Social Studies and role-playing can go hand in hand. Learners use supporting evidence found in primary and secondary source material to develop a character from the Five Points neighborhood in the 1850s. Each student takes on the role of...

Role play as a person living in the 1830s working in a Lowell factory. The class will take on the role of factory owner, girl on strike, talk show host, and girl not wanting to strike. Each group will analyze and research their character...

Young biologists begin researching giardia and completing an epidemiologic triangle. They then portray either a parent of a sick child or a physician in a fun role play activity. 

Five segements from Ken Burns' documentary series Prohibition, easily accessed on the PBS website, are at the center of a terrific short unit on the roots of America's ambivalent relationship with alcohol. Engage your secondary...

How can your journalism class ensure they use social media responsibly and legally? The sixth instructional activity in a 16-part Social Media Toolbox series asks pupils to dig deep into the legal aspects of social media use by school...

You are a diplomat during the Age of Empire: prepare a briefing about your country. Young scholars take on the challenge using a role-play exercise to examine various empires during the rise of global interconnectedness. Materials...

Students conduct research into looking at a free-speech issue. They role play the events surrounding a court case. The lesson includes guiding questions to help create context and determine areas of further study. The presentation...

Learners are assigned various roles to play in simulation intended to demonstrate the difficult choices involved in keeping relative on a life support system. They research a case, prepare their roles, and present their positions to the...

Enter the fantastical world of  "Dungeons and Dragons" and other role-playing games with this lesson from The New York Times. Middle schoolers create the outline for a role-playing game based on their own community. Then, they...

Middle schoolers explore communication by participating in a role playing lesson. In this media analysis lesson, students answer surveys about their own television watching habits and compare them to the rest of the class. Middle...

Learners explore and recognize social structures. In this social standards lesson, students discuss social problems and cliques. Learners role play and search for bible verses that reflect how God wants them to handle social situations....

Learners investigate body systems by participating in a role-play activity. Third, fourth, and fifth graders pretend that they are an organ or system of the human body, and they must write a letter to the body "corporation" discussing...

Delve into the Age of Exploration with a multiple-intelligences research project. Learners generate a rubric and worksheet to guide their studies and research one explorer. There is emphasis on research skills, citing sources,...

Students participate in role-play activities to explain that emotional and social effects of prejudice discussed in the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird.

Eighth graders apply their knowledge of North American history from the mid 1600's through the mid 1700's to a role-playing scenario. In small groups they plan, write, and perform a dramatic skit of a group that was affected by events in...

Use this multidisciplinary lesson to delve into these subjects: English language arts, math, science, drama, and character education. After reading, discussing, and making interpretations about Go To Sleep, Gecko!: A Balinese...

Students explore insect life by participating in a role-playing activity. In this mosquito life instructional activity, students listen to a role-play scenario in which they must protect a town from mosquitoes by creating a field guide...

It's time to party like it's 1899! Incorporate a research-based celebration of the Victorian Era into your unit on A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. After learners read the novella or view a production of the play, they craft a...

Conflicts happen, conflicts grow, it's how to handle them that middle schoolers need to know. Introduce tweens to a problem-solving approach for handling anger with a series of activities that has class members read articles, research...

Using primary and secondary sources, such as letters and diaries from soldiers and civilians, learners consider why people fought in the American Civil War. A role-playing Historical Mingle activity, as well as discussion questions and...

Young scholars research a leader or achiever, prepare a poster, and participate in a panel discussion and role play.  For this contributions by people of diverse backgrounds lesson, students choose a leader and find three resources...

Students inquire about the lives of the First Ladies in our country. In this First Ladies activity, students build knowledge about the contributions of First Ladies and how their childhood made them the person they are. Students do a...

Students explore psychology by answering gender study questions. In this sexuality instructional activity, students discuss the stereotypes often referred to men and woman and what the truth is about their characteristics and abilities....

Class members identify gender-specific roles and expectations in American society today by surveying adults, examining modern entertainment, and researching historical figures.