What are the differences between homeschooling, traditional schooling, and unschooling? Middle and high schoolers examine the opinions of their peers on these varied types of education. After reading a New York Times article, they...

Meet with the school library specialist and work together to plan a visit and presentation on figurative language. After defining and examining examples of targeted terms, the class travels to the library where the SL has collected...

Young scholars explore political parties by researching world history in class. For this Australian government lesson, students identify the term "federation" and discuss the elements of Australian politics. Young scholars analyze a map...

Young scholars investigate the uses of images, shapes and colors in classic art sculptures.  In this art analysis lesson, students observe Malagan Figures, a type of sculpture from New Guinea, and describe the different ideas and...

Finished your novel? What’s next? Designing the book cover, of course. But how to begin? After examining the covers of published books and noting the common elements of these jackets, young novelists design a front and back cover for...

Young scholars examine the contributions of African Americans in New Haven, Connecticut in the 19th and 20th centuries. After being introduced to new vocabulary, they review the elements of autobiographies and read excerpts of African...

First graders explore reading comprehension by analyzing a story in class. In this story structure lesson, 1st graders read the book New Shoes for Sylvia and discuss the character and her dilemma in the story. Students answer study...

Students work together in groups to identify new vocabulary words. They read a story about the new Maori King in New Zealand and answer questions. They also examine reported speech in the article.

High schoolers examine the conditions in France and Spain during the Middle Ages and the Discovery of America. In groups, they compare and contrast the political situations in both countries and what effect they had on the New World. ...

Young scholars are introduced to the way the Japanese celebrate the new year. Using the internet, they compare and contrast the celebrations in Japan with those in Korea. After being read a story, they complete a worksheet on the series...

Students discuss what they know about Hurricane Katrina and the city of New Orleans. In groups, they use they match the new vocabulary words to their definitions. They read an article about Hurricane Katrina and answer questions.

Students investigate U.S. history by listening to an economics lecture. For this U.S. government lesson, students research the "New Deal" which happened after the Great Depression. Students identify movies, books and music from the...

Have your middle and high schoolers analyze instances of celebrities using racial slurs or making prejudiced comments in public. After reading an article, they consider the roots and effects of prejudice and bias. As a class, they...

Lead your class in a discussion about how they believe money influences politics. After reading "Go Ahead, Try to Stop K Street" from the New York Times, they evaluate the claims in the article about the current lobbyist scandal in...

If you give your teacher a book, she'll probably want an activity guide to go with it. Have fun learning with a wonderful selection of hands on activities created for the book, If You Take a Mouse to School. Each activity focuses on...

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...

How has the Internet of Things affected our lives? Scholars examine the massive influence of mobile devices in this analysis lesson, which begins with a seven-minute documentary clip. They also read a New York Times article (linked)...

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...

This second activity 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...

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...

Help writers recognize how word order affects meaning, discover new words, and confirm or check meaning writing. They will explore how punctuation helps a reader understand what is written and the connections between punctuation,...

Students examine the messages given to others based on their clothing. In groups, they compare and contrast the clothes of today with those from the 1980s. While being shown a picture of a piece of clothing, they practice object...

Analyze characters and stories to identify stereotyping. Learners will examine the concept of character gender to evaluate bias in classroom story books. They are asked to read a story or play and change the gender of the character to...