Language Arts Lesson - "Digital Literacy - Can We Use Wikipedia?"

Language Arts Lesson - "Digital Literacy - Can We Use Wikipedia?"

By Mary Pat Mahoney Just Add Students

Grades 6 - 8

Getting students started on a research project, whether big or small, can be fraught with snags. Where should the research begin? What resources should students use? That’s why digital literacy is so important to teach! 

A first step into assessing online information is to look at the undoubtedly biggest and best loved resource: Wikipedia.

Whether you allow students to use Wikipedia or not, this activity will help them understand how and why it works. This is also a perfect lesson to use as a jumping off point for evaluating websites for bias and learning how to cite sources. 

This resource includes everything you need to start teaching today!

*Daily lesson plans
*Student survey activity with data collection and analysis
*Analysis of Wikipedia pages

*QR codes for easy reference
*Exit slips/ journal topics for each lesson
*Rubric for graphing analysis activity
*Answer keys

Social Studies - "Ancient Rome: A Complete Nonfiction Resource Pack"

Rome wasn't built in a day and neither was this mega pack! After two weeks of long hours and countless nights awake making lists in my head, I am proud to present my newest unit on Ancient Rome. After teaching Ancient Rome for ten years, you'd think I would have known it all but truth be told I still had lots of researching to do to make this unit complete and up to par with the Common Core Standards.


Everything you need to teach Ancient Rome is in this pack! There are 24 Informational Articles with real life photos and related Student Activities on the main topics of ancient Rome including:
Geography of Italy with Maps
Religion (Monotheism and Polytheism)
Daily Life: Family, Language, and Schools
Culture in Ancient Rome: Food, Clothing, Homes, Religion, Gender Roles
Jobs: Merchants, Farmers, Soldiers, Craftsmen, Entertainers, and Gladiators
Social Classes (Patricians, Plebeians, and slaves)
Government: The Roman Republic (Emperors, Consuls, Senators, Tribunes, Assembly, and more)
Architecture: The Pantheon, Colosseum, Bathhouses, Aqueducts, and Roman Roads
Contributions of Rome
Student Activities that correspond to each article. 
Vocabulary Guides, Answer Keys, Unit Reflection, and much, much more!

Teacher Directions and Unit Outline:
Part 1: Hook’em with “Fast Facts True or False” Anticipatory Set. Students predict at the beginning of the unit the answers and then check-n-correct their answers after learning the information. 

Part 2: Read & Visualize with Informational Articles with real life photographs. In this product, there’s 24 full-color informational articles with real life photographs to hook your students. You can also use these on the interactive white board, document camera, or as handouts while students read along with their copy of the articles. Also, included are black and white masters of the articles with the same photograph for the students to read along or use as study guides, homework, or as notes for their binders and notebooks.

Part 3: Focus on Skills: Reinforce and enhance student learning with a variety of LA skill-based activities related to the articles and main themes of the unit. This unit focuses on the following skills:
Geography and Map Skills
Summarizing
Compare/Contrast
Fact and Opinion
Republic Role Playing Activity
Writing Prompts
Predicting, visualizing and making connections
Vocabulary Strategies
Roman road diagram
Graphic organizers (can be used in interactive notebooks too)
Opinion based Questions
CRQ’s (Constructed Response Questions & Answer Keys)
Persuasive Essay
End of unit reflection

Part 4: Realistic Posters: this product, there are 12 full-color posters that correspond with True/False Anticipatory Set and major themes in this unit. The posters have real life photographs great for bulletin boards or to hang in your classroom to use while learning about Ancient Rome. 

Part 5: Assessment & Evaluation: There are several Quick Check Activities and Questions on the (student’s) black and white copies of the articles to check for understanding. They could also be used as homework or exit/entrance slips to reinforce learning as well as for assessment purposes. A end of the unit Reflection is included to evaluate learning. 

Happy Teaching!

 My Store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Heart-2-Heart-Teaching

Language Arts Unit - "Amazing Animals of Rainforest Literacy Unit & Research Project"

The Amazon Rainforest is one of the most amazing places on earth! Students are fascinated by the unique animals and the enormity of the rainforest itself. This unit includes many authentic learning opportunities for the classroom including a full-color mini-mag (magazine) highlighting three unique rainforest animals found nowhere else, and a culminating animal research project. 

This pack includes everything you need to teach, investigate, and learn all about the Amazing Animals of the Amazon Rainforest with a close up look at Poison Dart Frogs, Three Toed Sloths, and Playful Jaguars 

It includes:
Full color Mini-Magazine for whole group or guided reading
Informational articles for older students or to use in place of the mini-mag, if desired.
24 Informational Reader Task Cards to use with Mini-Magazines
Classroom Poster Set—great for bulletin boards!
A Rainforest Research mural/poster project w/Rubric
Teacher Directions 
End of the unit reflection

Because there are so many unique and interesting animals found in the Amazon Rainforest, it gives students a great chance to research and become an expert on specific animal. Students first learn about some of the other types of animals found in the rainforest and then research their assigned rainforest animal. Then they present the information to the class like an expert does during a workshop. It’s up to the teacher whether to have the students create a rainforest mural, poster, power point as their visual aid. 

The full-color mini-book highlights:
Poison Dart Frogs 
Three Toed Sloths 
Pouncing Jaguars 
Amazing Animals of the Rainforest Unit!

Language Arts Lesson - "Nonfiction Literacy Pack: Emperor of All Penguins Common Core Aligned Grades 3-5"

Emperor of All Penguins Print-n-Go: 

A Complete Non-Fiction Resource Pack

After three weeks of intensive work, I have completed my first Non-fiction Literacy Pack all about Penguins just in time for winter. It was so fun and informative to research and create this literacy unit. Now I just have to decide which topic to start on next! Check it out at my store below:


A Nonfiction Literacy Pack: Let’s Take a Closer Look at Penguins
This pack includes everything you need to teach, investigate, and learn all about penguins with a close up look at Emperor Penguins. 
It includes:
• Anticipatory Set with True/False Questions
• Two Mini-books for guided reading: 
Waddle This Way! AND The Emperor of all Penguins
• Two Informational articles about penguins for older students or to use in place of the mini-books, if desired.
• Two CRQ’s related to the mini-books & articles
• Two Cloze Passages related to the mini-books & articles 
• The parts of a penguin diagram
• A Vocabulary Journal
• Vocabulary Construction Activity that involves breaking down the vocabulary words into prefixes, root word, and suffixes to aid in determining meanings.
• Word Wall Vocabulary Words
• Classroom Poster Set—great for bulletin boards!
• A Penguin Research Mural Project w/Rubric

See this unit it here!

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