“Everything is so linear, but this makes me think diagonally!” ~ a student describing Byrdseed.TV

Indiana ELA Standard: 5.RC.8

Compare and contrast the organizational structure of events, ideas, concepts, or information in two or more texts. (E)

Who has more power: the Queen Bee or the Hive?
Who has more power: the Queen Bee or the Hive?
Who really runs the hive: the queen, or the thousands of bees around her?
Think Like An Author: Hemingway vs Dickens
Think Like An Author: Hemingway vs Dickens
What if your students rewrote Dickens in the style of Hemingway and vice versa?
Analyze Paragraphs: Empire State Building
Analyze Paragraphs: Empire State Building
Three paragraphs about the Empire State Building. They all cover the same topic — so what makes each one different? Now combine them into one super-paragraph.
Analyze Paragraphs: Wolverines
Analyze Paragraphs: Wolverines
Three paragraphs about wolverines. They all cover the same topic — so what makes each one different? Now combine them into one super-paragraph.
What’s In My Brain: May vs May
What’s In My Brain: May vs May
The word “may” can be used for possibility or permission. It’s a modal auxiliary verb!
What Would Poetry Think About Prose?
What Would Poetry Think About Prose?
Poetry and Prose meet at a party. What would they say to each other? How would they feel about each other’s style?
Create A Civilization: Calendars
Create A Civilization: Calendars
Why 12 months? Why 30ish days? Why 7 days in a week? Your civilization could organize a year in any way you want!
Content Imperatives: Paradox
Content Imperatives: Paradox
How can one idea pull in opposite directions, being both true and false or right and wrong at the same time? It’s time to explore Paradoxes!
Depth and Complexity: ⏳ Change Over Time
Depth and Complexity: ⏳ Change Over Time
Want to get students thinking about how a topic has changed or might change in the future? The ⏳ Change Over Time thinking tool is just what you need!
Depth and Complexity: Patterns
Depth and Complexity: Patterns
Can your students spot anything that repeats? Or that has stopped repeating?
Teach Non-Fiction Writing Structure With Fractals
Teach Non-Fiction Writing Structure With Fractals
Did you ever notice that the structure of an essay is very similar to the structure of a paragraph? Hmm…
Better Stories Part 1: The Big Idea
Better Stories Part 1: The Big Idea
We open our unit on narrative writing with a big idea: “structure increases creativity.” I show how this is true by bringing in examples from across all disciplines.