EngageNY
Close Reading of Thank You, Mr. Falker: Identifying the Superpowers of Reading
Third graders read excepts from the story, Thank You, Mr. Falker in order to gain practice in understanding an unfamiliar story by focusing on the details. They use a worksheet, embedded in the plan, which directs them to certain...
C.S. Lewis Foundation
Study Guide to Letters to Malcolm
C.S. Lewis outlines in his final book Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer, the struggle of what happens during prayer, and the purpose of the action. The resource provides two sets of questioning. The first furnishes deep textual...
Annenberg Foundation
Migrant Struggle
The American Dream is a goal that many pursue, but is it truly attainable for all people? An in-depth lesson explores the plight of migrants in twentieth-century America. The resource includes a video and author biographies and...
New York City Department of Education
Grade 8 Science: Genetic Modification of Organisms
Genetic modification is a hot topic in the science and political world. A complete unit gives learners an opportunity to research genetic modification, play an interactive genetic engineering simulation, and interact with the information...
Curated OER
Walking in Other People's Shoes
Students study the story of student journalist Casey Parks' September, 2006, journey to Central Africa with New York Times columnist, Nicholas Kristof. They then act as representatives to the tourism boards of developing countries and...
Curated OER
Figurative Language - Part Two
Pupils need to use their papers from Part One of this lesson. They then write a paragraph for each term. This exercise help them to use these terms in their writing. Using figurative language makes writing more descriptive and alive.
Curated OER
Homophones and Vivid Verbs
Students define and practice using synonyms, antonyms, homonyms, and homophones in complete sentences, paragraphs and essays. They include "vivid verbs" in their writing with the aid of a dictionary or thesaurus.
Curated OER
White Southerners' Defense of Slaveholding
Students read transcriptions of articles from two historical Virginian newspapers and examine how white southerners defended the institution of slavery. They write a one-act play or a dialogue between an abolitionist and a slaveholder.
Foreign Policy Research Institute
Imperialism, Arab Nationalism and World War I
Continued conflict in the Middle East makes this activity relevant, and the inclusion of a critique of Lawrence of Arabia might increase student interest in a potentially challenging topic. The resource includes a solid introduction to...
Gwinnett County Public Schools
Analysis of the Tuck Everlasting and The Birchbark House Text Exemplars
Looking to introduce some text-based questions into your ELA lessons? Practice the kinds of skills the Common Core demands with the seven text-based questions and the essay prompt provided here. Designed to be a three-day lesson, day one...
Curated OER
Cross-Cultural Dialogue Lesson
Students read and analyze a personal narrative written about a Peace Corps Volunteer teaching English in Guinea-Bissau, Africa. They discuss the concept of crossing cultures, analyze maps, complete worksheets, and develop a writing...
Curated OER
Cross-Cultural Dialogue Lesson
Use the Peace Corps to explore a different place and different perspectives. Your class reads the personal narrative "Cross-Cultural Dialogue" by Roz Wollmering, completing an attached story frame sheet in preparation for a class...
Curated OER
Hatchet: Before Strategy- Problematic Situation
If you were stranded on a desert island, what items would be the most important to have with you? Decide whether you'd want a five gallon can of water, a radio, shark repellent, or any other item with an activity designed to prepare kids...
Curated OER
School Autobiography
Young scholars brainstorm for fifteen minutes independently, sketching out what they remember or how they want to organize their data. they write a journal along the lines of "what do you remember about kindergarten? Write to a...
Curated OER
Hook, Lead Line, and Thinker
Young scholars explore, examine and study the format of an opinion essay by viewing one author and activist that is helping women find their voices by reading and discussing the article, "Stop the Presses, Boys! Women Claim Space on...
Curated OER
A Picture Says a Thousand Words
Use photographs to trigger memories. Writers use a personal photograph as a starting point for an autobiographical writing exercise. They complete brainstorming activities that have them study their photograph before actually putting pen...
Macmillan Education
Social Skills
Every culture has a set of social skills one must learn to establish and maintain relationships. Some of these skills are particular to a culture and some are universal. Class members practice using appropriate language, polite manners,...
Curated OER
Introduction to Cause and Effect
Teach your special education students about cause and effect with this SMART board activity. After analyzing real-life examples of cause and effect -'What happens when you eat too much? What happens when you don't get enough sleep?"-...
Digital Forsyth
Parts of a Whole
High school artists create a collaborative piece based on a historical image. Each member of the class is given two days to draw one part of the whole image, when the two days are up; they put their pieces together and discuss the...
Aspen Institute
The Voice That Challenged a Nation
Included here are step-by-step instructions for conducting a close reading of The Voice That Challenged a Nation by Russell Freedman. After an individual and class reading, class members read carefully through the text excerpt,...
Curated OER
Grammar-Active and Passive Voice
Use this lesson to reinforce the effect of passive and active voice in writing. First, middle schoolers write several sentences, and then use the attached worksheet to identify whether the sentences are written in active or passive voice.
Curated OER
A City Council Meeting
Here is an interesting plan for introducing your pupils to the workings of the local city council. The teacher must go videotape a city council meeting in it's entirety. Learners watch the tape, and discuss what they observed from the...
Curated OER
"Blackbeard's Ghost" Differentiated Lesson Plan
Develop a better understanding of "Blackbeard's Ghost" with this differentiated instructional activity. Working in groups on a creative project, middle schoolers can reinforce their reading comprehension and literary analysis skills. Use...
Curated OER
Why Do We Need Clean Air to Live? - Biology Teaching Thesis
Students name the main components of the respiratory system. They write a reaction that contains complete sentences, and uses proper spelling and grammar, after viewing a video. Students define the following terms: lungs, respiration,...