Conduct the cooperative learning strategy, carousel brainstorming, with the help of a step-by-step plan for implementation. Scholars work collaboratively to think of, and write, information and thoughts that come to mind when discussing...

After conducting research on a given scientific animal name, group members take a walk around their school and look for the specified animals in that classification. Then, they come back to their worksheets and create five creative clues...

In a collection of three lessons, learners interact with one another to improve listening skills by becoming active listeners, come to a group consensus on a decision, and work independently to follow a set of clear concise directions....

What are commons and how do we take care of them? This is the driving question in which scholars answer through grand conversations, brainstorm sessions, and small group field trips to collect data. Once your class has completed this...

Practice makes proficient. Scholars practice how to be attentive listeners, a skill that is imperative in and outside the classroom. The listening skills lesson is divided into sections: Tell, Show, Practice, Feedback, and Re-teach. 

After reading up to page 371 of Percy Jackson and The Olympians: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan, get insight into how Percy felt making a major decision through active discussion strategies that enable both academic and thoughtful...

Who would have thought to explore the concept of race through children's literature?  After reading Bell Hooks' picture book, Skin Again, and chapter sixteen of Jerry Spinelli's Maniac Magee, class members consider whether skin color...

Split the class into two groups for a fishbowl discussion using of Jerry Spinelli's Maniac Magee. The first group initiates the conversation by reviewing the important points of Chapter thirteen while group two members are listening,...

Need a way to boost community and involve local neighborhoods into your school? This may be your answer. Ecology is the way! Think, plan, and consider living in a no-waste place as your class embarks on this unit to learn about the...

As part of their study of disease prevention tips, class members engage in a debate about who should be the classroom's Stop Germs Mascot—Professor Grime or Ace Clean.

Young scholars demonstrate their knowledge of geography with this fun, collaborative social studies project. Working in small groups, students develop their very own countries, writing descriptions of their physical location, social...

Establish justice and tranquility in the classroom with this primary grade instructional activity on the US Constitution. Beginning with a discussion about the importance of rules and a class reading of a children's book on the...

Develop a system of classroom rules created by the kids, for the kids with this three-part lesson series on the US Constitution. After learning about the structure of the Constitution and the government it established, young scholars...

After your next group project or collaborative assignment, have your learners reflect on what it was like to work with others. They will answer questions on what parts of the process they did and did not enjoy, whether or not they were...

"Think before you speak." Make this direction more meaningful for your young learners by using think as a guide for respectful speech. This is a great poster to reference during class discussions, conflict resolutions, or whenever anyone...

Get things cooking with the first activity in this series on the science of food. Working in small groups, young scientists make and record observations about different mystery foods. These descriptions are then shared with the class and...

Teach your charges how to become responsible digital citizens with superheroes! Start out with a brief class discussion about what acting safely, responsibly, and respectfully looks like. Next, have each pupil create their own digital...

A continuation of the previous lesson, which is part of a larger group of lessons on human rights (see additional materials). Here, in Lesson 7, your class will explore more articles from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. After...

Lesson 6 of this extensive unit finally has your class begin to work their way through specific articles from the text of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). Before examining the rights actually detailed in the document,...

Teach digital natives that they can't believe everything they read on the Internet. Working in small groups, young scholars use the provided worksheets and rubric to evaluate different websites and determine if the information being...

How do you cite an online resource? Discover the special challenges involved in citing Internet sources. Young writers explore the components of a correct bibliography and create bibliography citations for online newspapers, magazine...

Here's an exercise designed for the Common Core Literacy Standard L.11-12.6 that asks learners to demonstrate their ability to put together all they have learned about language. The first activity is based on a passage from Rosencrantz...

As technology becomes increasingly more integrated into education, pupils will need to know how to find accurate information online. Follow a very structured learning activity to help your class understand what makes a good search, how...

Launch a discussion about plagiarism, the consequences of plagiarism, and how giving credit is a sign of respect for the work of others. Start out by defining plagiarism and sharing your school's official policy. Class members can then...