Mystery PenPal is a fun and easy way for students to build a community and get to know one another. Weather preparing for a PenPal exchange or developing classroom community, this fun and interactive class activity is appropriate for students of all grades!

In this class activity, students will learn:

1. The importance of asking questions

2. How asking questions can help get to know someone

3. How to complete a PenPal Schools student profile

Students will achieve the following outcomes:

- Students will ask questions and provide quality answers

- Students will enjoy learning about their classmates

- Students will understand how to participate in digital communities

Standards Alignment:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.SL.1

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.SL.5

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.L.1

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.L.2

This class provides a historical survey of the ways that people have interacted with their closest animal relatives, for example: hunting, domestication of livestock, exploitation of animal labor, scientific study of animals, display of exotic and performing animals, and pet keeping. Themes include changing ideas about animal agency and intelligence, our moral obligations to animals, and the limits imposed on the use of animals.

In this lesson, students analyze model programs and a model Directors' Note to understand the format of these texts. They read the model Directors' Note for gist and use it to begin planning their monologue group's Directors' Note as part of the module performance task (RI.5.4, W.5.2, W.5.4, W.5.8, SL.5.1, L.5.4).
Consider that some students may be able to rely on background knowledge about plays and theater when discussing the programs and Directors' Notes. Spend extra time contextualizing these concepts if necessary. Display photographs or brief videos of plays and directors working with actors. Also consider inviting students to share experiences with plays and theater in their home languages and cultures.
The Opening of this lesson is designed for students to use internet sources as texts. If the technology necessary for students to complete the reading is unavailable, provide them with a printed copy of the texts.
In the Closing, students generate criteria for reading fluency on the Fluent Readers Do These Things anchor chart in preparation for Part III of the End of Unit 3 assessment and performing their monologues as part of the module performance task (RF.5.4).
This lesson focuses on the following habits of character: working to contribute to a better world and working to become effective learners. The characteristics that students are reminded of in this lesson are: apply my learning when discussing the module performance task and perseverance before reading the model Directors' Note.
Students practice their fluency in this lesson by following along and reading silently as the teacher reads the model Directors' Note in Work Time A and by developing criteria for fluent reading in the Closing.
The research reading that students complete for homework will help build both their vocabulary and knowledge pertaining to human rights. By participating in this volume of reading over a span of time, students will develop a wide base of knowledge about the world and the words that help describe and make sense of it.

In this lesson, students use their research from Lessons 8-9 to write a draft of their Directors' Note with their monologue group (W.5.2, W.5.4, W.5.5, W.5.8).
In Work Time B, students are guided through a research reading share. Consider using the Independent Reading: Sample Plan if you do not have your own independent reading review routines. This review is designed to hold students accountable for their research reading completed for homework. This volume of reading promotes students' growing ability to read a variety of literary and informational texts independently and proficiently (RI.5.10, RL.5.10, SL.5.1).
This lesson focuses on the following habits of character: working to become effective learners and working to become ethical people. The characteristics students are reminded of in this lesson are: collaboration, as they work with their groups to write their Directors' Note, and taking initiative, prior to sharing their independent reading.
In the Closing, students practice reading their monologues in preparation for Part III of the End of Unit 3 Assessment and the performance task (RF.5.4).
The research reading that students complete for homework will help build both their vocabulary and knowledge pertaining to human rights. By participating in this volume of reading over a span of time, students will develop a wide base of knowledge about the world and the words that help describe and make sense of it.

In this lesson, students continue to research and gather evidence for their monologue group's Directors' Note. They research issues related to human rights, select a right that their issue fits under, and learn about how the issue impacts people today (W.5.2, W.5.8). Specific examples of current issues have not been provided in this lesson, as situations can change very quickly. To ensure the content students are researching is up-to-date, websites that describe current threats to human rights have been suggested and will need to be reviewed in advance to identify the issues and the specific web pages that align with the threats to human rights students have highlighted in their monologues (see Technology and Multimedia).
This lesson is designed for students to use internet sources as texts. If the technology necessary for students to complete the reading is unavailable, consider providing them with a printed copy of the texts.
At the end of the lesson, students practice reading their monologues in preparation for Part III of the End of Unit 3 Assessment and the performance task (RF.5.4).
This lesson focuses on the following habits of character: working to become ethical people and working to become effective learners. The characteristics that students are reminded of in this lesson are: respect when sharing ideas during a whole class discussion and perseverance before reading internet research.
The research reading that students complete for homework will help build both their vocabulary and knowledge pertaining to human rights. By participating in this volume of reading over a span of time, students will develop a wide base of knowledge about the world and the words that help describe and make sense of it.

Rather than destroy local economies for their own selfish gain, the Persians worked to increase trade throughout their kingdom. They standardized weights, developed official coinage, and implemented universal laws.

The kindergarten students will develop their writing skills, over time, using pictures (representing themselves, others, and scenery) and letters (strings of letters, phonetically spelled words and/or words) that match in meaning.  Students will be expected to verbally share their writing with others.  They may "read" from their paper or "read" from memory.  This Author's Celebration is the first of many to come throughout the school year.  The focus for this Author's Celebration is that the story is about one topic.

In an eight week unit of study, students will explore concepts of migration through the lens of cultural identity and perspective. What are elements of culture that shape us, shape how we see others, and shape how we are seen in return? Students will investigate shifts in cultural norms and stereotypes specific to forced migration and captivity as depicted in The Tempest by William Shakespeare and supplemented through a variety of texts, discussions, and reflections.

An adaptable writing frame for teacher to comments; self evaluation and an indicator of whether the work was independent, shared or teacher assisted etc.

The Phoenicians lived along the Mediterranean coast in what is now Lebanon. They inhabited a number of different city-states, the most famous of which were Tyre, Byblos, and Sidon. These Phoenician places were often in conflict with each other for domination of the region. Because of this lack of cooperation, the Phoenicians were conquered and forced to pay tribute to the virtually every empire in the region, including the Egyptians, Hittites, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, and Greeks.

SP.255 is a lecture, discussion, and project based seminar about the physics of rock climbing. Participants are first exposed to the unsolved problems in the climbing community that could be answered by research and then asked to solve a small part of one of these problems. The seminar provides an introduction to engineering problems, an opportunity to practice communication skills, and a brief stab at doing some research. This seminar explicitly does not include climbing instruction nor is climbing/mountaineering experience a prerequisite.

After analyzing photojournalist James Karales's iconic photograph of the march, reading background material on it, and considering what the marchers might have thought and felt, students write and illustrate a postcard describing this civil rights event from a marcher's viewpoint.

features an area in the southwest corner of Minnesota that reflects a rich history of American Indian quarrying, prosperity brought by the railroad and mining enterprises, and a distinctive natural landscape. This National Register of Historic Places Travel itinerary highlights 30 historic places, including buildings constructed with beautiful local red stone and land still sacred to American Indians.

For these lessons, students will be taken through a variety of activities to learn about plagiarism. They will learn what plagiarism is, the consequence for it, how to paraphrase writing, when to use direct quotes, and how to cite. This is a wonderful webquest for students to go through.

Students should begin at a young age to plan out their stories before they write them. There are resources that make the brainstorming task engaging for students so they get in the habit of mind mapping out their story or essay.

These lessons address science, math, and ELA standards. We have a Tower Garden and these lessons focus on parts of plants, plant needs for growth, and comparing differences between plants growing in soil and an Aeroponic gardening system. Students will monitor and graph growth.

Award-winning writer Jacqueline Woodson describes her books as “real, hard, yet hopeful.” This unit strives to be all three. Certainly, we need to give students opportunities to analyze and understand the world and its injustices; however, we also have an imperative to help foster hope while giving students the agency and skills to use their voices to speak up and change the world—even if that world is the one right outside their front door.

This unit hopes to amplify voices of individuals that you don’t often hear from—those from underreported stories, and from students’ own communities. Through these individual stories, universal truths are also illuminated.

In this unit, students explore how plastic pollution is choking the world’s oceans. Students learn about the history of plastic, how plastic ends up in the ocean, how plastic in the ocean impacts the ecosystem, and why it’s so hard to remove plastic from the ocean once it’s there. In the second half of the unit, students explore a variety of solutions for reducing plastic waste and reducing the amount of plastic that ends up in the ocean. Students will learn about large policy-based changes that can be made and also explore smaller voluntary actions they can take that will make a difference. Finally, students end the unit doing a research project aimed at educating others about the dangers of plastic and its impact on the environment.

In reading, this unit serves as the foundational informational unit of the year. Students will be challenged to explain the relationship between two or more scientific ideas, determine the meaning of domain-specific words, and understand the reasons and evidence the author uses to support a particular point. Since this is the first informational unit, routines and procedures for active annotation, discussion, and writing about reading should be introduced so that students are able to show understanding of the text and standards in multiple modes.

Welcome to Newsably, a fictional social media site focused on news and information. Your mission? Maintain the site, grow traffic, and watch out! You'll also need to spot fake posts that try to sneak in through hidden ads, viral deception, and false reporting.

For the best play experience, click "Play Fullscreen" in the upper right area of the screen.