This sorting activity addresses critical-thinking skills, observation and categorization processes, and reading comprehension and writing skills, while at the same time providing teachers with a vast array of diagnostics through observation of student interaction and conversation. Students work as a class to sort books, first according to their covers and then according to their topics. They explore whether books could be included in multiple categories and whether some groups could be broken down further. Next, students work with a partner to sort twelve books. They orally explain their sorting criteria, and then record in writing what categories they used and why. Students may also compare and contrast two books using an online Venn diagram.

This mini unit walks students through the question/discovery process of nonfiction literature.  The first lesson encourages students to wonder while reading.  Then students research to find the answers to their questions.  They explore ways to show/write their new learning.  As a class the kids work to publish 1 or 2 classroom books on the research topic.  This is a great way to introduce the nonfiction unit and then let each student write thier own question book based on the process they used with the class book.

In order to fully comprehend reading materials, students need to understand the cause-and-effect relationships that appear in a variety of fiction and nonfiction texts. In this lesson, students learn cause-and-effect relationships through the sharing of a variety of Laura Joffe Numeroff picture books in a Reader's Workshop format. Using online tools or a printed template, students create an original comic strip via the writing prompt, "If you take a (third) grader to."  Students use various kinds of art to illustrate their strip and publish and present their completed piece to peers in a read-aloud format.

Junie B., as she insists on being called, is an opinionated, lively, character in Barbara Park's series of books, and she is sure to delight primary students. In this unit, the teacher reads aloud selections from Junie B., First Grader (at last!). Students discuss the text with a partner and then individually compose sentences about key events from the story. Each student also creates and adds items to a mystery box, or a box that holds items or pictures referenced in the story. After students have listened to the entire story, they use their mystery boxes to retell the story to a classmate. As a culminating activity, students use the mystery boxes and the sentences they composed to make a related stapleless book about the story.

This is a three minute video of Monique LaCour's elementary classroom in Oakland, CA.  The objective of the lesson is to support academic conversations utilizing sentence frames.  It will look at why sentence frames are an effective strategy for English Language Learners.  It illustrates how sentence frames can empower students and make learning come to life.

These primary level mindfulness lessons are based upon self awareness, self management, social awareness, relationship skills and responsible decision making.  The intent of these lessons is to provide a brief, beginning of the day warm-up activity/skill. There are a total of 10 minilessons sessions the first five lessons are based on the brain. Students will study and learn about the brain parts and how each part has a special job. The second five lessons in this unit are based on mindful awareness. These lessons will start the process of teaching children how to attend to the here and now of people, environment, concerns and challenges in a nonjudgemental way. Students will be reflecting on their thoughts and actions.