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
|
"America the Beautiful": Using Music and Art to Develop Vocabulary
K - 2
Lesson Plan
| Unit
Students engage in a rich study of vocabulary words from the song "America the Beautiful," using music and art.
Grades
|
Read Across America Day: Celebrate a Nation of Diverse Readers
K - 12
Calendar Activity
| Literacy-Related Event
Bring the celebration of reading and literacy into your classroom, library, school, and home all year long.
Grades
|
Power of Picture Books, The: Using Content Area Literature in Middle School
5 - 9
Professional Library
| Book
Featuring descriptions and activities for fifty exceptional titles, Mary Jo Fresch and Peggy Harkins offer a wealth of ideas for harnessing the power of picture books to improve reading and writing in the content areas.
Grades
|
Hoax or No Hoax? Strategies for Online Comprehension and Evaluation
9 - 12
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Are your students easily fooled? You'll find out in this lesson in which students carefully and critically examine hoax websites to determine their validity.
Grades
|
Make a Splash! Using Dramatic Experience to "Explode the Moment"
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students will have a blast as they use descriptive language to write about an "explosive" and dramatic moment in their lives.
Grades
|
In the Style of Ernie Pyle: Reporting on World War II
9 - 12
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students will think this lesson should make the headlines when they finish researching Ernie Pyle's work in preparation for writing their own news articles.
Grades
|
Pictures Tell the Story: Improving Comprehension With Persepolis
9 - 12
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students get the big picture of the Middle East when they read and analyze Marjane Satrapi's graphic novel Persepolis.
Grades
|
A Musical Prompt: Postcards From the Concert
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students won't miss a beat in this musical lesson that combines listening with personal response on a postcard.
Grades
|
The Big Green Monster Teaches Phonics in Reading and Writing
K - 2
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
A big green monster helps students build their reading fluency and word recognition skills through choral reading, literacy center activities, and writing stories.
Grades
|
Magazine Redux: An Exercise in Critical Literacy
9 - 12
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Paper and pixels get compared in this lesson in which students compare both printed and online versions of a magazine.
Grades
|
Fact or Fiction: Learning About Worms Using Diary of a Worm
K - 2
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students often believe that fiction writers make everything up, seldom realizing how research worms its way into entertaining writing. In this lesson, students read Diary of a Worm to find out how fact merges with fiction.
Grades
|
Teaching Shapes Using Read-Alouds, Visualization, and Sketch to Stretch
K - 2
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Visual clues in winter-themed books used in this lesson encourage students to make real-world math connections.
Grades
|
Collaborating, Writing, Linking: Using Wikis to Tell Stories Online
6 - 8
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students become online authors in this lesson in which they write and post a short story using wiki technology.
Grades
|
Using THIEVES to Preview Nonfiction Texts
6 - 8
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students become "thieves" in this lesson as they use a previewing strategy to "steal" information from textbooks and other nonfiction texts before actually reading them.
Grades
|
Sharing Favorite Books Using Interactive Character Trading Cards
3 - 5
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Using selected characters from a text of their choice, students put their literary analysis skills to work by creating fictional character trading cards.
Grades
|
Bingo! Using Environmental Print to Practice Reading
K - 2
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
The game Bingo is transformed in this lesson in which students use symbols and images to make connections to environmental print through the use of personalized Bingo cards.
Grades
|
Reading Informational Texts Using the 3-2-1 Strategy
K - 2
Lesson Plan
| Standard Lesson
Students can count on using the 3-2-1 strategy to help them successfully comprehend and write about an informational text.