English Language Arts — Grade 5

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How-to writing: Motivating students to write for a real purpose

In this activity, third grade students participate in a “how-to” writing assignment and focus on the importance of audience. The teacher introduces the genre of writing by engaging students in an activity where they scan instruction manuals... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts)

Provided by: ReadWriteThink

Historical fiction: Using literature to learn about the Civil War

In this lesson, the teacher reads aloud a section of Connie Porter's Meet Addy, a book from The American Girls Collection® that tells the story of a young girl who escapes from slavery during... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts and Social Studies)

Provided by: ReadWriteThink

Great American inventors: Using nonfiction to learn about technology inventions

Students read, gather, and present information about famous American inventors including Alexander Graham Bell, George Washington Carver, and Stephanie Kwolek in this lesson. After the teacher introduces three famous inventors, students work in groups to... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts and Social Studies)

Provided by: ReadWriteThink

A Genre Study of Letters with "The Jolly Postman"

In this ReadWriteThink lesson, The Jolly Postman is used as an authentic example to discuss letter writing as a genre. Students explore the letters to the storybook characters delivered by The Jolly Postman They then learn how... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts)

Provided by: ReadWriteThink

Fables and trickster tales around the world

This lesson plan 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... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts)

Provided by: EDSITEment

Exploring world cultures through folk tales

In this lesson, students read folk tales from Japan, Wales, and Africa and illustrate the stories for purposes of retelling. Students also research the countries and share a brief synopsis with the class. This lesson provides helpful resources for the assignment... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts)

Provided by: ReadWriteThink

Engaging students in a collaborative exploration of the “Gettysburg Address”

In this lesson, students work together on inquiry-based projects in order to understand the message of Abraham Lincoln's “Gettysburg Address”. In this multi-genre activity, students will: explore the history and meaning of... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts and Social Studies)

Provided by: ReadWriteThink

Elements of folktales

In this ARTSEDGE lesson, students explore the common elements of folktales and tall tales while learning how these tales built the spirit of American people. Students read traditional folktales and view filmed versions of those stories. They discuss the... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 5–8 English Language Arts and Theater Arts Education)

Provided by: ArtsEdge

Creating classroom community by crafting themed poetry collections

In this lesson, from ReadWriteThink, students create poetry collections with a back-to-school theme of “getting to know each other.” Students write poetry with the goal of introducing themselves, helping to create a sense of classroom community,... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts)

Provided by: ReadWriteThink

The connection between poetry and music

In this lesson, students acquire knowledge and appreciation for beat and meter in poetry by listening to poems that are read aloud. After the teacher reads the poem, students evaluate the rhythm and line breaks by clapping their hands or tapping their feet.... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts)

Provided by: ReadWriteThink

Composing cinquain poems with basic parts of speech

After learning about the parts of speech, students explore the cinquain poem, a type of poetry that uses nouns, verbs, and adjectives in a specific order. Students evaluate several sample cinquain poems for structure and similar characteristics. Using a... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts)

Provided by: ReadWriteThink

Compiling poetry collections and a working definition of poetry

This ReadWriteThink lesson introduces poetry forms and craft elements while students explore poetry about everyday topics or themes. Focusing on poetry in this way allows students to delve deeply into their own creativity. When students have the opportunity... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts)

Provided by: ReadWriteThink

Color Poems--Using the Five Senses to Guide Prewriting

In this lesson from ReadWriteThink, students are asked to think about colors, while imagining what they taste, feel, smell, sound, and look like. The students use their five senses as a prewriting tool to guide their poetry writing. This lesson is open-ended... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts)

Provided by: ReadWriteThink

Can you haiku?

Haiku poems show us the world in a water drop, providing a tiny lens through which to glimpse the miracle and mystery of life. Combining close observation with a moment of reflection, this simple yet highly sophisticated form of poetry can help sharpen... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts)

Provided by: EDSITEment

Building classroom community through the exploration of acrostic poetry

In this lesson that builds classroom community, the teacher explains the format of an acrostic poem and models the process of writing this style of poetry in a collaborative class activity. The teacher then engages students in a discussion about how an... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts)

Provided by: ReadWriteThink

Bridging literature and mathematics by visualizing mathematical concepts

During interactive read-aloud sessions that explore Actual Size and If You Hopped Like a Frog, students identify and analyze elements of author’s craft in conveying mathematical information... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts and Mathematics)

Provided by: ReadWriteThink

Born on a mountaintop? Davy Crockett, tall tales, and history

The culminating activity in this unit is the student creation of tall tales. Such tales are built by combining the fictional element of exaggeration with historical elements of nostalgia about the past and anxiety about the future. John Henry, for example,... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts and Social Studies)

Provided by: EDSITEment

Blending fiction and nonfiction to improve comprehension and writing skills

This ReadWriteThink lesson supports the use of a text set (paired fiction and nonfiction texts on a similar topic) to increase student interest in and understanding of content area material and to develop critical writing skills. The more familiar format... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts)

Provided by: ReadWriteThink

Author study: Improving reading comprehension using inference and comparison

In groups, students read books by Paul Goble and discuss their impressions of the author. Then, as a class, students present their impressions of the author based on the content of his books. After explaining that authors tell stories that interest them... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 English Language Arts)

Provided by: ReadWriteThink

All about our town: Using brochures to teach informational writing

Students look at brochures and other informational tools to determine some of the purposes for which people read and write. After students brainstorm places in their town that fit certain categories created by the teacher, they examine sample brochures.... (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 Visual Arts Education and English Language Arts)

Provided by: ReadWriteThink