Learners formulate a definition of art in the introductory lesson for a unit on various art forms. The learning emphasis is placed on Oregonian artist Duff Severe and reflective writing. Students compose an essay describing various art...

Fifth graders examine excerpts from a diary of a Confederate soldier and his experiences in a Union prison camp. After receiving character cards, they write diary entries from the perspectives of their Civil War identity. As an...

Learners explore their creative-thinking and writing skills while writing a sequel to the classic story, "Goldilocks and the Three Bears". Students work in small groups to complete this activity and share their completed story with the...

Students are encouraged to develop a love for reading by sampling different types of literature. They are encouraged to read one of the books that is sampled. The sample should be challenging for the reader without causing discouragement.

Young scholars utilize a Reader's Theater script and accompanying lesson plan to learn about the Iditarod race that takes place in Alaska. During the process, they also learn about teamwork and working together.

Students assume the persona of one of the members of Lewis and Clark's expedition team. They research a member of the expedition team, write a first-person introduction of that team member, and share that introduction in a 2-3 minute...

Students describe the practices they follow to get ready for a new school year. Using those practices, they create a list of resoultions that they might improve on during the new year. They complete a worksheet and share their answers to...

Bring your class to the computer lab, and have them use the library and online resources to select proverbs related to specified themes. They create a book or bulletin board of proverbs that offer lessons connected to themes of freedom,...

Inform your class on the elements of fiction: themes, settings, characters, plots, dialogue, narration, flashback, clues, climax, resolution. They write the definitions of the terms on the worksheet provided.l Tip: Have them write a...

Fourth graders develop critical listening skills and answer four questions related to the story, THE EMPEROR AND THE KITE. They identify the main idea and recall a question that involves making a judgment.

Students view a PowerPoint presentation in order to show the five jobs involved in a literature circle. The literature circle is to be used in the class for the reading of novels. A graphic organizer is also used to increase comprehension.

If you plan to utilize the ABC miniseries, "The Path to 9/11" in your classroom, consider incorporating media literacy and research skills. After (or while) learners view the series, they discuss ways information can differ from source...

Groups become experts in one aspect of the six traits of writing, prepare a PowerPoint presentation, jigsaw, and teach others about their trait. Writers then focus on these traits as they compose a persuasive essay about a person they...

Young writers choose a person from American history, their community, or their family to use as the subject of a persuasive essay. The process begins with a discussion of the characteristics of a hero, the completion of a prewriting web,...

Reinforce sentence styles with this lesson, which prompts young grammarians to build complex and compound-complex sentence structures. They respond to non-print text and identify subordinators as parts of speech procedure. They spell...

After reviewing weather expressions with your Spanish scholars, have them do some research: what is the weather like in different parts of the world? They can choose up to four different cities to compare with the local weather of their...

Take your youngsters on a virtual tour of a Spanish museum. Select around 10 works of art to show your class. El Prado museum, in Madrid, has a great online database you can use. Select the works of art beforehand, so you're all set for...

Now that your young Spanish speakers know the Spanish words for common animals, discuss what each animal eats and their personalities. It's great that the class starts by looking at an animal, identifying a characteristic or trait it...

Class members develop interview questions and then one volunteer interviews a new principal (the instructor) while the entire class watches and takes notes. Participants then individually consider an interesting angle from which the...

Learners identify certain sea animals, pets, and body parts. They play Sim'n Dice (Simon Says) acting out each animal as the teacher asks. They sit in a circle on a rug and use mnemonic devices to help remember vocabulary words.

Students discuss Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays and family traditions. After brainstorming how holidays are celebrated, students write a poem about a chosen holiday and create their own hand-made instrument. They share their poems...

Young scholars use data from the U.S. Census Bureau to determine whether last names in a local phone directory reflect the Census Bureau's list of the most common surnames in the country. For this surnames lesson plan, students use the...

Practice being concise. Exercise your vocabulary. Improve your editing skills. The contention in this activity is that by imposing a 140 character limit, the Twitter format actually helps improve writing skills. And of course class...

What is the true meaning of wealth? Guide your class through this question in a SMART board activity (provided), which addresses a concept development model. The lesson could be used before you begin The Pearl by John Steinbeck, or...