How have birds evolved from prehistoric animals? With the three-part lesson plan, small groups first research different prehistoric animals and determine whether they are birds. Then, scholars explore different bird adaptations using the...

Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is controversial. Like many other Angelou books, it is frequently challenged or banned from schools. In fact, Angelou is one of the most frequently banned authors in the United States. An...

Science and language skills come together in The King of the Birds. After reading, discuss the names and types of birds in the story and write given sentences to portray the difference between comparative and superlative adjectives....

What do a bird and a shark have in common? Work on r-controlled vowels with a phonics matching game. Kids examine the 12 words on a game board, then add the card that has the correct matching r-controlled vowel. 

Young environmentalists study the effects that pesticides have on birds, such as the peregrine falcon. They also look at predator/prey interactions. Some wonderful in-class activities accompany an inventive lesson. After an activity that...

Turn your students into flocks of migratory birds for this fun lesson on animal migration. Prior to the activity, the teacher creates four different migration routes in the classroom or any available open space, labeling nesting...

Are birds descendants of dinosaurs? Learners consider the question as they watch an informative video comparing fossil records of dinosaurs with current species. Following the video, groups ponder the evidence to draw conclusions about...

Readers of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings are asked to craft an essay in which they compare how Maya Angelou uses figurative language to depict herself and Mrs. Flowers. 

Double click that mouse because you just found an amazing lesson plan! This cross-curricular Ornithology lesson plan incorporates literature, writing, reading informational text, data collection, scientific inquiry, Internet research,...

Fish, fowl, foul fish, or foul fowl? Just what is a siren? Young scholars listen to a video clip and draw what they imagine when they hear the word "siren." After watching several videos depicting sirens, class members read "The Sirens'...

An incredibly thorough, and well-designed lesson teaches youngsters about the presumed extinction and rediscovery of the ivory-billed woodpecker in Arkansas. Learners discuss the environmental factors that led to the birds disappearance....

Understanding how viruses spread has never been more important. A well-designed WebQuest lesson has young scientists research viruses, how they spread, and how they are treated. They also consider the trends in common viruses in the world.

Launch a study of Maya Angelou's "I know Why the Caged Bird Sings" with the Youtube video of Alicia Keys singing her "Caged Bird." Groups then read Angelou's poem and discuss the symbols employed. Although the text of the poem is not...

It's a bird! It's a bee! Actually, it's your learners flying from flower to flower smelling their scents! Using paper flowers and essential oils, pupils flutter between flowers to use their sense of smell to experience how animals use...

An interesting lesson takes pupils on a trip through the carbon cycle. A reading passage allows scholars to take notes and make choices about what happens to the carbon on its journey. This third lesson in a series of 21 discusses...

The story of one bird provides valuable insight into general animal behaviors and interactions. Young researchers investigate the peregrine falcon using a web search. They analyze the behaviors of the raptor including its migration...

How are animals classified? Scholars explore animal classification by observing non-living and living specimens. They learn how to organize animals into vertebrates and invertebrates and identify the five vertebrate groups: mammals,...

Upper elementary artists create works which demonstrate an understanding of the many elements of theater and the visual arts. This four-day plan combines many wonderful aspects of visual, musical, and theatrical arts into one very...

A collection of photos and accompanying descriptions describing the life cycle of an Adelie penguin is the highlight of this resource. Working in groups, polar explorers match the descriptions to the pictures and create a timeline. An...

Approach addition with young mathematicians in an engaging way through this penguin-inspired activity. In small groups, scholars think about times they have used addition in their real lives (there are some suggestions given), then watch...

Would a bluebird be as scary as a vulture? Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" is the central text in a lesson about symbolism. After a close reading of the poem, learners consider what the raven might represent to the narrator. They then...

The Clark's nutcracker bird hides seeds in 25,000 different sites every year to save for winter. Lesson demonstrates how difficult it would be to find these seeds months later when they need them for food. In the first of five lesson,...

A well-designed lesson plan which covers the characteristics of the animals found in the six animal groups is here for your young biologists. In it, learners divide up into six groups; the amphibians, reptiles, mammals, birds, fish, and...

By studying the assumed extinction, and subsequent rediscovery of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker, learners use maps and come up with a scenario for the rediscovery of the bird. This incredibly thorough lesson plan is chock-full of...