In this lesson, students learn how to identify a generalization in a text so that they can then spot lies or inaccuracies. Includes downloadable workbook with a generalization activity on page 53.

Students will answer text-dependent questions for the expository text "Seasons and Weather". While text-dependent questions have been around for a long time, Common Core asks teachers to focus on them during reading. This lesson includes a powerpoint titled "Weather and Seasons" with specific questions for each page.

Students will learn the difference between books that tell stories and books that give information. Multiple videos of different level reading groups engaged in this lesson, along with a printable activity sheet are included.

In this scaffolded lesson, students will independently gather information about elephants and then compile this information with their peers. This lesson is part of a unit that will culminate with an expository writing assignment.

In this lesson, students will use several strategies to learn the meaning of new words they encounter in text. The students will learn specific strategies so when they encounter new words, they can figure out the meaning of those words in a more organic way than having the teacher pre-teach them. Students will utilize bold words and subheadings to aid them in determining the new words.

Preparation for reading complex informational texts starts in K and First grade. Knowing the features of the genre, and how to navigate through it is one of the necessary stepping stones. This lesson introduces the student to different features of informational texts, such as labels, photographs, and diagrams.

Students will read an article by Byron Loosle on the meaning of Native American symbols and compare that to a video clip of an actual Native American explaining the symbols. There is a difference of opinion and students will weigh both arguments along with the importance of the source and write their own opinion on the subject.

Students will participate in a picture walk through the expository text "Seasons and Weather". The purpose of the picture walk is to prepare the students for reading the story and gives them practice in using picture clues to make meaning. It gives them a sense of the text and an idea of what they will be reading about.

The class will read the informational text "Together They Were Better". As the teacher reads the book aloud, she/he will use the illustrations from each page to give students clues as to the text on the page, helping them to see the relationship between the pictures and the words. The powerpoint of the book is included, as long as extension activities.

Sequencing is an important skill for kindergarten students. This lesson uses nonfiction texts to allow students to make a real-life connection to the skill of sequencing and learn about the plant cycle at the same time! Included are bulletin board ideas, links to videos, a plant cycle poster, and printable worksheets.

This lesson uses the book Explorers of North America - A True Book by Brendan January to teach students how to identify the main topic of a multi-paragraph informational text and specific paragraphs within the text. Students are guided in how to create a timeline of historical events and they learn about text features. The lesson is done using print materials and a whiteboard with markers, but could be adapted to use with an interactive whiteboard. Worksheets, samples of student work, and videos of them discussing their work are provided.

Students will compare and contrast the written form of Sojourner Truth's "Ain't I a Woman" to a live reading of the poem by an actress. Follow-up activities provided.

In this lesson, through guided practice, the students use two texts about Martin Luther King to compare the similarities and differences between those texts. Includes videos of the lesson in action, printable charts, and a graphic organizer.

At the end of this lesson, students will be able to identify and create diagrams associated with informational text. Included is a link to an eSpark video on diagrams, rules for group work, multiple examples of diagrams, and a cooperative learning assessment rubric.

Teachers will engage young learners to understand how one story can be shared more than one way. This lesson demonstrates an historical interpretation of the story about Pocahontas and John Smith with the Disney movie. Several resources for instruction are included.

In this lesson, students will explain the meaning of a text and its genre, summarize it, and draw conclusions. They work with a book called The Leprechaun Companion which is a cross between informational and literary text.

In this lesson, students analyze two nonfiction passages on Christopher Columbus to determine facts and author's bias and its influence on the readers.

Students identify text features in nonfiction, as they continue to study cells' function as building blocks of organisms, and summarize the requirements for cells to live.

Students will look at examples of illustrations and diagrams in informational texts and discuss how each one helps enhance the text. Students gain the knowledge that sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words because a complex idea can be explained with just a single image. Included are printable handouts, videos of student work, and rubrics for assessment.

Links to 12 lessons and activities that build student skills in standard W.3.2b: Develop the topic with facts, definitions, and details.