Criticism of news and entertainment journalism is at an all-time high. Help 21st-century learners develop the media literacy skills they need to become critical consumers with a three-lesson guide the looks at persuasive techniques used...

Math is all about finding patterns. In this ask, scholars first investigate a sequence formed by squaring the sum of the digits in the previous term. They go on to investigate a second sequence and write an algebraic expression for this...

Examine the mechanism of photosynthesis through different light scenarios. Pupils vary the amount and type of light exposure on plant leaves in the fifth lesson plan in a 12-part series. Through observation, they determine the rate of...

Third graders word process, edit text and add images from the Internet to a document. They explore copyright, fair use, how to evaluate web sites and citing sources.

Middle schoolers listen to a guest speaker about the different types of advertising. Using research materials, they discover the laws about copyrighting material. They visit foreign websites to view their advertising and discuss how it...

This second lesson in a larger unit is perfect for the beginning of the year because it explicitly teaches 3rd graders how to use close reading skills by identifying unfamiliar words, figuring out the gist, and defining important...

Writing a paragraph from details found directly in a text is the central focus of this thorough and explicit lesson plan. Using the stories Nasreen's Secret School and Rain School, third graders are lead step-by-step...

Third graders answer text-dependent questions of the story Nasreen's Secret School both independently and then collaboratively through using the carousel of questions strategy. This plan is the seventh instructional activity in a...

Students study the basic elements of the Earth's crust: rocks, soils and minerals. They categorize rocks, soils and minerals and how they are literally the foundation for our civilization. They also explore how engineers use rock soils...

Students evaluate the impact climates have on the building of structures. They research the different types of materials used to build houses in various climates and build small models of houses which are tested against different climates.

Differentiate between temperature and thermal energy. Your class will build a thermometer using simple materials and develop their own scale for measuring temperature. Discuss with your class and consider why engineers need to understand...

Groups rotate through a series of stations and work with a partner to observe sound waves. Children describe sound in terms of pitch, volume, and frequency. To apply their new knowledge, the class considers how these observations can...

Students reverse engineer a cereal. In this dietary activity students identify the minerals that the human body needs to function. Students examine how foods are fortified by food engineers. Students find the amount of iron in a cereal...

The engaging story Rain School is further explored in the third lesson of a larger unit that explicitly teaches close reading skills by answering questions whose answers can only be found inside the text. Through teacher...

Explicitly explained and delightfully detailed are two ways to describe this tenth lesson plan in a larger unit designed for the first few weeks of third grade. Learners continue to use and develop previously learned close reading...

For this ninth lesson plan in a larger beginning-of-the-year unit, close reading skills are used independently to find the gist of the story That Book Woman. Rereading for important details is the targeted skill to unlock a deeper...

Young engineers are instructed to design and build their own solar water heaters. Then, they calculate the efficiency and cost and compare them to commercially available models. This is a full unit for pupils to apply their knowledge.

A fascinating lesson on how solar power is utilized by people who live in the Himalayas is here for you. In it, learners perform a case study which will help them understand that solar energy is a renewable resource, that geography...

Junior geneticists tally eye color and height in their lab groups. They examine certain traits in soybean and corn seedlings. For each activity, they gather data and learn about continuous and discontinuous genetic variation. In another...

A micro-unit on the phase changes of water includes three laboratory activities. Junior scientists compare the densities of ice and water, and then they do the same for cold and warm water. They examine freezing and boiling temperatures....

Density comes to life as investigators place soda cans into containers of various liquids to find if they sink or float. They layer different density liquids, compare densities of different gases, and more. A total of six different...

The highlight of this series is activitiy #4. Anatomy pupils examine slides of three unknown cells. With the function of the nervous system in mind, they consider the structure of each and try to guess which one is part of that system....

Can you train a worm? Biology buffs will have a blast trying! Using planaria or earthworms, they introduce a certain stimulus repeatedly until the desired response happens more quickly. They also explore the response of their own eyes to...

Physics learners make magic with inertia! By pulling paper out from under a stack of blocks or batting a rubber ball into motion, physics scholars' eyes will be opened! Don't think that this lesson is only fun and games; plenty of...