Reference Materials Teacher Resources

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With all the concern about fake news, bogus sites and fact checking, 21st century learners must develop research skills that enable them to access, evaluate, and use reference materials.

Introduce primary graders to reference materials and their purposes with a lesson that lets them examine these essential tools. Kids can also engage in scavenger hunts and explore the world of reference materials such as atlases, almanacs, encyclopedias, maps, and dictionaries. A lesson on the Dewey Decimal System teaches students where to look in the stacks to find these valuable resources.

In addition to knowing what they are, what they contain, and where to find them, learners also need to know how to use reference materials to research. Here's a lesson where scientists can use reference materials to research local aquatic plants. High school historians can use reference materials to study the rich and sometimes tumultuous history of Afghanistan. The Internet has made it possible for young researchers to go far beyond the walls of the library using search engines and online materials. Here’s a lesson that employs online reference sources.

In an age of open education resources, intellectual property, and copyright concerns, it is important that students also know how to give credit to the reference materials they use, and how to determine the best references to use (check out this lesson for middle school).

Showing 859 resources
Lesson Plan
Alabama Learning Exchange

Planetary Cereal Project

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders decorate an empty cereal box with information and games showing their comprehension of factual information about an assigned planet. This is a nice, creative lesson about the solar system.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What's Happening in My World?

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Students look for examples of chemical and physical changes in the world around them and complete "What's Happening in My World" worksheet.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Life of Lincoln

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Young scholars describe the social and political life of Abraham Lincoln with a focus on his contributions and how they changed the United States of America.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Hall of Fame

For Teachers 4th - 7th
Students create a Hall of Fame. They discuss and study established Hall of Fames such as baseball. They participate in mock nominating and voting process for the hall of fame.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Discovering New Species

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Learners identify animals observed by Lewis and Clark while evaluating the animal's habitat and describing the animal's behavior. Students construct a food web mobile to illustrate the animal's position in the food web in the 19th...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Classroom Content

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine the roles that scientists and government agencies play in protecting citizens from commercially produced chemicals. They watch a video, conduct Internet research, and prepare a media presentation.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Teen America Travels New England

For Teachers 9th - 11th
Students simulate the role of a travel agent to understand how to read and use road maps. They plan a bus trip through New England for a group of travelers that includes, bus travel, meals and attractions. They plan the distance that...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Adventures in Exploration

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders research major explorers in history using their textbook and then create a timeline using Timeline Software. Students participate in class discussions and write an essay about the explorer they researched.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Colonial Legacy of Sierra Leone (W. Africa)

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Students investigate an in-depth study of civil strife in a former British colony fueled by 'conflict' diamonds. They examine how the violence and civil strife rampant in a particular West African nation has a lot to do with its colonial...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Hopi Culture: Parts of the Corn

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students identify the parts of the corn stalk in English and Hopi. They discuss the significance of corn to the Hopi culture, and examine a diagram of the corn stalk. They discuss the purposes of the parts of the corn stalk, then label...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Plant Investigaion

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students examine and investigate two plants for a short report. They have deeper comprehension of a native and non-native plant and what the relationship is between the two plants. Students identify a native and non-native plant. They...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

It's a Grand Ol' Government!

For Teachers K - 4th
Students discuss the three branches of government and the different levels. They talk about the purpose of laws and use the Internet to locate information about governments. They watch the video, "United States Constitution" and look up...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

World Religion At A Glance

For Teachers 9th
Ninth graders research and assigned religion and fill out information they gather on their "Special Assingment Instruction Sheet." They create a sample brochure about the religion they researched, edit the brochure with another student...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Replicating Controversy

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Student act as a research scientists and investigate the development of animal and human cloning. They then report their findings, both orally and visually, to their "colleagues" at a symposium on cloning research. Learners explore the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Constant Craving

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students experience the effect of sensory stimulation through a guided visualization. They explore possible genetic relationships between drug addiction and the nervous system by reading and discussing, "Genetic Studies Promise a Path to...
Lesson Plan
Richland County School District One

Incubating Quail Eggs

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students incubate quail eggs. In this biology lesson, students observe the development of the embryo, monitor, turn, weigh the eggs, and observe the hatching of the chicks. They identify the structures within a fertilized egg and their...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Writing About Winter

For Teachers K
Students investigate the concept of winter as a season and they write an essay as a reflection upon the acquiring of new information. The class should have a list of vocabulary or a word wall available for observation to aid in the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Desert Biome

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students create a visual presentation of the characteristics of a biome. Working in small groups, students use traditional and online resources to gather data concerning biomes. Students use their information to create a bulletin board...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Westward Expansion: The American Indian Experience

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students complete a brief presentation documenting the life of an American Indian. In class, students discuss the pros and cons of placing American Indians on a reservation. After their discussion, students choose a issue in Native...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Soneka's Village

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Students read a letter about the characteristics of the Maasai culture. After identifying them, they discuss how to live a pastoralist way of life. In groups, they discuss the roles of men and women in the country and what it might be...
Lesson Plan
National First Ladies' Library

Vegas and the Mob

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students identify with and interpret the role of organized crime in the development of one of America's most vibrant cities. Then they look into the city's establishment and development, follow the role of organized crime in its...
Lesson Plan
National First Ladies' Library

Red Hunts, Black Lists, and Communists

For Teachers 11th - Higher Ed
Students research and examine the unsavory history of the hunt for communists in the United States during the 1950s. They divide up into groups to review the Red Scare of the 1920s as a backdrop to the McCarthy era and write a short...
Lesson Plan
National First Ladies' Library

The Space Race

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners investigate the historical events that have surrounded The Space Race. They conduct research using a variety of resources and focus upon the progress between Russia and The United States. Students describe the events that led up...
Lesson Plan
National First Ladies' Library

King Tut and All That

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Young scholars study the field of Egyptology and archeology. They create an artifact for posterity and create a special edition that tells the story in words, maps, and pictures. They create a storyboard for a "comic book" edition of the...