Overcoming Obstacles
Good Citizenship
An individual's background and experiences affect their worldview and interaction. In this lesson, scholars draw a pair of glasses with pictures of experiences they've been through, relate the responsibility to social media and the...
Penguin Books
A Teacher's Guide to the Penguin Edition of John Steinbeck's The Pearl
The guide to John Steinbeck's The Pearl suggests ways instructors can help readers see below the surface of the novella to the parable beneath. Through a variety of activities, readers come to appreciate the complexity of the tale.
Penguin Books
A Teacher's Guide to the Signet Classic Edition of Mark Twain's The Prince and The Pauper
Imagine how the world would be different if all diplomats' children were required to serve in the military. Or if all high school graduates were required to do two years of community service before post-secondary education. A 30-page...
Penguin Books
A Teacher's Guide to the Signet Classic Edition of George Orwell's Animal Farm
Not all teacher's guides are equal, but some are pretty good. This guide for George Orwell's Animal Farm includes chapter synopses, chapter-by-chapter discussion questions, journal and essay prompts, and suggestions for various activities.
Overcoming Obstacles
Being Responsible
Responsible-decision making is the focus of the social-emotional learning lessons. After reading, The Ant and the Grasshopper: An Aesop Fable, scholars come up with six steps to take responsibility for their actions and then practice the...
Education Foundation of Sarasota County
Problem Solving Skills for Home and School
Dr. Seuss' The Zax has a lesson plan to teach tweens and teens about the importance of problem-solving skills. After viewing the short video, groups identify conflicts that may occur at home, in school or in the community. They then...
Albert Shanker Institute
Who Was Bayard Rustin?
Who was Bayard Rustin? Pupils analyze a series of primary source documents to learn about this important figure in the civil rights movement. The lesson contains a short film to watch along with guiding questions and other resources...
Albert Shanker Institute
The March on Washington Logistics Then and Now
I have a dream ... that all pupils will be able to organize a march of their own after learning about how Bayard Rustin organized the 1963 March on Washington for civil rights. Young reformers work collaboratively examining informational...
Miama-Dade County Public Schools
African Americans and the Civil War
The American Civil War is the theme of this packet of materials prepared for Black History Month. Class members learn about the roles that African Americans played during the Civil War and examine the African-American experience after...
English Club
Health Phrasal Verbs
Health phrasal verbs are the focus of a two-page worksheet. Language learners match health phrasal verbs with their meanings, match the first part of sentences with the proper conclusion, select the correct particles to complete...
English Club
Verbs Associated with Housework
A two-page worksheet focuses on verbs associated with household chores. Intermediate language learners match phrasal verbs with their definitions and complete sentences and answer a series of "would you rather" questions. Learners...
Newseum
You Can’t Say That: Right to Know vs. Security Risk
Print or block? That is the question young journalists debate as part of their study of the freedom of the press. Half the class represents the journalists' legal team, and the other half represents the government's legal team. Teams...
Amani Project
Teach the Mood Meter
The third activity from the Amani Project has youths create a Mood Meter. The colorful meter, divided into red, yellow, blue, and green squares, lets participants indicate not only how they are feeling but also permits them to indicate...
Beyond Benign
Orb-It
How do the products you use rate on a greeness scale? Scholars use a tool to analyze shampoos and cars for their sustainability. They consider factors that affect the environment, the economy, and equity. This is the ninth instructional...
Amani Project
Make an Instrument
Create a little harmony with Amani Project! Young musicians create their instruments using found or recycled objects. As an introduction, class members first experiment with sounds they can make with their bodies (clapping, stomping...
ReadWriteThink
Robert Frost Prompts the Poet in You
A great poem begins with an idea, an image, or an event that evokes a feeling. Middle schoolers read biographical information about Robert Frost and then identify details in three of his poems that reflect his life. Using suggestions...
ReadWriteThink
What is Poetry? Contrasting Poetry and Prose
Introduce middle schoolers to the different strategies used when reading prose versus poetry. Groups use a Venn diagram and a poetry analysis handout to compare the characteristics of an informational text and a poem on the same subject...
ReadWriteThink
Persuasive Essay: Environmental Issues
Young environmentalists learn how to craft a persuasive essay about an environmental issue they consider important. After studying the components of a persuasive essay and examining a student model, writers brainstorm possible topics and...
Facing History and Ourselves
Many Voices, One National Identity
To conclude the unit on "Exploring Identity in the United States," pupils consider whether it is possible to combine many voices into one national identity. After creating an identity chart that lists words, phrases, and images that they...
Facing History and Ourselves
Connecting to the Past
Young historians research the connections between their personal histories and the histories of our country to gain a deeper understanding of who they are. To begin, class members write about an object that they consider significant to...
Facing History and Ourselves
Identity and Choices
Timshel! Thou mayest! is the big idea in a activity that reminds learners that they have choices about how they present themselves to others. To begin, individuals rate the degree to which the choices they make each morning are...
Facing History and Ourselves
Identity and Labels
Scholars look at the connections between identity and labels, assumptions, and stereotypes, in a lesson that examines identity in the United States. To set the stage for a discussion of these connections, class members analyze a cartoon,...
Facing History and Ourselves
Identity and Names
Would a rose smell as sweet, as Juliet Capulet asserts, if called by any other name? The importance of names and the connection between names and identity are examined in a activity that explores identity in the United States. After...