Here is an outstanding series of lessons on journalism, writing newspaper articles, and writing editorials. This type of writing has long-been neglected in our schools, so this collection of writing activities is most-valuable. Along...

What a fun idea! The class discusses, and then writes free-verse poems using sensory detail. They get into small collaborative writing teams to compose their poems. Next, they pantomime the actions from the poem while their teammates...

Patterns happen everywhere, in music, math, and language! Fourth graders listen to the "William Tell Overture" visualizing the patterns that they hear. They then discuss and write an ABA poem that matches the ABA form found in the music...

Students read an article on the English language. In this ESL lesson, students explore the meaning of the term 'diplomatic English,' then complete several activities centered around the article.  Activities include vocabulary,...

Students examine the use of imagery to hold a reader's attention in an excerpt from John Deever's memoir "Mr. John and the Day of Knowledge". They are introduced to background information about the Ukraine and create original imagery.

William Bell's Forbidden City is used as the basis of a study of China, Chinese culture and government, and especially of the events in Tiananmen Square in 1989. Class members select a topic for Internet research and then prepare a...

I absolutely love this idea. Kids explore the chiaroscuro technique as they draw, then bite, then write about an apple. They discuss chiaroscuro, depth, shade, perspective, and texture. Then they draw their apples, write a descriptive...

Students explore how consumers have become as proficient in computer technology as specialists were a decade ago. They create and conduct a test to determine the proficiencies of people in their school community.

Students explore rhyming words. In this rhyming lesson, students discuss rhyming words, brainstorm words that end with 'at,' read poems with rhyming words and create their own rhyming books.

Whether it's St. Patrick's Day or not, this lesson can be a great way to study James Joyce and how his heritage has influenced his writing. The lesson is meant to be used with the Gale database, specifically the Student Resource Center...

Grrrrr, gargoyles are on the loose! Young artists are familiarized with the history of gargoyles, examine pictures of them, and hear a story about them. Then, they draw a gargoyle and write down exactly how they did it (procedural...

You can mix almost any subject with an arts curriculum. Find out how to use drama to find the main idea of a literary text. You'll read a story, and then learners will make tableaus showing what happened, or what they think will happen...

Explore character, plot, and setting through dramatic puppet play. Second graders discuss basic story elements and then practice making a character with their sock puppets. After they've crafted a dynamic puppet, they pair up to create a...

Ideas like this are highly effective for helping build better reading comprehension. The class listens to an excerpt from a grade-appropriate text, and they discuss what clues or words helped them visualize the scene. They then read a...

Culture and art are two things that change with time and context. Learners compare and contrast two landscape prints from different time periods. They work through art terminology to help them describe what they see in each piece. The...

Students work on their sign language skills using yarn balls to tag with and cones for boundaries.

Ninth graders familiarize themselves with the English Renaissance period and recognize the symbolism in Act V of "The Merchant of Venice" and analyze how it relates to the Italian Renaissance Themes. They produce an extended response...

Did you know that the world's first novel was written by a woman? Murasaki Shikibu's The Tale of Genji, was published in 1021. Class members research Eastern and Western cultures in the 10th and 11th centuries, view modern adaptations of...

If you could travel anywhere in the United States, where would you go? Use this question to interest your fourth, fifth, and sixth graders as they experiment with Mapquest or other direction-based resources. They choose where they'd like...

Students research a location of their choice using the internet. They list the characteristics of the location and why they chose it as their ideal vacation spot. Using maps, they pinpoint their destination and trace their route. They...

Learners of all ages interview, record, and photograph teachers and staff at their school. They organize the photo with a soundbite into a PowerPoint presentation. They transcribe the interview and write a response to it. 

Writers create an original mystery and have a chance to put it into movie format. The classic elements of a mystery must be present: the crime, the suspects, the motive, the solution and clues. Use iPhoto and Quicktime Movie to integrate...

Students explore illusions by drawing and viewing images in class. In this art perspective lesson, students analyze a skeleton outline drawing which demonstrates the ability to draw in a two point perspective. Students utilize the...

First graders listen to the story The Hungry Caterpillar, then sequentially organize their own re-writing and re-creating of the story. They construct illustrations for their book using the collage technique Eric Carle used in his...