In this lesson, before reading, students establish a purpose for reading informational text by turning the title and subtitles into questions.

In this lesson, students will learn about a topic in three different text formats. They will then evaluate each format to determine the pros and cons. Students will also assess the credibility of each text.

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.

Using excerpts from the works of Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau, comics, and songs from different musical genres, students examine the characteristics of transcendentalism.

As part of their study of Richard WrightŐs "Black Boy", students research and reflect on the current black-white racial divide in America. By examining the work of literature in the context of contemporary events, students will deepen their understanding of the work and of what it means to be an American today.

Students use art and poetry to explore and understand major characteristics of the Romantic period.

Students create text sets on a high interest topic and use the texts to practice three strategies for reading for information.

In this lesson, students incorporate analyses of characters from "The Crucible" with examinations of original seventeenth-century portraits of Puritans to create a visual portrait of the character. The project culminates in a ŇPortrait Gallery WalkÓ where students present and defend their artwork.

History has many faces in this lesson in which students read Jane Addams Award-winning books to learn about peace, social justice, world community, and equality.

Students build their understanding of the terms "compare" and "contrast" by participating in class discussions, using Internet resources, working collaboratively, and by visually representing information in a Venn diagram.

History takes on new dimensions in this interactive multimedia lesson that emphasizes the B-D-A approach to research as students investigate the experiences of people with disabilities since the early 1800s.

Students read AviŐs "Nothing But the Truth" and examine the First Amendment and student rights, and then decide whether the rights of the novel's protagonist, Philip, are violated.

Students make predictions about "Bridge to Terabithia" and its characters, complete character studies, and relate the characters' experiences to their own as they identify ways to make and keep friends.

Nonfiction may be dull for some students, but this lesson helps them focus on the main ideas. Through awareness of section headings, students learn to sort and categorize main concepts.

Students create a Detective's Handbook based on a detective mystery they have read. The handbooks include expository and descriptive writing, as well as a letter.

Students will explore five different "Discovery Buckets". These buckets will give them opportunities to practice expressing both their thoughts and feelings. Main Curriculum Tie: English Language Arts Kindergarten Speaking and Listening Standard 6, Speak audibly and express thoughts, feelings, and ideas clearly. We recognize that an increased ability to communicate thoughts and feelings gives children the skills they need in their interactions with others. Acceptance by peers is not only correlated with positive attitudes toward school; it is a powerful predictor of social adjustment throughout life. This lesson helps children understand their emotions and how to appropriately express thoughts and feelings with others.

Fact Fragment Frenzy provides elementary students with an online model for finding facts in nonfiction text, then invites students to find facts in five sample passages.

Social injustice occurs every day all over the world. In this lesson, students research a few historical examples of social injustice, including the Holocaust, the Trail of Tears, and Japanese internment.

The Flip-a-Chip activity provides hands-on practice with affixes and roots, and also promotes comprehension through structural analysis and vocabulary in context.

This video segment from Between the Lions shows the practice of sounding out the word rocket part by part, blending sounds together to form a word.