning of borders, both real and symbolic. After viewing film footage and visiting poetry websites, they develop their own point of view. To express their perspective, they are to write a journalism poem, or...
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Surviving the Struggle: Ruby Bridges, Ryan White, and Anne Frank
Fourth graders develop a deeper understanding of Anne Frank's survival. They select significant subject matter for a family photo album, write photo captions expressing feelings as well as facts, and sequence material in a logical,...
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Social Studies: Manifest Destiny or Bust
Fifth graders explore the westward movement between 1800 and 1861 in the United States. They write narratives from the standpoint of those cultures that were repressed during this period, such as Native Americans, slaves, or Mexicans. ...
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The Second Amendment and the Right to Bear Arms
Students interpret the Second Amendment. In this U.S. Constitution lesson, students examine the right to bear arms as they compare 2 Michigan Supreme Court cases and discuss their personal interpretations of the amendment.