Playbooks
Reader's Theater Exercise: The Night Before Christmas
Yes, Virginia, there really is a reader's theater script for "The Night Before Christmas." The exercise is a great way to productively channel pre-holiday energy.
PBS
Stories of Painkiller Addiction: The Cycle of Addiction
Drug addiction, including prescription drug addiction, begins with a reason that's different for every user. High schoolers learn more about the reasons people begin abusing drugs with a set of videos and worksheets that discuss four...
Visa
Nothing But Net: Understanding Your Take Home Pay
Introduce your young adults to the important understanding that the money they receive from their paychecks is a net amount as a result of deductions from taxes. Other topics covered include federal, state, Medicare and social security...
Curated OER
Expression, Expression, Expression
Students read orally with expression in this lesson. They read sentences stressing different emotions with appropriate expression. The teacher models expressive vs. non-expressive reading, and they practice with a partner. Their...
Curated OER
The House on Mango Street
Students discuss identity and what they consider their identities to be. In this The House on Mango Street lesson, students participate in a pre-reading activity before reading The House on Mango Street. Students preview the text and...
Curated OER
Chessboard Challenge
Second graders read "The King's Chessboard" by David Birch. The teacher reads the story aloud and pauses at several points for students to calculate the next number in a pattern of doubling.
Curated OER
The Farmer's Sheep
Students use problem solving skills, logical thinking, and their ability to work sequentially in order to solve an algebra problem. They listen to the problem read aloud by the teacher and devise a plan in order to solve the problem.
Curated OER
Learning to Share
Students participate in a lesson/activity where they learn to share their toys and crayons. They listen to a short story about sharing read aloud by the teacher to the students. They discuss the questions in the story and the...
Curated OER
Droopy Dog says....
Students study the /d/ sound by making the sound and determining where their tongue is when the make it. They repeat a tongue twister while emphasizing the /d/ sounds. Next, they identify the sound in words as the teacher uses a puppet...
Curated OER
Introduce "ur"
Students explore language arts by participating in a word sound activity. In this letter combination lesson, students discuss the sound "ur" makes and the types of words it appears in. Students identify the sound as the teacher reads...
Curated OER
Summarizing
Fourth graders listen to the teacher discuss the definition of "Summary." They read a story aloud with their classmates. After finishing the story, 4th graders are asked to choose the best summary statement.
Curated OER
The Columbian Exchange
Seventh graders investigate the impact of the Columbian Exchange. In this Exploration Age lesson, 7th graders view video clips and read materials related to the trade that took place in the era. Students use SMARTNotebook slides to...
Curated OER
Limericks
Fourth graders look up the definition of "Limerick" in the dictionary. They listen to the teacher explain a limerick and read an example of a limerick. Students brainstorm rhyming words and write their own limericks.
Curated OER
Find the Error 50
In this grammar learning exercise, students read an extract from a national magazine for teachers. Students locate a mistake in either apostrophes, articles, singular/plurals, or spelling.
Curated OER
Class Book Awards
Learners study the criteria used to select notable book awards, including the Caldecott Medal and the Newbery Medal. Then they develop their own Class Book Awards to bestow upon favorite books in the classroom library. They decide on...
Curated OER
Saving the Rainforests
Students search and study the various web sites on the rain forest. They determine parts of speech of each new word. Once this has been done, they read the composition first silently and then aloud. They demonstrate comprehension of the...
Curated OER
Beginning Letter Sounds
Students practice working with beginning letter sounds. For this phonics lesson, students state the letter sound that their name starts with, read a book about beginning letter sounds and complete a worksheet.
Curated OER
Cherokeee Myth: Origin of Strawberries
Fourth graders read a Cherokee myth about the origin of strawberries. After reading the story, they add another chapter to it and read their additions to the class. Or, as a group activity, they each write a few sentences and then pass...
Curated OER
Play Ball
Students study the history of baseball in Brooklyn. They read a shared reading about the history of baseball in Brooklyn and respond to an archival picture of an early baseball game. They write two "teacher questions" for the class to...
Curated OER
Math Maven Fractions
Students solve fraction mysteries. In this fractions lesson, students read Math Maven's Mysteries and use problem-solving and critical thinking skills to solve the mysteries.
Curated OER
No is No, Si is Yes
Third graders match the body part words in Spanish to a picture. They receive a picture of a human with lines coming from its feet, hands, and arms. Students use a word bank, to write the Spanish word that corresponds to the picture. ...
Curated OER
Exploring Russian Folktales
Students examine Russian Folktales. In this folklore lesson, students discuss the attributes of common folktales they know and then discover details regarding Russian folktales. Students read 3 folktales and then complete the provided...
Curated OER
Elements of Fables
Students explore the attributes of fables. In this literature lesson, students read several fables and identify the moral lesson, characterization, and figurative language in each. Students then retell their favorite fables in their own...
Curated OER
Finding Science in An American Childhood by Annie Dillard
Students read excerpts from Annie Dillard's memoir, "An American Childhood," with the teacher. They experience opportunities to connect English, science, nature and art together from a new and unique perspective. This approach serves as...