Curated OER
Creative Writing Workshop (Middle, Reading/Writing)
Bring this lesson into your unit about creative writing and precise language. First, middle schoolers create a piece of writing with the help of their classmates. In the second part of this workshop, they edit their own piece of writing....
Stanford University
Beyond Vietnam
On April 4, 1967 Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his speech "Beyond Vietnam." The controversy that followed is the focus of a three-activity unit that asks class members to consider the political and social implications of King's...
Curated OER
The Newspaper Article
Have your class participate in an interview activity using an informational text about the Amazon. After reading a Cultural Connections story about a person from the Amazon, middle schoolers write interview questions based on the text....
Curated OER
Symbols of Canada Lesson
Students examine the most common symbols of Canada and explain their importance. In this Canadian culture instructional activity, students identify the beaver, maple leaf, and Inuksuk and discuss why Canada feels these are representative...
Curated OER
Olympic Mascot Lesson
Students investigate the 1968 Olympics by identifying their mascots. For this Olympic history lesson, students participate in a group activity where they match countries with their representative mascots. Students analyze the meaning...
Curated OER
Motor Skills and Movement Patterns
Young scholars explore the human body by participating in physical activities. In this physical education instructional activity, students demonstrate their physical prowess and motor skills by performing tasks such as climbing and rope...
Curated OER
Global Warming and Climate Change
Students explore the environment by writing a persuasive letter. In this global warming lesson, students identify the key problems with our energy consumption in the United States. Students complete worksheets and write a letter...
Curated OER
Writing Classroom Agreements using Inspiration & Word to Go
How can you foster a thoughtful learning community for your class? First, the class brainstorms a list of behaviors that will help make the classroom a great place to learn. Then learners group similar ideas together and come up with...
Curated OER
Recreate the Race
Students research and find the route of the Alaskan dog sled race.In this Iditarod race lesson students find the checkpoints for the Iditarod on a map. Students research information in pairs about each one of the checkpoints. Students...
Curated OER
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...
Ahisma Summer Institute
The Power of One - Math in a Different Angle
In this 2-day lesson focused on exponents, middle schoolers will cross the curriculum by engaging in science, history and language arts activities. Exponential growth will be explored using grains of rice on a chess board. Exponential...
Curated OER
Writing Organization Lessons
By using writing organization worksheets and activities students can learn to put their thoughts on paper in an orderly manner.
Curated OER
Literature Response Lesson Plans
Literature responses are a meaningful way to strengthen student comprehension.
Curated OER
Poetry Slams and Lesson Plans
Poetry slams can lead your students beyond a focus on rhyme and meter and into the emotional pull of poetry.
Curated OER
Creative Ways To Teach Characterization Lessons
Teaching characterization can be a creative, engaging experience for students.
Curated OER
Leadership: Communicating With Your Peers
Young scholars explore communication by using non-verbal cues. In this body language lesson, students utilize blindfolds to communicate with classmates through words only, then use only physical actions to communicate and compare the...
Curated OER
Be a Good Sport!
Young scholars explore the sport of lacrosse to improve their reading and grammar skills. In this reading and grammar instructional activity, students read and discuss the sport of Lacrosse. Young scholars complete a Cloze activity, a...
Curated OER
How to Write A+ Essays!
This lesson plan, which promises to improve the essays of your middle schoolers, contains a list of characteristics an essay should include. It breaks it down into the introduction, thesis statement, body, etc. There's also a list of...
Bright Hub Education
How to Outline, Plan & Write a Memoir
Get to know each individual through a memoir project. The lesson outlined here is a bit vague, but has some promising ideas for graphic organizers to help writers prepare their work. In order to succeed with the lesson, you will need to...
Curated OER
Dear President Obama
Students write letters to the president as he begins his term. In this letter writing lesson, students discuss goals they hope the president will consider, and send good wishes to the president and his family. After the letters are...
Curated OER
Applying Ahimsa to Traditional Stories
Investigate the life of Mahatma Gandhi by researching non-violent lifestyles. Learners define the word ahimsa and discuss the personal characteristics that made Gandhi a peaceful warrior. They also create a poster about the story "The...
Curated OER
Stem Cell Differentiation Game
This carad activity helps students explore detailed facts and scientific procedures around the human body and its cells. In this stem cell lesson, students utilize different colored flash cards to represent different types of human...
Curated OER
Baseball Stories, Cards and Interviews
Everyone can be an MVP! Young learners create their own baseball cards about themselves in this autobiographical lesson. They use information about their lives to create a baseball trading card. They make flash cards using baseball...
Curated OER
Episodic Writing Using Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff
Help your middle-schoolers expand their writing skills with this lesson on episodic writing, which focuses on story details, idea development, and organization. After reading "The Eighth Picture: End of Summer" from Patricia Reilly...