ALEX Lesson Plans

Thinkfinity Lesson Plans

Subject: Language Arts
Title: Using Historical Fiction to Learn About the Civil War Add Bookmark
Description: Students in grades 4 and 5 discuss inferential comprehension and visualization as they use a think-aloud questioning strategy to develop a deeper understanding of a historical novel.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5

Subject: Language Arts
Title: Comics in the Classroom as an Introduction to Narrative Structure Add Bookmark
Description: 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.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5

Subject: Language Arts
Title: Q is for Duck: Using Alphabet Books With Struggling Writers Add Bookmark
Description: A is for zoo? Q is for duck? The alphabet as students know it is transformed when students create a class book that contains clever associations for each letter of the alphabet.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5

Subject: Language Arts,Social Studies
Title: Slave Narratives: Constructing U.S. History Through Analyzing Primary Sources Add Bookmark
Description: In this lesson, from EDSITEment, students research narratives from the Federal Writers Project and describe the lives of former African slaves in the U.S., both before and after Emancipation. From varied stories, students sample the breadth of individual experiences, make generalizations about the effects of slavery and Reconstruction on African Americans, and evaluate primary source documents.
Thinkfinity Partner: EDSITEment
Grade Span: 3,4,5

Subject: Language Arts,Social Studies
Title: We Must Not Be Enemies: Lincoln's First Inaugural Address Add Bookmark
Description: The focus for this six-lesson EDSITEment unit is on the address given by Abraham Lincoln at his first inauguration as U.S. President. His address reflected contemporary events and set the tone for his presidency. This series of lessons aims to help students to understand the historical context and significance of Lincoln's inaugural address through archival documents such as campaign posters, sheet music, vintage photographs and documents. Students also learn how to apply this historical research process to the interpretation of any President's inaugural address.
Thinkfinity Partner: EDSITEment
Grade Span: 3,4,5

Subject: Language Arts
Title: November is National American Indian Heritage Month. Add Bookmark
Description: Students explore Native American heritage through the study of pourquoi tales, write their own original pourquoi tales, and use the ReadWriteThink Printing Press to publish them.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12

Subject: Arts,Language Arts,Science
Title: 'Leap, plashless'': Emily Dickinson and Poetic Imagination Add Bookmark
Description: In this lesson, from EDSITEment, students read and explore one of Emily Dickinson's nature poems, A Bird came down the Walk--through interaction with other art forms. First, they listen to clips of a hymn to help them hear Dickinson's meter. Then, they view 19th-century bird images and describe what they see, just as a poet would. They observe how a poet plays with language and imagery to create a scene by acting out verse lines. Finally, they write a brief poem of their own, using what they have learned and their own observations.
Thinkfinity Partner: EDSITEment
Grade Span: 3,4,5

Subject: Language Arts
Title: Using Snowflake Bentley as a Framing Text for Multigenre Writing Add Bookmark
Description: Using Snowflake Bentley as a model, students create a working definition of multigenre text and then use that definition to create their own multigenre piece about winter or another theme.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5

Subject: Language Arts
Title: Charting Characters for a More Complete Understanding of the Story Add Bookmark
Description: Character Perspective Charting allows students to compare multiple characters and their points of view to better understand a story.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5

Subject: Language Arts
Title: Mapping Characters Across Book Series Add Bookmark
Description: Students work on a guided characterization project, using a graphic map to illustrate the ways a character from a book series grows and evolves over the course of the story.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5

Subject: Language Arts
Title: Talking About Books to Improve Comprehension Add Bookmark
Description: This lesson is a conversation-starter! In this lesson, students learn about striking up deep-thought conversations and staying on topic in the form of a book talk.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5

Subject: Language Arts
Title: Teaching Point of View With Two Bad Ants Add Bookmark
Description: Students will be crawling all over this assignment when they use illustrations and text to learn about life from a bug's point of view.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5

Subject: Language Arts
Title: Find favorite book picks in the Children's Choices. Add Bookmark
Description: Students create lists of their favorite books and then the class creates a '' Top Picks'' class booklist. Students can use the Book Cover Creator to create a book jacket for their favorite book.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: K,1,2,3,4,5,6