ALEX Lesson Plan Resources

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ALEX Lesson Plans  
Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Social Studies (3), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Mapping the Travels of Paul Bunyan Through Alabama, Too!
Description: During this lesson, students will recount a Paul Bunyan tall tale, an entertaining way to identify bodies of water and landforms in the United States. Although Paul Bunyan's Tales did not focus on Alabama, students will create their own narratives after viewing photographs of major mountain ranges, rivers, and lakes throughout Alabama (ACOS 3.2). This lesson will utilize older maps of the United States and Alabama, which are used to remind us that this folk tale was handed down orally until the early 1900s when a newspaper printed several accounts of the tall tale. This lesson was created in partnership with the Alabama Department of Archives and History.

Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: What in the World is Wrong with Sammy? Making Predictions and Create a Story with a new character.
Description: This lesson provides students with the technology-based project researching Guinea Pigs. The trade book, Sammy, the Classroom Guinea Pig, will be used to make predictions.The students will use the facts from their research to create a story about Guinea Pigs and use themselves as a character in the story.

Subject: English Language Arts (3 - 4), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: The Komodo Dragon by Thane Maynard
Description: The purpose of this lesson is to familiarize students with research topics through individual assignments that utilize a variety of resources.

Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Literary Elements in Jan Brett's The Mitten
Description: Students will analyze such literary elements as plot, cause-effect relationships, sequence, and prediction in Jan Brett's The Mitten. Students will enjoy predicting upcoming story events and retelling the story from a dialogue that shows a text-to-self relationship.

Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Kids Search In The Classroom
Description: This is a technology-based lesson that will focus on using the Kids Search database in the Alabama Virtual Library. Students will work in teams to access information about animals. This lesson will allow students to research a particular animal and write a report on the information they collected.

Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Dividing Words Into Syllables to Develop Reading Fluency
Description: Students will develop reading fluency using vocabulary from the book Why Mosquitos Buzz in People's Ears by Leo and Diane Dillon. Students will participate in reading the story using the reader's theatre strategy. After being introduced to multiple-syllable words students, will practice building fluency by reading those words in the context of the story.

Subject: English Language Arts (3)
Title: Is Laura "Sitting" in the "Setting" of "Little House?"
Description: Using Little House In The Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder, this lesson focuses on the concept of time and place, phonics, and comprehension strategies. It is an interactive lesson with classroom dialogue and small group interaction.

Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Mathematics (3)
Title: A Math and Language Arts lesson: Introduction to Division
Description: The lesson will help students develop an initial understanding of division and clarify how the four operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division relate to and are separate from each other. The lesson begins with a brainstorming discussion which builds background and fosters comprehension. A big book, The Doorbell Rang, by Pat Hutchins, is used along with manipulatives to provide instruction at concrete and pictorial levels. Students will demonstrate what they have learned by writing a short story incorporating simple division.

Subject: English Language Arts (3 - 4), or Social Studies (4 - 5), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Famous African-Americans
Description: During this unit students will study the lives of famous African-Americans who have had an impact upon history or present day society. This interdisciplinary hands-on unit will incorporate the subjects of social studies, reading, language arts, and technology. After studying African-Americans and viewing a presentation, students will select (or be assigned) a person to research, write a biographical sketch about, and then create a newsletter depicting facts from that person's life. The entire unit will cover a two- to three-week period.

Subject: English Language Arts (3 - 4), or Social Studies (4), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Helen Who?
Description: In this lesson, students will be introduced to the contributions of Helen Keller. The students will learn about Helen Keller through research on the Internet, a book, and a role-playing exercise.

Subject: Character Education (K - 12), or English Language Arts (3)
Title: Rumpelstiltskin by the Grimm Brothers: A Reading and Writing Lesson
Description: This lesson provides literature-based reading and writing activities for special education and early elementary students. Using a simple story, special education/early elementary students develop reading and writing skills and learn about honesty, thoughtfulness, greed, promise-keeping and fairness. A persuasive letter will demonstrate what they have learned.

Subject: English Language Arts (3)
Title: What a Character!
Description: This lesson opens up the world of writing by introducing students to the point of view in a story. Students will have the opportunity to read a new version of a classic story and see how it changes when it is written from another character's point of view. Students will have the opportunity to create their own story from another character's point of view.

Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Writing Native American Style
Description: In this lesson students will reinforce their knowledge about Native Americans and their culture. They will also be introduced to Native American writing. The students will read The Legend of The Indian Paintbrush by Tomie de Paolo to aid their learning. Finally, students will create their own writing using Native American pictographs.

Subject: Character Education (K - 12), or English Language Arts (1 - 3), or Mathematics (K - 2), or Technology Education (K - 5)
Title: It's Your Birthday, Dr. Seuss!
Description: This lesson plan is intended to be used during the month of March when the class is preparing to celebrate Dr. Seuss Day. After listening to and reading different stories by Dr. Seuss, the students have opportunities to compare and contrast story elements through critical thinking and Venn diagrams.

Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Let's Write A Cinquain
Description: During this lesson, third grade students will navigate the Internet to learn about cinquains. They will use their new knowledge to create their own cinquains while learning important word processing skills.

Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Science (3), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: What are Fossils?
Description: In this lesson students will view fossils and learn about the way they are found and how they show evidence of prehistoric life. Students will then search for "fossils" and conduct an interview about how fossils are found. Students will utilize a graphic organizer to web their ideas on fossils.

Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Social Studies (3 - 5), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Settling the West: Westward Expansion
Description: During this lesson, students will have the opportunity to experience the westward expansion through literature and the Internet. By creating a brochure and a slideshow presentation, students will become aware of the difficulties people faced through their travels.

Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Information Literacy (K - 12), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Dewey Decimal Classification System Mural
Description: Students will select a book from an assigned section in the non-fiction area of the library. After reading the books, students will write a paragraph that summarizes the content area of the book. Students will illustrate the book that they read. Students will construct a mural by gluing their illustrations under the corresponding Dewey Decimal Classification. Students will make an oral presentation to the class in which they talk about the book they read.

Subject: English Language Arts (3)
Title: Action Words are Verbs
Description: This activity challenges students to identify action words as verbs. The students will go on a verb scavenger hunt and play charades using action words. They will also utilize the Internet to reinforce what they have learned by playing action word games.

Subject: English Language Arts (3)
Title: Fly Away Home by Eve Bunting
Description: This lesson is part of a week-long unit. It focuses on the pre-reading phase of guided reading. It aims to activate prior knowledge, preview vocabulary, and set a purpose for reading. This book deals with a very sensitive issue that most children know little or nothing about, homeless people. In a non-judgmental way the author shows how a father and son deal with the situation. The story leaves the reader with hope that someday father and son and all other homeless people will again have a home.

Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Science (2), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Jack's Beans
Description: During this lesson, the classic story of Jack and the Bean Stalk will spark an interest in plants with students. Students will explore the Internet, take a nature walk, and make observations to learn more about plants. A brochure will demonstrate their knowledge of plants.

Subject: Character Education (K - 12), or English Language Arts (3)
Title: Dr. Seuss on the Loose: And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street
Description: In Dr. Seuss’ first published children’s book, And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, Marco, inspired by the passing of a horse and wagon, imagines a series of increasingly incredible sights on his way home from school. This story provides a springboard for discussing the concepts of honesty, imagination, and creativity and for exploring the difference between dishonesty and creativity. Students will learn to recognize when it is appropriate to weave an elaborate tale and when it is not.

Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Mathematics (3 - 4), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Time Flies
Description: This lesson plan is one of the first in a unit on telling time which addresses the following content areas: language arts, math, science, social studies, and technology. Students will read several resource books to gather information. They will then sequence information in a timeline. The final project will be a slideshow presentation.

Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Just Plain Living
Description: Students work through a teacher-prepared Webquest in order to learn about the art, food, shelter, clothing, etc. of the Plains Indians. Internet resources are used to collect information in order to make group presentations to the class. Students have the opportunity to decide among several projects to complete in order to demonstrate what they have learned.

Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: "Moments in Time" Lines
Description: This lesson will give students the opportunity to share important events in their lives while learning to make a timeline.

Subject: Character Education (K - 12), or English Language Arts (3), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Learning about Cinquains
Description: After reading/hearing Junie B. First Grader Cheater Pants by Barbara Park and discussing the concept of cheating, following directions, and poetry, students write cinquains and publish a class booklet.

Subject: Character Education (K - 12), or English Language Arts (3), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: How Do Citizens Make Government Work?
Description: This five-session unit will provide hands-on opportunities for students to explore local, state and national governments. In the process, students will use technology and print media to learn about the leaders of each level of government and explore citizenship as a way to make a difference in their communities and nation.

Subject: English Language Arts (3)
Title: Wordly Wise
Description: Students will learn how to use better word choices by completing a cloze activity, listening to A House for Hermit Crab by Eric Carle, and completing a word web.

Subject: Character Education (K - 12), or English Language Arts (3), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Character Education - Integrity
Description: The purpose of this lesson is to identify some of the skills and attitudes that are essential for solving problems effectively. This lesson will be implemented as part of a character education unit on integrity. The meaning of integrity is investigated and discussed through the use of research skills, open-ended discussions, digital photography, and cooperative learning experiences.

Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Olympics 2004 Treasure Hunt
Description: This lesson is centered around an Olympics 2004 Treasure Hunt designed to give students an opportunity to learn about the history of the Olympic games and to generate interest in the modern Olympic games. Students are able to see the differences in the ancient games and today's modern games after viewing the Internet sites about the ancient Olympics and comparing those games to the modern Olympic events. Successful completion of the project requires that students navigate the Internet, work together, manage time wisely, and follow specific directions.

Subject: English Language Arts (3), or Technology Education (3 - 5)
Title: Parts of a Friendly Letter
Description: The teacher will use charts, worksheets, and websites to orient students about the five parts of a friendly letter.

Subject: English Language Arts (3 - 4)
Title: "Hot Dog" Book Reports
Description: Students will use a Makes Sense Strategies Think-sheet to learn to identify the characters, setting, main idea and details of a book read.

Thinkfinity Lesson Plans  
Subject: Language Arts
Title: Alaska Native Stories: Using Narrative to Introduce Expository Text      Add Bookmark
Description: Tradition and technology come together in this lesson in which students learn about Alaskan animals through Native American tales and their own online research.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5


Subject: Language Arts,Religion,Social Studies
Title: Morality ''Tails'' East and West: European Fables and Buddhist Jataka Tales      Add Bookmark
Description: In this lesson, from EDSITEment, students learn about Buddhist Jataka tales and then compare and contrast them with European fables. They learn to search for the lesson that is embedded within both fables and the Jataka tales. This lesson can also be used as a springboard for introducing world cultures and literatures through the use of morality tales.
Thinkfinity Partner: EDSITEment
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: Demonstrating Comprehension Through Journal Writing      Add Bookmark
Description: Students demonstrate comprehension by responding to open-ended questions based on the Newbery Honor book Mr. Popper's Penguins, and then draw from the text and their personal experiences to create journals.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5


Subject: Language Arts
Title: Escaping Slavery: Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt       Add Bookmark
Description: Students read Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt by Deborah Hopkinson, create a problems/solutions/events chart, and create a map with a key, compass, and landmarks surrounding their home and school.
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


Subject: Language Arts
Title: Guided Comprehension: Previewing Using an Anticipation Guide      Add Bookmark
Description: Based on the Guided Comprehension Model developed by Maureen McLaughlin and Mary Beth Allen, this lesson introduces students to the comprehension strategy of previewing.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5,6


Subject: Language Arts
Title: Book Report Alternative: The Elements of Fiction      Add Bookmark
Description: Students identify the elements of fiction in a book they have read and share summaries of them by writing and illustrating their own mini-book.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5


Subject: Language Arts
Title: Author Lois Duncan was born on this date in 1934.      Add Bookmark
Description: Mysteries are shared with students for them to solve and brainstorm the attributes of a good mystery. Small groups then compose short mysteries using the Mystery Cube.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12


Subject: Language Arts
Title: A Genre Study of Letters With The Jolly Postman       Add Bookmark
Description: 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.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5


Subject: Language Arts
Title: Behind the Scenes With Cinderella      Add Bookmark
Description: Cinderella without castles, coaches, or ball gowns? Students use versions of Cinderella to explore how the setting of a story time, place, and culture affects the characters and plot.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5


Subject: Language Arts
Title: Myth and Truth: Independence Day      Add Bookmark
Description: By exploring myths and truths surrounding Independence Day, students think critically about commonly believed stories regarding the beginning of the Revolutionary War and the Independence Day holiday.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5


Subject: Language Arts
Title: Writing ABC Books to Enhance Reading Comprehension      Add Bookmark
Description: Using the alphabet as an organizing structure, students analyze literary elements in a book they have read and organize their observations in an alphabet book.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5


Subject: Language Arts - Literature - Language Arts - Story Telling - Social Studies - Geography
Title: Fairy Tales, Then and Now      Add Bookmark
Description: In this Xpeditions lesson, students read an old fairy tale or story and list the geographical features and characters described in the story. They then think about how the story might be updated to reflect their own modern setting and culture and conclude by performing an updated version of the story.
Thinkfinity Partner: National Geographic Education
Grade Span: 3,4,5


Subject: Language Arts,Social Studies
Title: Fables and Trickster Tales Around the World      Add Bookmark
Description: This unit of four lessons, from EDSITEment, introduces students to folktales, such as fables and trickster tales, from around the world. Students become familiar with different folklore traditions and genres, as well as the process of the oral transmission of culture and history.
Thinkfinity Partner: EDSITEment
Grade Span: 3,4,5


Subject: Language Arts
Title: Pourquoi Stories: Creating Tales to Tell Why      Add Bookmark
Description: Where did the stars come from? What makes lightning and thunder? Pourquoi tales are narratives developed by various cultures around the world to explain natural phenomena. Students study three tales and learn about their cultures of origin, then work cooperatively to write and present an original pourquoi tale.
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: Thundering Tall Tales: Using Read-Aloud as a Springboard to Writing      Add Bookmark
Description: Imagination and application are key to this tall tale lesson in which students take what they know about tall tales to spin a yarn of their own.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5


Subject: Language Arts
Title: Guided Comprehension: Evaluating Using the Meeting of the Minds Technique      Add Bookmark
Description: Based on the Guided Comprehension Model developed by Maureen McLaughlin and Mary Beth Allen, this lesson introduces students to the strategy of evaluating, using the Meeting of the Minds technique.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5


Subject: Language Arts
Title: Acquiring New Vocabulary Through Book Discussion Groups      Add Bookmark
Description: This lesson employs direct instruction and small-group discussion to help students learn new vocabulary skills while reading Patricia Polacco's Pink and Say.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5


Subject: Language Arts
Title: Guided Comprehension: Knowing How Words Work Using Semantic Feature Analysis      Add Bookmark
Description: Based on the Guided Comprehension Model developed by Maureen McLaughlin and Mary Beth Allen, this lesson introduces students to the comprehension strategy of knowing how words work.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5,6


Subject: Language Arts
Title: Readers Theatre      Add Bookmark
Description: Students develop scripts, perform, and use their voices to depict characters from texts, giving them the opportunity to develop fluency and further enhance comprehension of what they are reading.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5


Subject: Arts,Language Arts,Social Studies
Title: It Came from Greek Mythology      Add Bookmark
Description: In this unit of six lessons, from EDSITEment, students study basic plots of three Greek myths and discuss three common themes in Greek myths. They also explore contemporary uses of terms from Greek mythology and analyze artistic and literary works based on or inspired by Greek myths.
Thinkfinity Partner: EDSITEment
Grade Span: 3,4,5


Subject: Language Arts
Title: Book Report Alternative: Examining Story Elements Using Story Map Comic Strips      Add Bookmark
Description: Comic frames are traditionally used to illustrate a story in a short, concise format. In this lesson, students use a six-paneled comic strip frame to create a story map, summarizing a book or story that they've read. Each panel retells a particular detail or explains a literary element (such as setting or character) from the story.
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 - Writing (composition) - Social Studies - Anthropology - Social Studies - Geography
Title: A Nepalese Village and Your Town: What's the Difference?      Add Bookmark
Description: This lesson, from Xpeditions, introduces students to some of the cultural customs of rural Nepal and asks them to consider the differences between Nepalese culture and their own. They write letters as if they were Nepalese young people, describing their culture and lifestyle. They then write additional letters that they might send to Nepalese pen pals, describing the similarities and differences between North American and rural Nepalese cultures.
Thinkfinity Partner: National Geographic Education
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: Exploring World Cultures Through Folk Tales      Add Bookmark
Description: Journey around the world with students as they read a Japanese, African, or Welsh folk tale, create a visual depiction of the tale, research the tale's culture, and present findings.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5


Subject: Language Arts
Title: Fairy Tale Autobiographies      Add Bookmark
Description: Students read and analyze fairy tales from several cultures, identifying common elements. Choosing common situations, students write original fairy tales, using picture books as models and a peer review process.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 5,6,7,8,9


Subject: Language Arts
Title: Caldecott-winning illustrator Lane Smith was born in 1959.      Add Bookmark
Description: Students discuss some of the ways in which illustrations can enhance a story and then become illustrators, using a variety of media.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
Grade Span: 3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12


Subject: Language Arts
Title: Once Upon a Time Rethought: Writing Fractured Fairy Tales      Add Bookmark
Description: 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.
Thinkfinity Partner: ReadWriteThink
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