In this cross-curricular poetry and biology unit, Li-Young Lee’s poem “Mnemonic” is used to explore how memory works. Students begin by brainstorming a list of their own memories and circling interesting words and phrases that they share with the class and then incorporating these words and phrases into a piece of writing. Students next discuss the brain and how memory is stored, leading students to dissect Li-Young Lee’s poem “Mnemonic.” As they apply this scientific information to the poem, students better understand the kinds of memories the speaker has in the poem and where those memories might be located in the brain. Groups of students then plan and complete projects in which they create a product that relates to memory, in one of three categories: informational, creative, or personal.

While this lesson makes use of websites about Anne Frank and the Holocaust, teachers can easily adapt the activities to a variety of topics. Guided by the questions on the Observation and Inquiry Sheet provided, students work together to explore several online texts on the chosen topic. Then they examine one website in depth and consider how the unique features of the site are used to convey information about the topic. In a subsequent Silent Conversation, students initiate their own queries and discussions about the substantive content of the online texts. Students meet as a class to share their impressions and opinions of the various sites.

As a way to support teachers with English Language Arts (ELA) instruction during the pandemic, the NCDPI ELA team created choice boards featuring standards-aligned ELA activities.The intended purpose of these choice boards is to provide a way for students to continue standards-based learning while schools are closed. Each activity can be adapted and modified to be completed with or without the use of digital tools. Many activities can also be repeated with different texts. These standards-based activities are meant to be a low-stress approach to reinforcing and enriching the skills learned during the 2019-2020 school year. The choice boards are to be used flexibly by teachers, parents, and students in order to meet the unique needs of each learner.Exploration activities are provided for a more self-directed or guided approach to independent learning for students. These activities and sites should be used as a way to explore concepts, topics, skills, and social and emotional competencies that interest the learner. 

In this lesson, students read “They Called Her Moses,” create a “wanted poster”, compose a journal entry imagining they are William Still, and work in groups to create a newspaper depicting the incident of the runaway slaves and events from the time period.

In this lesson, students create text sets and use them to practice three strategies for reading for information. Students select a topic they want to explore and work in small groups to compile a set of texts related to their topic.

This lesson provides hands-on differentiated instruction by guiding students to search for the literal definitions of figurative language using the Internet. It also guides students in understanding figurative meanings through the use of context clues and making inferences.

Science fiction has the potential to spark lively discussions while inviting students to extrapolate from their own working knowledge of scientific principles. They first define the science fiction genre and then read and discuss science fiction texts. Next, they conduct research to find science facts that support or dispute the science included in the plot of the science fiction book they read. Students then revisit their definition of the genre and revise based on their reading. Finally, students complete a project that examines the science fiction genre in relation to real-world science concepts and topics.

Students will use the Web 2.0 tool at glogster.com to create a book report, or the tool may be used to create a summary poster for a short story.

A majority of students in grades 4 to 6 are beyond decoding instruction and need more assistance with comprehension to help them become successful, independent readers. Strategic reading allows students to monitor their own thinking and make connections between texts and their own experiences. Based on the Guided Comprehension Model developed by Maureen McLaughlin and Mary Beth Allen, this lesson introduces students to the comprehension strategy of making connections. Students learn the three types of connections (text-to-text, text-to-self, and text-to-world) using a double-entry journal. They also learn about the life of Cesar Chavez and his work to promote civil rights.

Students use a web-based activity to help them think critically about how to determine the quality of web resources. The students will understand the importance of authenticating online resources, recognize how the source of information may affect the quality of information found on a website, and use a template to authenticate and assess the quality of web sources.

This lesson will use the "infinite variety" of resources on the Internet to let students find their own image of Othello. The lesson will take them on a WebQuest, first to textual references, and then to on-line searches for images of Othello in film, play productions, and art. Then, students will write an essay about the casting of Othello to conclude the lesson.

In this lesson, students will use technology to gather information about famous authors to contribute to a PowerPoint presentation.

Students conduct Web searches on open-ended questions and draw on their experiences to develop guides to searching effectively and finding reliable information online.

In Jackie Joyner-Kersee's autobiography, she writes of the challenges she faced early on while becoming a track and field athlete. In this CCSS lesson students will explore Jackie Joyner-Kersee's life through text dependent questions, academic vocabulary, and writing assignments.

Four to five person teams will research and present an in-depth TV news special about the Holocaust for the Passover Sedar holiday. Students will conduct research and assume a specific task of their news team to present a main story in a newscast/Podcast.

Students will have an opportunity to develop such "live interviews" with ancient athletes; working in small groups, they will produce a script based on the results of their research and they will perform the interview for other students in the class.

Having studied the archetypes of heros, students will be asked to complete a collaborative essay of a hero's journey utilizing narrative writing skills, the stages of the hero's journey, and elements, such as supernatural beings or creatures, found in mythology.  Students will bring the events of their hero’s journey to life by using dialogue, descrition, transition phrases, and sensory language.   Using a hyper-doc students will work in groups to create their collaborative story.If you want an option for students to have their own individual work have them independently complete Phase 4 of the hyper-doc.

In this lesson, students research aspects of the Victorian Era as an introduction to a unit on "Jane Eyre"