Groups of students read and discuss American folklore stories, each group reading a different story. Using a jigsaw strategy, the groups compare character traits and main plot points of the stories. A diverse selection of American folk tales is used for this lesson, which is adaptable to any text set.
American Folklore: A Jigsaw Character Study
Grades
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Literacy Centers: Getting Started
K - 2
Lesson Plan
| Recurring Lesson
This lesson gives teachers resources and guidance to create reading, listening, computer, and poetry Literacy Centers in their own classrooms.
Grades
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Digging Up Details on Worms: Using the Language of Science in an Inquiry Study
K - 2
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
This lesson, in which students research worms in order to create a classroom habitat, incorporates reading and writing across content areas as well as math and science activities.
Grades
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Dear Librarian: Writing a Persuasive Letter
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students write persuasive letters to their librarian requesting that specific texts be added to the school library. As they work, students plan their arguments and outline their reasons and examples.
Grades
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Creating Family Timelines: Graphing Family Memories and Significant Events
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students interview family members, and then create graphic family timelines based on important and memorable family events.
Grades
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Once Upon a Time Rethought: Writing Fractured Fairy Tales
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students read and analyze fairy tales, identifying their common elements. They then write their own "fractured" fairy tales by changing one of the literary elements found in the original.
Grades
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Opening the Door for Reading: Sharing Favorite Texts to Build Community
3 - 6
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
In this lesson, students build classroom community by exploring environmental print and a teacher-created display that focuses on a favorite book. They then create and share their own presentations.
Grades
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Literature as a Jumping Off Point for Nonfiction Inquiry
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Unit
Students use text sets to research a topic inspired by a fiction book they have read. A text set is a collection of multiple text genres with a single focus.
Grades
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Our Community: Creating ABC Books as Assessment
K - 2
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students create alphabet books, which are used as an integrated assessment with science, health, social studies, and any other content area. This lesson plans looks at the theme of community.
Grades
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Question and Answer Books--From Genre Study to Report Writing
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Unit
After exploring several question and answer books on a variety of topics, students research a topic and create their own class question and answer book.
Grades
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Completing the Circle: The Craft of Circular Plot Structure
K - 2
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students identify, explore and apply the elements of circle plot structures to their own stories by using graphic organizers, reading and writing stories, and using checklists to assess their work.
Grades
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Bridging Literature and Mathematics by Visualizing Mathematical Concepts
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
During interactive read-aloud sessions, students identify how an author conveys mathematical information about animals' sizes and abilities. They then conduct research projects focusing on the same mathematical concepts.
Grades
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Exploring Sets through Math-Related Book Pairs
K - 2
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
After reading two math-related books, students investigate their home and school environments to find examples of objects that come in sets and then create their own books on sets.
Grades
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What If We Changed the Book? Problem-Posing with Sixteen Cows
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
After reading a piece of math-related children's literature aloud, students pose and solve new problems by asking what-if questions about the events in the story.
Grades
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Using Picture Books to Teach Plot Development and Conflict Resolution
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students read picture books to explore the concepts of plot development and conflict resolution. They first learn about the connections between reading and writing, and then revise their own writing.
Grades
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Improving Fluency through Group Literary Performance
K - 2
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students participate in shared reading, choral reading, and readers theater, using books by Bill Martin, Jr. Repeated readings and literary performances help students with their reading accuracy, expression, and rate.
Grades
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Using Snowflake Bentley as a Framing Text for Multigenre Writing
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Using Snowflake Bentley as a model, students create a working definition of multigenre text and then use that definition to create their own multigenre piece about winter or another theme.
Grades
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Mapping Characters Across Book Series
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students work on a guided characterization project, using a graphic map to illustrate the ways a character from a book series grows and evolves over the course of the story.
Grades
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Compiling Poetry Collections and a Working Definition of Poetry
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Unit
This unit introduces students to a variety of poetic forms and elements, as they compile their own collections of poetry.
Grades
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A Genre Study of Letters With The Jolly Postman
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students read The Jolly Postman, in which a postman delivers letters to storybook characters. They explore different types of mail and categorize letters from the book and their own mail.