Urban communities are the focus of a series of lessons created to meet specific needs using differentiated instruction. A pre-assessment designates scholars into three groups based on their ability level. Small groups take part in...

Investigate the growth and development of New York City with the final lesson in this four-part series on skyscrapers. Learners first explore the concept of urban growth by looking closely at a series of three paintings made of Wall...

Cities are compared to living, breathing, metabolizing organisms. Fourth in a five-part series of lessons, this one focuses on the flow of materials through a city. Links to interesting websites and images make your delivery of...

Urban spaces are often overlooked and broken down. Offer your pupils the opportunity to reimagine an urban space. Learners examine and discuss works of art related to this theme and consider their own communities. Small groups then...

New roads, new businesses, new developments, new mass transit systems. All growth has both positive and negative effects on communities. Government classes investigate the principles of Maryland's 1997 Smart Growth program and...

Besides serving as awe-inspiring monuments of human achievement, skyscrapers are built to perform a wide range of functions in urban communities. The second lesson plan in this series begins by exploring the history of the Empire State...

Traffic is a very real concern for any Urban dweller. After watching a video showing various traffic issues and solutions, learners group up to discuss and develop innovative traffic solutions of their own. They explore vocabulary and...

The industrialization and urbanization of Alabama during the New South era (1865-1914) is the focus of a lesson that asks class members to use primary source documents to examine the impact of industrialization on Alabama workers and...

Pupils record temperatures at different locations around campus. They examine the results and draw conclusions about how materials and colors affect the amount of heat produced. They also analyze Los Angeles' temperature records over a...

This 3-day immigration study draws on historical trends and current events. A worksheet accompanies initial research on one group's U.S. immigration history, giving opportunity for collaborative learning through sharing findings. Groups...

While cities had only a small fraction of the population in colonial America, they played a significant role in pre-revolutionary years, and this was certainly true for the largest city in the North American colonies: Philadelphia. Your...

Do great gardeners really have green thumbs—or just really great soil? Environmental scholars discover what makes Earth's soil and soil quality so important through research and experimentation. Learners also develop an understanding of...

Agriculture, deforestation, and urbanization. How have human's changed the planet and how might we mitigate the effects of human activity on the planet? To answer these questions class members research the changes in human land use from...

A fantastic lesson on urban air pollution problems throughout the world is here for you. Learners understand that there are many factors involved in creating pollution, that there are many health effects brought on by air pollution, and...

Develop critical thinkers and awareness of the media's techniques. Impressionable minds analyze advertisements they see all around them in this potentially 3-week long unit of five complete lesson plans. Extended discussions, outside...

What would be your class's ideal world 30 years in the future? What about 100 years? Use a series of activities to discuss globalization, sustainability, scientific contributions to society, and the global community of which your...

To some people, protesting is as American as apple pie, but the factors that lead to protests can be as confusing to veteran activists as to today's youth. Revolution '67 explores the riots in Newark, New Jersey as a case study. ...

After watching a short online film about a soccer player Nolusindiso Plaatje and his help with the Grassroot Soccer program, a community education effort aimed at spreading awareness about HIV/AIDS prevention, use a lesson...

The link to Ideas for Resources: Geology Manual is no longer valid, but the link to How to Teach Using Role-Playing does. Choose a realistic problem related to your focus topic, assign roles, and send your geology learners off to...

Students examine the historical, social, and cultural context of modernist poetry. They explore websites, complete a chart, compare/contrast rural and urban life, watch a video of early New York, and complete a writing assessment...

The construction of skyscrapers is no simple undertaking, involving the careful coordination and planning of many different people. The third activity in this series explores this detailed process by first teaching children about the...

What were the arguments put forth by those who opposed the 19th Amendment? For those in favor? Class members examine primary source materials that illustrate the intense debate in Alabama about women's suffrage.

Could you live without your phone? What about cars, steel, or clothing? Class groups collaborate to produce presentations that argue that either the telephone, the gramophone, the automobile, the textile industry, or the steel...

The activity really comes to life within its intended unit on starting a rain garden. Working in groups, participants research native plants and coordinate them with the conditions in the designated garden area. Give the class access to...