Students learn about the life and music of John Lennon, write a short story from their lives integrating lyrics from some of their favorite songs, and create a class book of stories.
Songs of Our Lives: Using Lyrics to Write Stories
Grades
|
The Mysteries of Harris Burdick: Using Illustrations to Guide Writing
5 - 9
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students use illustrations from The Mysteries of Harris Burdick as a guide to write mysteries
and then present their stories to the class for students to discuss to which illustration each
story corresponds.
Grades
|
Color My World: Expanding Meaning Potential through Media
3 - 6
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Using different writing/drawing materials (e.g., markers, color pencils, pastels, etc.), students learn how to communicate different moods and/or feelings to support their written ideas and how authors do the same through their work.
Grades
|
American Folklore: A Jigsaw Character Study
3 - 6
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
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.
Grades
|
Utilizing Visual Images for Creating and Conveying Setting in Written Text
3 - 6
Lesson Plan
| Recurring Lesson
This lesson supports third-through-sixth grade students as they communicate story setting to their readers through the use of visual image prompts. Activities include individual and cooperative learning group work, as well as whole class discussion.
Grades
|
Moving Toward Acceptance Through Picture Books and Two-Voice Texts
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Unit
Students read and discuss literature about intolerance and diversity. They work with a partner to write two-voice poems that illustrate situations of intolerance at their school and suggest a step toward acceptance.
Grades
|
Graphing Plot and Character in a Novel
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
In this graphical mapping project, students assign a value to the events, characters, and themes in a novel and think about how the elements of the story are all interconnected.
Grades
|
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
|
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
|
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
|
Examining Plot Conflict through a Comparison/Contrast Essay
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Unit
Students explore picture books to identify the characteristics of four types of conflict. They then write about a conflict they have experienced and compare it to a conflict from literature.
Grades
|
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.
Grades
|
Unwinding A Circular Plot: Prediction Strategies in Reading and Writing
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students use graphic organizers to explore plot in circular stories while focusing on prediction and sequencing. After exploring the features of circular plot stories, students write their own stories.
Grades
|
Comics in the Classroom as an Introduction to Narrative Structure
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
This lesson uses comic strip frames to define plot and reinforce the structure that underlies a narrative. Students finish by writing their own original narratives.
Grades
|
Authoring an Epilogue That Helps Our Characters Live On
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
This lesson uses One Green Apple by Eve Bunting to teach how characters change across a text. It will also guide students through writing an epilogue to accompany their independent book.
Grades
|
Designing Elements of Story in Little Blue and Little Yellow
K - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
In this series of four lessons, students will explore key elements of design in Little Blue and
Little Yellow to learn about setting, character relationships, and plot.
Grades
|
Audience & Purpose: Evaluating Disney's Changes to the Hercules Myth
5 - 8
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
What drives changes to classic myths and fables? In this lesson students evaluate the changes Disney made to the myth of "Hercules" in order to achieve their audience and purpose.
Grades
|
Vocabulary Solutions: A Mixture of Science, Conversation, and Writing
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
In this lesson, students conduct a science experiment and later discuss the events of the lab during shared writing. Students explain the procedure in their own words and then revise to include content specific vocabulary. Finally, students reflect on new words added to their writing using the Trading Card Creator interactive.
Grades
|
Writing Acrostic Poems with Thematically Related Texts in the Content Areas
2 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students read thematically related texts, scaffolded from simple to complex, to help them gather necessary concept vocabulary and background knowledge in a content area. They then write acrostic poems to organize and present their learning in a creative way.
Grades
|
A-B-C: It's Easy as 1-2-3 to Make Math Alphabet Books
4 - 8
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Using the Alphabet Organizer app, students create alphabet books to review math terms.