This is an extensive 12-page lesson plan packet using Star Wars to teach biomes. I have used seven Star Wars films to teach students about biomes with great success. The lesson plan includes a twelve-question assessment that (1) asks students watch scenes from the Star Wars films to identify real-world biomes including temperate deciduous forest, desert, Mediterranean chaparral, tropical rain forest, alpine, tundra, and temperate coniferous forest; and (2) then conduct research on these real backdrops to gain a deeper understanding of the delicacy of our world’s biomes. George Lucas’ Star Wars movies are a delightful mix of heroic stories, wonderful characters and monsters, and dramatic action sequences. Millions of people – including many young adults – love these films. Look closely and you will see vibrant, natural worlds lying beneath the special effects. After all, Lucas chose many real backdrops for the Star Wars sagas – Whippendell Woods, United Kingdom, and Tozeur, Tunisia, for examples. Now, you can use them to teach biomes to your science or geography students. I would suggest your students have at least a basic understanding of the biomes presented in this assignment beforehand. This assignment might work best after you have introduced biomes in your classroom and asked students to identify specific features of each. Included please find the lesson plan, teacher’s scene guide, student identification assignment and answer key, guidelines for the research paper, and a rubric to evaluate the research paper.

Students will be able to define and identify different types of intentional and unintentional plagiarism. They will also brainstorm reasons why people plagiarize works and the consequences that can apply if caught. They will also be able to determine why plagiarism is damaging to their academic careers (beyond failing grades). The first few minutes (2-3 minutes approximately) of class will allow students to think about the topics of discussion. Next, introduce concepts related to plagiarism as outlined in the PowerPoint presentation. These activities include (1) students identifying examples of patchwriting, (2) a practice assignment asking them to use proper paraphrasing techniques, and (3) a 3-2-1 activity asking them to recap important themes in the lesson. This resource is not what I would call "comprehensive." I use it with 12th grade students who have a basic understanding of plagiarism.

The following 25 prompts worked wonderfully in my language arts classes. These prompts will provide narrative and descriptive writing opportunities. For instance, there is a prompt in this packet that requires students to think about a typical Saturday and recount sequential events descriptively. Another prompt will require students to describe a perfect lunch, which will require them to think critically and logically in a creative passage. There are several possibilities here, but the real bonus is the full-color image that accompanies each question to inspire deeper thinking and colourful language choices. I have alternated prompts in this packet to allow for daily or weekly instruction possibilities. Thus, each narrative prompt is followed by a descriptive writing prompt. Why? In my classroom, I passed this assignment out as a classroom packet and one that we would use throughout the school year so students could track progress and see how they had developed as writers from the first day to the last. Please let me know how you use these prompts in your classroom.

The Women Who Shaped America Research Project allows upper elementary and middle grade students (grades 5-8 with some modifications) an opportunity to research one of 40 important, ground-breaking, and/or pioneering women and present their findings in a biographical essay. These individuals include activists, scientists, athletes, trailblazers, politicians, authors, suffragists, and many more! That's right: there are 40 individuals to choose from! This research project is ideal for Women's History Month -- or any time of the year. There is also an optional digital storytelling component utilizing the free iPad app, Shadow Puppet EDU. This part of the project again is optional. Students can still complete the biographical essay.

The Honoring Important African-Americans Research Project allows upper elementary and middle grade students (grades 5-8 with some modifications) an opportunity to research one of 40 major African-Americans from many different walks of life and present their findings in a biographical essay. These individuals include activists, scientists, musicians, trailblazers, politicians, inventors, athletes, and many more! That's right: there are 40 individuals to choose from! This research project is ideal for Black History Month -- or any time of the year. There is also an optional digital storytelling component utilizing the free iPad app, Shadow Puppet EDU. This part of the project again is optional. Students can still complete the biographical essay. All handouts are included. I have also included Common Core Anchor Standards I have met with this project.

This is a collaborative research project about United States geography that requires students to role-play as product designers for a fictitious travel association, Discover the USA. An excellent example of differentiated instruction, students may research any of the 50 U.S. states to find information that makes the state unique: major landmarks, landforms, major and minor cities, symbols, fun facts, etc. Working with partners, the team members will then choose one of five products in this assignment to show what they have learned: a PowerPoint presentation, a three-fold travel brochure, a mobile, a game or game board, or a map on poster board. To meet Writing Across the Curriculum goals, a two-page report on what they learned in the project is also required.

The Famous Mathematicians Research Project allows students in grades 6-9 an opportunity to research one of 30 famous mathematicians and present their findings in a biographical essay. It is an excellent project to allow students to research the many different aspects of the history of math. There is also an optional digital storytelling component utilizing the free iPad app, Shadow Puppet EDU. This part of the project again is optional. Students can still complete the biographical essay. All handouts are included. Please check the preview before buying. I have also included a brief pacing guide/set of instructions, a rubric, and handouts to allow students to better understand the writing process.

This PowerPoint presentation is titled “The Great Wall of China - Let’s Take a Tour!” This is one of a handful of projects I have written about ancient civilizations. The complete assignment includes (1) the PowerPoint presentation, (2) a KWL chart to activate the lesson, (3) 15 questions you can use to guide the lesson or use as a quiz afterwards, and (4) a handful of research prompts you might use to extend the lesson. This particular PowerPoint is chock full of quality information about the Great Wall of China including historical information about the major dynasties that build the walls, details about how the walls were constructed, statistics about its size, and much more. Of course, I have also filled the presentation with high-quality color photos and clickable links to some key vocabulary terms and official Chinese history websites. If you have access to Google Earth and YouTube, you will also find clickable links embedded in the document so you can take your students on a virtual field trip to see the Great Wall of China from above (Google Earth) and to a classroom-safe video (YouTube) offering a first-person perspective so your students can feel what it is like to climb some of the steepest parts of the wall. I envision using this PowerPoint presentation in a handful of ways: as either a classroom instruction tool on a SmartBoard or as a self-guided PowerPoint that students can access as a homework assignment.

I have used this successfully with ninth grade English/language arts students to begin a research project, but I believe it would also work best with students in the middle school grades. Students will be able to identify criteria (authority, objectivity, authenticity, timeliness, relevance, and efficiency) for evaluating sources of information. Students will be asked to reflect upon the following questions: “What does it mean if something is ‘credible?’ Why is credibility important when you are looking for information? For example, if you’re looking for song lyrics, why must that web site be credible? How else might we evaluate things in our daily lives for both quality and credibility? Students will then paraphrase major points discussed in the PowerPoint-aided mini-lesson about evaluating resources. They will use the graphic organizer to paraphrase these points.

The Famous Athletes Research Project allows students in grades 5-8 an opportunity to research one of 40 famous athletes and present their findings in a biographical essay. It is an excellent project to allow students to research several famous athletes from various sports. That's right: 40 star athletes from tennis, baseball, basketball, football, track & field, soccer, skateboarding, and more! There is also an optional digital storytelling component utilizing the free iPad app, Shadow Puppet EDU. This part of the project again is optional. Students can still complete the biographical essay. All handouts are included. Please check the preview before buying. I have also included a brief pacing guide/set of instructions, a rubric, and handouts to allow students to better understand the writing process.

This is the create-a-country project which requires students – upper elementary, middle, or high school – to demonstrate fundamental geography skills. I mention it is a scalable assignment. Simply, there are different versions of this two-part assignment here: an upper elementary school assignment, a middle school assignment, and a high school assignment. Of course, you can mix-and-match to fit the needs of your classes. Both parts of this assignment require students to think critically to earn full credit. The first part of the assignment requires them to define their country’s unique characteristics. The second part is a map-making assignment in which they take the displayable characteristics from part one and illustrate them on a blank piece of paper. This can be a very powerful and engaging project!

This is a collaborative research project about Canada's geography that requires students to role-play as product designers for a fictitious travel association, Travel Canada. An excellent example of differentiated instruction, students may research any of Canada's provinces or territories to find information that makes their chosen place unique: major landmarks, landforms, major and minor cities, symbols, fun facts, etc. Working with partners, the team members will then choose one of five products in this assignment to show what they have learned: a PowerPoint presentation, a three-fold travel brochure, a mobile, a game or game board, or a map on poster board. To meet Writing Across the Curriculum goals, a two-page report on what they learned in the project is also required.

This is the create-a-country project which requires students – upper elementary, middle, or high school – to demonstrate fundamental geography skills. I mention it is a scalable assignment. Simply, there are different versions of this two-part assignment here: an upper elementary school assignment, a middle school assignment, and a high school assignment. Of course, you can mix-and-match to fit the needs of your classes. Both parts of this assignment require students to think critically to earn full credit. The first part of the assignment requires them to define their country’s unique characteristics. The second part is a map-making assignment in which they take the displayable characteristics from part one and illustrate them on a blank piece of paper. This can be a very powerful and engaging project! I have used this assignment with success in a few ways. Sometimes, I use only the map-making part of the assignment to determine what my students already knew about map-reading skills. Another time, I used the definition assignment to reinforce an introductory unit on physical and cultural geography. I have also combined both parts of the assignment as a unit-ending project. I find this project asks students to think critically about the many characteristics that make up a country. This packet contains the following: •Two assignments-in-one: a definition assignment which requires detailed, thoughtful answers and a map-making assignment. •There are three versions of the definition part of the assignment. These have been built to scale. Consider using the first version in an upper elementary classroom, the second version in a middle school classroom, and the third version in a high school classroom. •Five lesson extension ideas. •Two rubrics you may consider using to evaluate each part of the project.

This is an 18-page packet of questions for Jerry Spinelli's Smiles to Go. You might use novel studies like this one in segments. Some parts of the novel study will benefit students before you begin reading the novel (such as the vocabulary section). Other parts work best as you encounter major moments in the novel, while the bulk of it will benefit readers who have completed the reading assignment entirely and are ready to talk about “the big picture.”

This packet features a set of 100 short writing prompts or what I like to call “daily warm-ups.” I have used these prompts successfully in a few different scenarios including bell ringer assignments, icebreakers at the beginning of the school year, and in long-term writing projects such as writing folders and portfolios. There are two main parts of this packet: (1) a four-page list of all 100 prompts which might be used as part of a writing folder assignment and (2) a set of task cards that can be easily printed, cut, and shared with students.

This packet contains 15 worksheets spanning several disciplines and subjects including social studies, science, physical education, and reading. All assignments will align easily with the Common Core research standards, if this is a necessity. Students are asked to utilize reputable websites or a good online encyclopedia to find information to complete each task with fun and engaging topics! Assignments are available in different formats: multiple choice, matching, short answer, and short essay. In some cases, extension assignments are also available, which might provide excellent springboards into large-scale research projects and presentations. I hope these are helpful! Additionally, there are two assignments in this packet – Keyword Keepers and Subject Searches – that introduce students to the challenging world of Internet research. If your students are inexperienced online searchers, consider starting them on these two assignments.

Consider purchasing this bundle of four 25-question assignments that you can use as a set of daily activities, a set of bell ringer assignments, or as a single research assignment. There are 100 questions to use in your classroom. All answers are included. You will find short research questions related to Ancient History, American History, World History, World Geography, Economics, Government, and more! It is NEVER too early to teach students how to conduct research. This is one of the fundamental skills required of 21st century learners in higher education. I have used these assignments in my classroom, and I have found that my middle school students enjoy them. You might also try to use them in higher level elementary classrooms (5th and 6th grades). Please find each 25-question assignment and an answer key for easy grading in this packet. There are four documents total.

Thank you for your interest in Lifesavers: Last-Minute Language Arts Lesson Plan Worksheets for Grades 5-8. Why is the packet called Lifesavers? Simply put, these little worksheets are ready-made to slide into a lesson plan at a moment’s notice. Let’s imagine you need to leave lesson plan worksheets in a hurry for a substitute teacher about synonyms and antonyms. You will find them on pages 10 and 14 respectively. You might wish for students to review concepts like similes, metaphors, and personification. Find these worksheets on pages 40, 44, and 48 respectively. In addition to the worksheets, I have included answer keys for easier, time-efficient grading and a (hopefully) handy table-of-contents page to find worksheets quickly. The packet includes 25 worksheets on several topics including similes, metaphors, alliteration, and more.