Curated OER
Identifying and Using Parallelism and Balance in Literature
Analyze the use of balanced sentences and parallelism in a narrative. Included in this resource is a narrative about serving as a Peace Corps volunteer in Kazakhstan titled, "The Train Ride Home". Middle and high schoolers review...
Curated OER
Jim Murphy, The Great Fire - Grade 6
The Great Fire by Jim Murphy provides the text for a study of the Chicago fire of 1871. The plan is designed as a close reading activity so that all learners have the same background information require for writing. Richly detailed, the...
Student Achievement Partners
Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm - "The Fisherman and his Wife"
Help young readers learn to read and interpret complex text independently. Teach young children to ask interpretive questions and use the text itself to answer them. Use art, word play and drama to provide a deeper understanding of...
Odyssey of the Mind
Odyssey of the Mind Curriculum Activity: Made Up Math
Is there a way to connect creative thinking, logical reasoning, mathematical understanding, and humor? You bet there is! Kids begin by creating creative math quizzes, which require creative thinking to solve. For example, 1+1=24, one...
Curated OER
Expository Journal Prompts
Stuck for a journal topic? Download CAHSEE’s 21 “Expository Journal Prompts” as a pdf handout for yourself or class. A great resource for your writing program, print it up and add it your curriculum library.
Curated OER
Wonderful Wetlands
Fifth graders describe a wetland habitat and its components. They provide, in writing, at least one example of a wetland food chain, relate wetlands to ecological functions, and relate the importance of wetland functions to their own...
Curated OER
The Cutting Edge
Young writers examine the writings of Raymond Carver to investigate editing skills. They will develop original sentences. Then read the work of Raymond Carver to edit and analyze the ending. They revise and ending of their original...
Curated OER
Alexander Used to Be Rich
Reading Alexander, Who Used to Be Rich Last Sunday, launches this lesson plan appropriate for children who recognize coins and have been introduced to coin values. Using addition and subtraction skills, the class tracks Alexander’s...
Odyssey of the Mind
Odyssey of the Mind Curriculum Activity: Mathematicus Dramaticus
The best part about this resource is that you've got four wonderful activities to choose from. Each of the projects can work together or on its own to help learners understand the history of math and how it can be seen every day. In...
Mary Pope Osborne, Classroom Adventures Program
Mummies in the Morning Egyptian pyramids, hieroglyphics
Visit the Magic Treehouse and take your class on a trip through time with a reading of the children's book Mummies in the Morning. Using the story to spark an investigation into Egyptian culture, this literature unit engages...
Curated OER
The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon
Practice comprehension skills using the story, The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon by Bea Uusma Schyffert. Learners answer questions, fill out graphic organizers, and engage in extension activities involving writing and...
Historical Thinking Matters
Spanish-American War: 1 Day Lesson
After analyzing newspaper articles portraying different perspectives of the explosion of the Battleship USS Maine, your young historians will take a stand on which position is the most believable in both discussion and writing.
Curated OER
Advertising in the Contemporary World: An Introduction to Persuasive Texts
Beginning a persuasive writing unit with your middle schoolers? Approach it through something that persuades us all: advertising! Through studying video and print advertisement, your class will practice Common Core skills for reading...
Curated OER
The Exploration of the Writer, His Louisiana History And the Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman By Ernest J. Faines
Learners identify the significance of the author's experiences on his written work; describe the hardships faced by slaves and plantation owners once the caves were set free; explain the role of the Seceses and why they were a threat to...
MENSA Education & Research Foundation
It’s Greek to Me: Greek Mythology
It's no myth: this packet on Greek mythology is an excellent addition to your social studies curriculum. With writing activities, such as short answer responses and biopoems, and reading activities, which include creation stories and...
Curated OER
Is That Legal? A Case of Acid Rain
Develop an environmental case study! Elementary learners discover how a case study is used as an analysis tool. The goal of this activity is to show pupils how techniques of persuasion (including background, supporting evidence,...
Curated OER
Esperanza Rising - Anticipation Guide
Learn about Mexican culture while simultaneously strengthening reading, writing and computer skills. In order to get the most out of Esperanza Rising, pupils should have prior knowledge of Mexican culture. Therefore, there are links to a...
National Security Agency
Let's Party With Place Value
Put on your math caps and explore place value and ways to represent numbers. Learners read, write, and represent whole numbers. They interact with numbers as they read and explore a teacher-created story, play games, and practice their...
National Endowment for the Humanities
A “New English” in Chinua Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart”: A Common Core Exemplar
To examine the “New English” Chinua Achebe uses in Things Fall Apart, readers complete a series of worksheets that ask them to examine similes, proverbs, and African folktales contained in the novel. Individuals explain the meaning...
Curated OER
Outlines are Fun and Easy
Students goal is to achieve summarization. They read familiar words and decode words at their reading level. They summarize articles through the use of an outline in order ot improve reading comprehension. Students complete a basic...
Curated OER
Fish Stories
Students conduct background research about a Pacific Rim country to develop a premise for a documentary film about the fate of traditional fishing industries in the area.
Curated OER
Lesson: Nikhil Chopra: Performing Memory
Film imitates life; that's what they say. Using performance theory to tie the activity together, learners attempt to understand memory and daily rituals as seen in art, film, and life. They read two chapters from the book, watch the...
Curated OER
Matthew Henson
Discuss the work of Matthew Henson, an African American who traveled to the North Pole with Robert Peary. After reading the story "Matthew Henson" by Maryann N. Weidt, learners answer questions by drawing inferences and conclusions,...
Growing Minds
Potato Exploration: Projects All About Potatoes!
How many potatoes tall are you? Unearth this rich resource! A reading of John Coy’s Two Old Potatoes begins a cross-curricular exploration of potatoes. Class members read, write, weigh, measure, and experiment with potatoes. Additional...