A Six-Trait Writing instructional activity helps your middle schoolers liven up their word choice and shows them how to evaluate their own writing. Class members take a close look at the language used in poems by Shakespeare, Kipling,...

Develop a mystery character using clues from a bag. This engaging activity will help learners understand character traits. They develop a list of the items from the bag, discuss and develop the character with a partner, and create a...

Learners explore heredity by examining how traits are passed from parent to offspring. Genetic terminology is examined and examples of inherited traits discussed. calculating genetic probability is also investigated in this instructional...

What do Jeep advertisements and Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath have in common? They both employ the art of the extended metaphor! Using the Six-Trait Writing model, learners begin to work on their own extended metaphors. Development...

Use drawings as inspiration. Have learners doodle for 10 minutes before beginning the lesson. Then, have them use their doodles to inspire a story. Several writing activities are included here to play with writing. One of my favorites...

Students explore basic concepts of heredity and collaborate to see genetics in action through several activities provided in the lesson. Inherited traits are examined and identified as dominant or recessive.

Students discuss character traits, and complete a character map and a Venn diagram for selected characters in their assigned text.

Students create a bio-poem for themselves or characters in stories they have read. They explore common character traits.

Fifth graders define character words, look for real-life examples of the traits "in action," and write an acrostic poem based on one of these qualities.

Students read and analyze an extended definition in preparation for writing an extended definition of a CHARACTER TRAIT. They use analogy as a definition strategy to tailor writing to a particular audience. Finally, students SHARE...

Students explain how offspring inherit traits from their parents. In this biology lesson, students investigate the genes for nicotine addiction using an interactive website. They construct a fictional pedigree using their chosen...

Twelfth graders collaborate and analyze information about our hominid lineage. They discuss evidence researched by anthropologists. Students use spreadsheet data to compare means of locomotion, diet and brain size.

Students predict traits of future offspring. In this biology lesson plan, students study karyotyping to predict genetic disorders. They research an assigned karyotype and present information about it.

Whether you are planning a unit on F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, or simply want to improve your pupils' descriptive writing, this instructional activity could be a good addition to your class. Using the Six-Trait Writing...

Use picture cues as a tool in order to create meaning along with text. With a wordless comic, young illustrators discuss the main idea and character traits, and independently write a summary for a page of a wordless comic. This strategy...

Learners examine how living cells reproduce and how traits are passed on.  In this genetic reproduction instructional activity students research a topic and present it to the class. 

Students examine character traits and apply characteristics of those traits to images and quotations. They design, save and print using a desktop publishing program. They utilize reference tools to locate quotations.

First graders are exposed to a variety of texts that deal with mice. The use of the library is recommended to saturate the classroom with available books. Young students work in groups with the help of the teacher to define traits and...

Students use a graphic organizer create a character sketch of Trout Walker from the novel Holes. Using the provided worksheet, students fill in the important character traits of Trout. Worksheet and answer key are provided with the lesson.

Use this multidisciplinary lesson to delve into these subjects: English language arts, math, science, drama, and character education. After reading, discussing, and making interpretations about Go To Sleep, Gecko!: A Balinese...

Use psychodynamic theory as a part of analyzing a career cluster.The class defines vocabulary words, brainstorms a list of career traits, and completes an online career analysis inventory. They analyze 5 concepts of psychodynamic...

Pupils use the Internet as a research tool. they read, comprehend, identify, evaluate, and select the correct answers to contextual questions.They write a rough draft, edit/revise, and a final draft summarizing the information located.

Students locate and select riddles in library books to share, write riddles using template, select appropriate parts of speech to complete riddle template using AlphaSmart, correctly capitalize and punctuate riddle, and illustrate their...

Give your young learners the chance to discover more about countries in their world community with a research project. Class members write reports on an assigned country and include such major features as geography, important historical...