Curated OER
Critical Path
Students widen their understanding of the different points of view surrounding current news topics. They research a current controversy on which public opinion is divided and write a concise commentary on the topic expressing a strong...
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Speak Out!
Students consider their opinions on various topics and issues related to the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001. Then, focusing on one specific topic, each student supports his or her opinions in a...
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What Does a Philanthropic Organization Do?
Students explore the work of a local nonprofit organization and define "nonprofit" and "profit" organizations. They identify examples of three local philanthropic organizations and work together to draw conclusions about a non-profit...
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City People, City Stories
Students create fictional inhabitants to scale for a place called 'Box City'. They develop stories and personalities to go with the created people, share the stories with the class and write a newspaper for their city.
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Responding To Rembrandt's Work Through Poetry
Students write poetry in response to Rembrandt's landscapes and portraits. They create accompanying illustrations based on interpretations of Rembrandt's work and present them along with the poems in book format.
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The Teen Scene
Students explore the methods used by teen magazines to attract a variety of teenagers. They evaluate existing magazines and in small groups, students create their own magazine that is geared toward specific teen demographics.
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The Power of the Press
Students identify an editorial and propaganda, discuss differences between weekly and daily newspapers, analyze needs of rural and urban newspaper audiences, and evaluate possible power of the press and importance of multiple views...
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Landscape Photography
Learners photograph the school landscape and create photographic displays from the pictures they take. They discuss the visual characteristics of the school grounds. Working in pairs the role-play as camera and photographer and write...
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Poem of Instruction
Students write a free-verse poem and utilize the skill of providing detailed instructions. identify opportunities to create poems from simple, everyday verbal or written instructions. They study everyday language that has merit as poetry.
Small Planet Communications
Civil War
Students discuss political, social, and personal issues relating to the Civil War from various perspectives using internet sources. Students write various selections from Civil War characters' point of view.
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Why is Sacagawea on the Golden Dollar?
Students research the decision to place the image of Sacagawea on the Golden Dollar, then write persuasive essays either defending or opposing this decision.
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Self-esteem Builder
Students recognize and acknowledge each other's strengths as well as becoming more aware of their own through this activity. They write positive comments about each other and turn them into positive paragraphs.
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Christmas-Tree-Shaped Poems
Students create poems in the shape of a Christmas tree. They write an original poem detailing how a person can spread joy during the holiday season. The poem is formatted in the shape of a Christmas tree.
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Heritage: Seeking Land or Gold
Middle schoolers write a persuasive letter home defending their decision either to settle in Utah and farm the land, or to go on to California to seek gold. They analyze a problem, make a decision, and write a letter defending their choice.
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Thoughts to the President
Students write a persuassive paragraph to the President stating their opinion on a topic. To do this, they start the message with a topic sentence such as "War is _____." The blank should contain a word or phrase expressing the student's...
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The Rights of Bike Riders
Students write a letter to the editor of a newspaper about the bicycle helmet safety issue. They gather statistics about bicycle helmet use and discuss the statistics as a class and explain how to interpret the numbers accurately. They...
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Leading Lives
Students explore a field of knowledge through the life of a leader in that field. They write a high-quality biography of the leader of their choice. In the end, publishing of the biography is completed on the Internet.
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General to Specific
Students revise a recent draft of writing to make the content more specific. They trace their hands on a large sheet of paper. Students, in the palms of their traced hand print, write in the general topic of the writing draft. On the...
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Happy Chinese New Year!
In this Chinese New Year instructional activity, students visit a site on the Internet to participate in a scavenger hunt to answer five questions with a word bank.
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Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Scavenger Hunt
In this Dr. Martin Luther Kind Jr. scavenger hunt worksheet, learners visit a specific website on the Internet as they participate in a scavenger hunt on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to answer five questions.
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I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
Students use Maya Angelou's novel, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings to identify themes about adversity in the text. In this adversity, students read chapter 36 of the novel and discuss the examples of adversity in the book. Students...
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Words in the News Dutch EU vote - 01 June 2005
Students complete word work and vocabulary building based on news article about the Dutch EU vote in 2005.
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Urban Concentration and Racial Violence
Young scholars research one of the many urban race riots in U.S. history, from the New York City riots during the Civil War to the "Red Summer of 1919" or the hate-strikes of 1943. They present their findings in the form of a newspaper's...
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Mask Form - Mixed Media Collage Relief
Students create a work of around around a theme of natures - or identity (using personal items). They create a relief sculpted face or mask, and write about works of art.