Some of Fleishman's memories in his essay "My House of Voices" are shared with the class. Students then write a descriptive essay that gives a tour of the voices in their homes, school, etc.
Get children excited about writing and descriptive language by creating yummy descriptions of their favorite candy.
Children learn how to make a convincing argument—an important skill in school and in life.
In this activity, children look closely at living things in their natural environments and then make books about what they see.
Let children explore an interesting subject—themselves. An online tool will teach them to summarize and organize information as they write.
Use shape and theme poems, or poems that look like the things they describe, as a fun way to introduce children to poetry.
Use recipes to help children practice reading and writing step-by-step instructions. Have them sample the results to see how they did.
Use the online Trading Card Creator tool to have children make cards describing their favorite characters from the books on their reading list.
Engage teens in this activity in which they use photographs to examine and write about courage on a blog.
Invite teens to explore issues that are important to them, and then write a script and film a video public service announcement.
In this activity teens are encouraged to explore their reading history as they remember books they liked reading as children and then revisit these old favorites.
Explore how music can have an emotional impact on a scene in a movie, then help teens write and film a scene of their own.
This activity invites children and teens to explore various careers and then write about what they might want to be when they grow up in a blog.
While enjoying a book that features a journey, children write postcards from the perspective of the main character for each stop along the trip.
Want to visit a museum without leaving your computer? Virtually dig for famous historical artifacts from around the world found in the British Museum.
After reading about historical figures and other important people that have changed the world, children choose someone that they consider to be "amazing"—either someone they've heard about or someone they know—and create a book page that highlights this person.
Kids learn about weather sayings throughout history while writing and illustrating a book for younger children.
Create a treasure hunt out of word-puzzle clues hidden around the home or yard.
Everyone loves getting a greeting card, especially if it's homemade. Make a funny or thoughtful greeting card or invitation with pictures and a poem, joke, or riddle.