These compound words are all mixed up! Learners examine eight words that need to be reorganized, writing the correct words on this instructional activity. Next, they think up some compound words of their own. Finally, learners complete...

Take a trip through history with a lesson on historical fiction. With instructions for games, reading activities, and literary analysis assignments, this resource would be a great addition to any reading unit with a historical fiction...

Young poets focus on one character from a story they are reading, collect details, and use a biopoem template to analyze this character. The activity can be used with any text.

Making predictions is an important skill that experienced readers tap into when tackling a difficult text. Prepare your pupils to read My Antonia by Willa Cather with an initial prediction activity and this anticipation guide, which...

Even by using context clues, readers won't understand all of the language in Macbeth. Prepare them for some of the tricky language in the beginning by providing them with this two-page vocabulary activity. Twenty new words are introduced...

Build vocabulary while reading Our Town, Thornton Wilder's Broadway play. This two-page resource highlights 20 tricky vocabulary words like alacrity, epitaph, languid, and vestige. In the first activity, pupils answer questions that use...

Feeling bored and unimpressed with word choice in your class? If so, consider this activity, which focuses on using specific and precise language. Pupils use highlighters, brainstorm independently and in small groups, and create a poster...

Jamie Ford’s historical novel, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, explores the relationship between a young Chinese American boy and a Japanese American girl set against the backdrop of Seattle during World War II. The teaching...

Determining the meaning of a word based on context clues or marking how the meaning of a term evolves in the course of a document can be a challenge in more complex text. Give your pupils an opportunity to practice this skill with a...

Comparing information found in images, charts, and graphs with that found in written text can be a challenge for even senior high scholars. Provide learners with an opportunity to practice this skill with an exercise that asks them to...

If you need an introduction to skill W.9-10.1 for writing, then you’re off to a good start here. Included is a funny script that introduces what the students need to know to conquer the skill. It also provides an introduction activity...

The animal kingdom is full of interesting organisms that have unique ways of surviving. Children read about different insects that have special tools for building homes and protecting themselves. When finished, learners identify the main...

After your biologists have learned about transcription, translation, and gene regulation, they work in a small group to create a poster of a system that serves as an analogy of the gene regulation process. They share their creations with...

Looking for supporting materials for a study of So B. It by Sarah Weeks? This resource includes a summary of the book, questions to answer and discuss, a journal starter, a list of related activities, a list of similar books, and links...

What would you take with you if you were traveling on your own to a different place? A different time? Pupils decide individually and then in groups what the main character of Running Out of Time should take on her trip. Coming to a...

Get young people thinking about their lives and current topics of social justice, advocacy, gender, race, and identity. After examining several works by Barbara Kruger, participants select a tag with one of the questions printed on it,...

In pairs, scholars draw cards, read the word, and identify its root. Learners place the card on a tree-themed worksheet to sort words by their roots.

Interested in trying literature circles but concerned about accountability? Check out this resource. The class is divided into discussion groups, members are assigned specific roles, and provided with a worksheet that describes...

How do you represent a tragic event? Are stories of tragic events better left untold? After reading chapter two of Maus and studying other representations of the Holocaust (suggestions are included), class members create a representation...

Given a deck of cards with different words printed, pairs draw cards and work together to locate definitions for each multiple-meaning word. Learners complete a worksheet that challenges them to write the word, two of its definitions,...

Create mini books with some of the most beautiful and well-known masterpieces of our time. Learners read short paragraphs about famous artists such as Pablo Picasso, Leonardo da Vinci, and Johannes Vermeer, and create different kinds of...

Expand your pupils' understanding of the short story genre with a study of John Updike and his story "A&P." This instructional activity, the fourth in a series of fourteen, invites learners to examine literary terms and read and...

Explore the importance of tolerance with a music-themed lesson. Learners listen to the music of Peter, Paul, and Mary, and discern the underlying messages before discussing the painful effects of ridicule, disrespect, and...

Groups make a model of an Ocean Commotion exhibit based on what they saw during the fieldtrip. These dioramas can be used as an informal assessment of student knowledge acquired at Ocean Commotion.