The final lesson in an 11-session study of immigration asks class members to engage in either a panel discussion or a civil conversation of the controversial legal and policy issues they have investigated as part of the unit.

How do we meet the needs of learners with autism? Find out with an in-depth study that offers a thorough explanation of autism—what it is and how unique every individual's case may be, nine lesson plans spanning from kindergarten to 12th...

Celebrate April's National Poetry Month or enrich a poetry unit with a wealth of language arts material. Class members develop an oral interpretation of a poem and/or develop a podcast interview with a poet. 

Explore human anatomy and physiology using models. Scholars study systems of the human body and design a display for a museum exhibit. To complete the activity, individuals create analogous models of their chosen human body systems.

Design an aerodynamic bobsled. Groups create a bobsled that meets certain constraints from everyday materials. After learning about friction, aerodynamics, acceleration, and terminal velocity, pupils get a chance to improve on their...

What goes into a museum display? A secondary-level STEM project prompts groups to design a museum display for the Tech Museum of Innovation. They create an analogous, interactive model illustrating a science concept to complete the lesson.

Filter young teenagers' opinions and perspectives with a classic fishbowl discussion. Given any topic relevant to your curriculum, a group of class members engage in discussion for their peers to observe.

Great discussions don't just happen. The seeds have to be planted and nurtured to grow and blossom into respectful, meaningful exchanges. Here's a resource that models a strategy for class members, and instructors, that produces such...

Introduce classes to a discussion technique that encourages a respectful conversation of topics on which reasonable people disagree. Participants develop their critical thinking skills by actively listening to the views of others,...

Using the open-ended discussion questions developed the day before, class members engage in a fishbowl discussion of the three texts that anchor the unit: “True Crime: The Roots of an American Obsession," “How Bernard Madoff Did it,” and...

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...

Delve into the heart of dramatic dialogue with a unit focused on Oedipus the King by Sophocles. Having completed an online exploration about ancient Greece beforehand, ninth graders read the opening lines of the play and analyze how...

Football fans and ready readers will enjoy a lesson based on H.G Bissinger's Friday Night Lights. Focusing on chapter 4, the lesson encourages tenth graders to examine Mike's character development as it relates to the season opener, and...

Sometimes a few sensory details can bring you right back to a familiar place. Study the setting descriptions from a key chapter in Amy Tan's A Joy Luck Club, and discuss the ways they enhance the book's plot and contribute to a central...

Why did Chinua Achebe write "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness" in response to Conrad's novel? As part of a study of Things Fall Apart, class members conduct a socratic seminar focused on Achebe's purpose and...

To gain an understanding of Imperialism, class members read Rudyard Kipling's poem, "The White Man's Burden" and Mark Twain's essay, "To the Person Sitting in Darkness." Groups compare these perceptions of non-white cultures with the...

As part of their study of Things Fall Apart, class groups develop a multimedia presentation in response to the question, "In what ways does Achebe use literature as a means to express and comment on culture and history?"

"Eneke the bird says since men have learnt to shoot without missing, he has learnt to fly without perching." As part of their study of Things Fall Apart, class members read Paul Hernadi and Francis Steen's essay, "The Tropical Landscapes...

How does the cultural context of Chinua Achebe's novel, Things Fall Apart, connect to the context of William Bulter Yeats' poem, "The Second Coming" from which Achebe drew his title? Class members use the Syncon (synergistic convergence)...

To launch a unit study of the concept of diversity in World Literature, class members compare Chinua Achebe's essay, "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness" and Richard Rodriguez's essay, "The Chinese in All of Us: A...

What were the effects of the Great Depression on the people who lived through it? As the culmination of an informative writing unit that introduces writers to the "skills, practices, and routines" of informative essays, individuals...

As an introduction to argument writing, groups examine two argument essays, observing how the writers state their claims and organize and support their ideas. Individuals then craft an argument essay, taking a position on the question of...

Class members choose a current social, political, environmental, or economic problem presented in Tyson Miller's Dream of a Nation: Inspiring Ideas for a Better America, research this problem and a variety of suggested solutions, before...

Should junk food be banned in schools? Should the US open its borders to all immigrants? Should the US impose term limits for the House of Representatives and for the Senate? Using Tyson Miller's Dream of a Nation: Inspiring Ideas for a...