To prepare for a field trip to a local art museum, art class members journal their initial reactions to a reproduction of the work they will focus on during their visit. The whole class then considers the artistic elements in the piece...

Challenge readers of John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath to create a museum exhibit that uses artifacts to focus on one issue raised by the award winning story of the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, and the Joads.

According to the United Nations, climate change affects every country on the planet. This research project encourages scholars to explore the factors that affect climate change from different perspectives: climate scientist, policy...

Harriet Tubman saved hundreds from slavery through what was called the Underground Railroad. Teach learners about her amazing accomplishments through the article that uses effective direct instruction. After reading, scholars break into...

Artists working in different media often explore the same themes—to model how these same themes weave their way through different forms of artistic expression, scholars analyze images by Dorothea Lange, identifying key themes in her...

Celebrate Eric Carle’s beloved children’s books, especially those about animals. Teachers and readers alike engage in Carle’s books as they explore the art and color in each of his stories, and how these elements support comprehension.

As part of a study of women in Congress, class members read the contextual essay, "A Changing of the Guard; Traditionalist, Feminist, and the New Face of Women in Congress, 1955–1976." Groups then research a woman serving during this...

Math and science come together in this cross-curricular astronomy lesson plan on planetary motion. Starting off with a hands-on activity that engages the class in exploring the geometry of circles and ellipses, this lesson...

What is the relationship among the heart, circulation, and exercise? Your class members will explore first-hand how different physical exercises affect an individual's heart rate. They will begin by learning how to measure their own...

Celebrate Women's History with a museum display. Divide the class into seven groups and assign each a different historical topic/time period. Each group member researches a different woman of that time period and creates an exhibit that...

Although designed for the Canadian War Museum, the concept here is a solid one. Class members select an artifact from the First World War, examine it, research it, and craft an explanative label that they attach to their picture and post...

Planning for your next activity on ancient Israel, but not sure where to start? Check out this assortment of activities to help get the ball rolling. It includes a range of ideas on topics, such as Greek and Egyptian mythology,...

To better understand the role women played in early 17th century US history, class members examine the National Women's History Museum's online exhibit, Building the New World: the Women of Jamestown Settlement. After studying the 11...

Explore human anatomy and physiology using models. Scholars study systems of the human body and design a display for a museum exhibit. To complete the activity, individuals create analogous models of their chosen human body systems.

Ray Charles used the pain and adversity from his life to influence an entire genre of American music. Learn about the musician's daily life, struggles and success, and powerful musical style with a thorough resource.

Often forgotten and written off as the model minority, Americans with heritage in Asia and the Pacific Islands have played an essential role in American history, including Congress. Budding historians reclaim history by researching the...

How far back is 40,000 years? Scholars research the first indigenous people in Aboriginal Australia. Using museum artifacts, maps, and background readings, they form conclusions on the life of the first Australians and their struggles to...

The guiding question for this lesson is "Do computers and their contents shape who we are?" Open with a selection of Apple's commercials to introduce stereotypes and people's relationships with their computers. Then, read the attached...

Who done it? Class groups adopt the role of crime scene investigators and examine exhibits (primary source documents) to determine who attempted to assassinate the members of the Medici dynasty.

What is an alien's favorite game? All-star baseball! Scholars start defining living and non-living. Then, they conduct experiments to research if life exists, keeping in mind that life could be in many forms, not just human. 

Young scientists learn how to select a scale factor for a large scale model. Then they figure the scale for each of the planets and the distance between them. Finally, they construct a giant scale model of the solar system and answer...

Are serving sizes for different foods always appropriate for what you need? In this hands-on activity, learners work in groups to estimate what one serving size of various foods are, and then evaluate their hypotheses by measuring...

Teach pupils the characteristics that make George Washington such an effective leader, especially in context of his time period. Scholars view artifacts, participate in group work, create lists, compare and contrast, and discuss as a...

Young scientists investigate the scientific concepts and principles that help make common toys such as hula hoops, yo-yos, slinkies, and silly putty work. As a class, they read "Backyard Rocket Science, Served Wet" to get a look behind...