Curated OER
What Is a Primary-Source Document?
Learners discover what a primary-source document is, what different types there were back in 1867, and what newer kinds there are today. They play a form of bingo using printed cards that reproduce documents related to Confederation.
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African Americans in Aviation: The 1940s- A Decade of Change
Students investigate African Americans in aviation. In this primary resources lesson, students examine primary resources to research the history of African American in aviation. Students answer two research questions and write an essay...
National Park Service
A Tale of Two Men
Theodore Roosevelt and the Marquis de Mores were both born in 1858, and both came to the Dakota territory in 1883, but they influenced the developing country of America in different ways. Elementary and middle schoolers apply written and...
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Student Newspaper Project
Writing teaches us so much. One can identify the many characteristics of a newspaper, use the Internet to gather information, and communicate with others. Primary students create a class newspaper for publishing and dispersal.
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Stating Your Case: Writing Thesis Statements Effectively
As a writer, if you have a weak introductory paragraph or thesis statement, you might lose your audience! Have your middle and high schoolers practice writing introductory paragraphs that include clear thesis statements in response to...
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Discovering Angel Island: The Story Behind the Poems
Poems carved into the wooden walls of the Asian immigrant prisons on Angel Island provide upper elementary graders an opportunity to study not only the story behind the poems but to also focus on the figurative language employed by the...
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Childhood Lost: Child Labor in the United States, 1830-1930
Working in groups, middle and high schoolers describe and discuss photographs depicting working conditions experienced by child laborers in the 19th century. They then write a persuasive paragraph supporting an amendment to regulate the...
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Our Unique Legacy of Giving
Middle schoolers view The Gift of All, a Community of Givers. In this philanthropic activity, students discuss the gifts of philanthropists they've seen. Middle schoolers research and write a two page paper with four bullet points....
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Meet The Artist
Students investigate art history by researching a particular artist. In this biographical lesson, students are given a brief summary of a artist's life and are assigned to create a report on the person. Students create an outline based...
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Analyze Your Handwriting
Students explore the science of graphology. In this graphology activity, students analyze a writing sample using the letter slope, line slope, and pressure to determine the personality characteristics of the writer. Students also analyze...
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Put Your Face on the Map
Students investigate topography and contour lines by examining a human face. In this mapping instructional activity, students create a plaster cast of a face and create a map of the contours of the face one centimeter at a time....
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The Words that Surround Us
Students investigate writing that we read daily by analyzing advertisements and articles. In this language arts lesson plan, students discuss the images and writing they see daily, where it comes from, and what it represents. Students...
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Stained Glass for Your Class
Students investigate the history of stained glass and the creator of the art form. In this art project instructional activity, students utilize drawing paper to create their own style of stained glass using transparent paint. Students...
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A Piece of the Puzzle
Discover the process of writing a story by comparing it to a puzzle. Begin by examining a diagram shaped like a puzzle which contains important elements of a story. Learners mix and match the pieces with elements of a story they are...
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The Art of Simple Machines
Young scholars investigate the inventions of simple machines in our past and how they affect us today. In this engineering lesson, students discover who Rube Goldberg was and his ideas about complicated machines performing very simple...
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Words into Pictures
Students discover the history of writing through images, and the universal themes that are still relevant. In this communications lesson, students analyze a group of symbols on the black board and must translate them into a complete...
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Fractal Fraction Fun
Young scholars discover the interesting patterns and shapes referred to as "fractals." In this geometry lesson, students utilize pieces of colored construction paper to create the branches of a fractal tree. Young scholars discuss the...
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In the Loop
Students practice comparing items by using a Venn diagram. In this diagram lesson, students divide a group of similar buttons by the small details that separate them using a Venn Diagram. Students compare and contrast shapes by their...
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The Magic Words
Students investigate the truth behind several magic tricks by conducting the illusions in class. In this slight of hand lesson, students create an illusion using a coffee can and shoe box. Students perform their trick for friends and...
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Can You Believe Your Eyes?
Students investigate hidden messages by analyzing images. For this art analysis lesson, students assess specific photographs by their use of light, framing, distortion and size. Students create their own juxtapositions in images and...
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Art and Writing
Students examine the writing process by describing a piece of art. In this art analysis lesson, students examine a painting in a museum and write a story describing the painting to someone who has never seen it before. Students create...