Smithsonian Institution
POWs
Why did Vietnam POWs and their families receive more media attention than POWs in previous wars? To answer this question, class members view artifacts, read articles, and engage in class discussion. Individuals then assume the voice of...
Curated OER
Nursery Rhymes Poster Set
Where did Little Bo Peep's sheep go? How could Humpty Dumpty be put back together? After reading nursery rhymes from the provided, colorful posters, kids list the rhyming words and answer questions about the tale.
Curated OER
Plan a Read-All-Day Day
Students celebrate Read Across America Day by holding a Read-All-Day Day. they spend an entire day involved in fun reading-related activities.
Curated OER
In the Olden Days: Senior Reading Buddies
Students, in pre-selected groups, read and visit with senior citizen "buddies." They write letters to their buddies and discuss "the olden days."
Curated OER
Applying Reading Strategies to Aid Comprehension
Students practice their reading skills. For this reading comprehension lesson, students read articles about fast food topics using the wordstorming strategy described to prepare for reading the text.
Curated OER
Pre-reading for Julius Caesar
Students examine friendship and leadership by creating "friendship committees" to develop a class friendship constitution. Committees list qualities/traits of a friend, as well as friendship infractions. These committees join together...
Curated OER
Where's My Mummy: Preservation Techniques
To observe preservation techniques firsthand, learners dry a flower in sand and compare cucumber slices soaked in salt water for a week with slices left out to dry in the open air. Video resources (not attached) include one about mummies...
Curated OER
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
In this story structure lesson, students read the book A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and identify the characters, setting and main themes of the book. They answer a list of study questions about the book.
Michigan State University
Wanted Dead or Alive
Wanted! Pests are on the loose! Here, class members create a wanted poster highlighting one pest. Posters includes a picture, description, and signs of pest activity.
Curated OER
Match the Letters
Build familiarity with alphabet letters to ensure your pre-readers are set up for reading success. They examine six lowercase letters on leaves, drawing lines to connect them to trees with the same letter. They will develop awareness of...
Curated OER
Odd One Out
One of these animals is different, but which one is it? Pre-readers examine four sets of objects to determine and circle the one that is different. This isn't designed to trick your eye; scholars are looking for a horse standing amidst a...
Curated OER
Odd One Out
Which of these is different? Pre-readers examine four pictures of familiar objects. Each picture has a row of images following it, and they must determine which of them is different. Once youngsters have figured it out, they circle the...
Curated OER
Poetry Reading for ELL Beginners
Bring the imagery of the desert to your classroom with this ELL lesson plan. After reading Madeleine Dunphy’s Here in the Southwestern Desert, learners complete a graphic organizer about the features and images of the poem. The...
Curated OER
Match the Rhymes
Explore CVC words with the vowel sound a to give pre-readers a grasp of rhyme. They draw lines from a van to surrounding pictures that rhyme (man, pan, fan, can). Then, leaners get printing practice by tracing the words van and fan....
Curated OER
Match the Rhymes
Tree, bee, knee, three... what do these have in common? Focus on vowel sounds in this matching worksheet for beginning readers. Learners connect a picture of a tree to pictures that rhyme with it and then get some printing practice. All...
Curated OER
The Old Man and the Sea: Anticipation Guide
Begin your unit on Ernest Hemingway's The Old Man and The Sea with an anticipation guide. As kids read 12 statements that relate to the novel's themes, they decide whether each is true or false in their own opinion.
August House
Anansi and the Tug o' War
Combine art, math, language arts, drama, and delicious Jell-o with a instructional activity based on the African folktale Anansi and the Tug o' War. Kids make predictions and discuss plot points of the story before joining in...
California Education Partners
Quest for Tree Kangaroo
A three-day assessment challenges scholars to read a passage from an informational text then complete two activities that lead to a writing assignment. Day one and two begin as readers independently read a passage and tag the most...
Florida Center for Reading Research
Phonological Awareness: Phoneme Matching, Medial Phoneme Dominoes
Matching medial phonemes can be as easy as playing a game of dominoes! These dominoes contain pictures of items children can say. As they say each word aloud, they work to match the medial sound to one on an adjacent card. Just like real...
August House
The Pig Who Went Home on Sunday
Turn your classroom into a pig sty with a instructional activity based on the Appalachian folktale The Pig Who Went Home on Sunday. Similar to the story of The Three Little Pigs, the folktale tells a story of four pigs who leave home—and...
Florida Center for Reading Research
Phonological Awareness: Rhyme, Rhyming Game
Scholars practice their rhyming skills with a game. Players roll dice to move along the board game, stopping to rhyme words and find a match.
California Education Partners
Vincent Van Gogh
Living in someone's shadow would be difficult for anyone, including one of the most talented artists of the modern age. Middle schoolers read an excerpt from Vincent Van Gogh: Portrait of an Artist by Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan...
California Education Partners
Bud Not Buddy
A two-day assessment challenges scholars to read an excerpt from the story, Bud Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis then complete a series of exercises in preparation for a writing assignment. Day one includes an independent reading...
California Education Partners
Kitten's First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes
A 3-day exam assesses readers' comprehension. After hearing a passage from the story Kittens First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes, scholars work with a partner to discuss and sketch what they found memorable. Peers share their final products...