December 17 reading ideas
Finding reading ideas for this date…
Finding reading ideas for this date…
On December 17, Wright Brothers Day marks the 1903 powered flights. Pair the engineering reading about controlled flight with a maple-syrup process and an informal thank-you-note prompt; the latter activities are connections, not claims about when maple tapping happens everywhere.
Special date
Follow the steps that turn watery maple sap into syrup and notice how heating changes a liquid by removing water. The passage gives a seasonal process; present the date as an informal food observance, not as the start of maple-tapping season everywhere, since timing depends on place and weather.
4 reading resources
Use Food History Reading Passages as related background or for comparison.
Open collectionThe instructional text explicitly explains tapping a maple tree, collecting sap, and boiling it into syrup.
Read passageFollow a news-style account of spring maple sugaring in Connecticut. Trace sap collection and evaporation; December 17 marks the food observance, while the harvest described takes place in late winter and spring.
Read passageSpecial date
Use the informal gratitude observance to write a note that names a specific kind action and explains why it mattered. Children can practice clear details, a warm tone, and a closing.
8 reading resources
Explore readings about appreciation, then choose a specific kind action to mention in a heartfelt thank-you note.
Open collectionExplore this topic through Communication Skills Reading Passages.
Open collectionExplore this topic through A Heartfelt Thank You.
Read passageExplore this topic through A Thank-You Note for Mr. Rivera.
Read passageExplore this topic through Thank You, Ms. Davis.
Read passageRead a sample thank-you letter and identify the action, specific thanks and personal details that make the message meaningful.
Read passageStudy a thank-you letter’s purpose and structure, then write a message to a real recipient.
Read passageCompare viewpoints about saying thank you for a gift. Practice acknowledging someone’s kindness while expressing your own feelings respectfully.
Read passageSpecial date
The Wright brothers made their controlled, sustained powered flights on December 17, 1903. Read about the problems they worked to solve and connect the flight milestone with observation, testing and revision.
6 reading resources
Explore this topic through Transportation Reading Passages.
Open collectionUse Scientist Biography Reading Passages as related background or for comparison.
Open collectionExplore this topic through The Wright Brothers: Taking Flight.
Read passageExplore this topic through Soaring Beyond Boundaries: The Life of Wilbur Wright.
Read passageRead how the Wright brothers investigated control and tested their ideas before the first powered flights.
Read passageMore reading for this time of year, alongside today’s special dates.
6 reading resources
Christmas reading for the December 1–25 teaching window, alongside the day’s own date-specific topics.
Explore themeChristmas reading for the December 1–25 teaching window, alongside the day’s own date-specific topics.
Open collectionChristmas reading for the December 1–25 teaching window, alongside the day’s own date-specific topics.
Open collectionChristmas reading for the December 1–25 teaching window, alongside the day’s own date-specific topics.
Open collectionChristmas reading for the December 1–25 teaching window, alongside the day’s own date-specific topics.
Open collectionChristmas reading for the December 1–25 teaching window, alongside the day’s own date-specific topics.
Open collectionYour topic. Your level.
Have another idea for today’s lesson? Let Pico create an AI-assisted passage with questions and an illustration. Choose the topic and reading level in the creator.
Read how maple syrup is made and sequence tapping, collecting sap, and boiling. Students can turn the process into a flowchart and explain how each stage changes the material.
Use the thank-you letter to identify specific thanks and personal details. Then read how the Wright brothers investigated flight; compare repeated tests in engineering with revision in writing. Ask learners to identify one choice that improved each result.
