Polk Bros Foundation
Evaluate Decisions
When people and characters make choices, there are positive and negative consequences. Focus on a situation in a text your class is reading and analyze the characters' decisions. There is space in the graphic organizer to write about...
Freeology
Keep Calm and Stop Texting Poster
The keep calm messages are everywhere you look, so hop on board the bandwagon by posting this friendly reminder to keep calm and stop texting.
Freeology
Keep Calm and Raise Your Hand Poster
Reminders to keep calm are everywhere you look, but this one is particularly handy in the classroom. Simply print it out, hang it in a place that all kids can see it, and calmly point to it when someone talks out of turn: keep calm and...
Curated OER
Who Wrote That?
Scholars creatively respond to writing prompts. They respond to writing prompts that reveal clues regarding their personalities and then use the prompts written in class to guess the prompts that belong to their classmates.
Curated OER
Economic Reasoning: Why Are We A Nation Of Couch Potatoes?
Students examine the visual aids of this lesson plan to study the costs and benefits of decisions about diet and exercise. They investigate human choice as it affects behavior and in turns effects economics and consequences.
Media Smarts
Marketing to Teens: Alternate Ads
Did you know that Coke can teach the world to sing in perfect harmony? Learners develop an awareness of more subtle, less obvious methods advertisers use to reach consumers. Included is a list of related lessons available on the Media...
Curated OER
Courage: Hero Traits
What does it mean to be a hero? Who qualifies as a hero? In groups, middle and high schoolers brainstorm a list of heroes and create a list of characteristics that a person must possess in order to be a hero. Extend this lesson by having...
Curated OER
Everyday Conversation Skills
After discussing positive and appropriate social communication, learners with emotional disturbances role-play a friendly conversation. You'll describe the desired behavior, modeling conversation techniques, and coaching as they have a...
Curated OER
What's Integrity?
Students explore the trait of integrity. In this character education instructional activity, students read letters by Steve Williams pertaining to jobs that help others. Students discuss the jobs WilIiams shares as well as integrity in...
Curated OER
Social Competence
Intended for adults with special needs, but appropriate for upper graders as well, this activity encourages appropriate interpersonal communication. They practice responding to various situations in a role play setting. The lesson plan...
Curated OER
Social Behavior at Lunch and Dinner
Having appropriate behavior at special events, lunch, and dinner is key for all learners to master. Individuals with special needs are videotaped in several social settings, they watch and assess their own behavior in each setting in...
Curated OER
Identity, Belonging, and Social Inclusion
Students explore personal and social identity. In this character education activity, students create identity profiles and design welcome plans for their school community in order to build personal and community identities.
Curated OER
Graduation Requirements
Ninth graders make decisions, set goals, and take necessary action to achieve goals. They review their school course descriptions book. Students review the graduation requirements from the book. They are given an handout "Graduation...
Curated OER
Freshmen Mentor Program: Meeting My Mentor
Students develop skills that address the transition from middle to high school. They take part in a series of activities that help them to become more comfortable in their new social setting.
Curated OER
Theatre: Exploratory Techniques
Using various exploratory techniques, young actors work as an ensemble company to devise, perform and evaluate a piece of theatre for assessment. This outline provides an objective and a list of games and activities that stimulate skills...
Curated OER
Module: Self-Awareness
When considering future careers, lifestyle priorities are a big factor. Learners consider their own goals as they explore professional options. Begin with a discussion about what comprises a lifestyle, encouraging kids to think about...
Curated OER
Short & Long-Term Goal Setting
Getting ready for the real word can start with understanding what you want to do when you grow up. Upper graders use the provided worksheets to consider what they'd most like to do as they leave school and enter the workforce. They...
Curated OER
My Response to Stress
High schoolers search for ways to prevent stress. They conduct self-assessments, plan a stress clinic, research community resources, and write a reflective essay. Students may wear electronic heart rate monitors to demonstrate stress...
Curated OER
Chemosynthesis for the Classroom
Explorers set up Windogradsky columns with local mud so that they can culture microorganisms. After three and six weeks they make observations of the mud and the organisms growing in it. For this way they observe succession and relate...
Teaching Tolerance
The Power of Words: Normative Sexuality
Students collect newspaper articles which discuss societies who enforce heterosexuality. They brainstorm how heterosexuality is enforced in their community. They answer questions to end the instructional activity.
Curated OER
Detecting Breast Cancer
Learners develop a painless means for identifying cancerous tumors. In this imaging lesson plan students list the information that may be needed to answer the problem.
Curated OER
Conversation Lesson: Internet Craze
Learning to support your opinions, debate, build arguments, and effectively respect another's point of view are vital skills. Learners work through a series of topics to practice discussion engagement and verbal communication.
Curated OER
Personal/Social Development: Preparing for Scholarships
Prepare your class for applying to scholarships with this lesson. Although very bare-bones, this plan provides a writing prompt for learners that will surely get them thinking about how to present themselves to the outside world. The...
Curated OER
Depression: Behavioral Activation
Self-awareness is an important life skill. Not intended to replace treatment for clinical depression, this sheet offers class members a chance to identify activities they enjoy and responsibilities they have, and a chart to record how...