Writing
Breaking News English

The World Is 0.28% More Peaceful Than a Year Ago

For Students 6th - 12th
Some days, the world seems like it is becoming darker, but research suggests that the world might actually be becoming a more peaceful place. An informational reading passage accompanied by a series of activities builds English language...
Lesson Plan
The New York Times

Evaluating Sources in a ‘Post-Truth’ World: Ideas for Teaching and Learning about Fake News

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
The framers of the United States Constitution felt a free press was so essential to a democracy that they granted the press the protection it needed to hold the powerful to account in the First Amendment. Today, digital natives need to...
Unit Plan
University of  Wisconsin

Teaching Things Fall Apart in Wisconsin: A Resource Guide for Educators

For Teachers 11th - Higher Ed
“There is no story that is not true, . . .” And uncovering the truths in Things Fall Apart is the focus of a 68-page resource packet designed to provide instructors with a wealth of materials that enhance understanding of Chinua Achebe’s...
Lesson Plan
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Boys Town

More Tools for Teaching Social Skills in School

For Teachers 3rd - 12th Standards
Put an end to wasted instructional time with this lesson on responsibility and preparedness. After completing this series of activities students will learn the importance of these social skills not only in the classroom, but at...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

World Literature: “The Wounded” By Lu Xinhua

For Teachers 10th
“The Wounded,” the title story from a collection of stories about the Chinese Cultural Revolution (1977-78), is the central text in a World Literature unit examining choices. An anticipation guide, discussion topics, vocabulary list,...
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Curated OER

Monster Plants Storia Teaching Guide

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
Who wouldn't want to read a book about monster plants? Get those kids into informational texts with an engaging topic, like meat eating plants! You'll use the teaching guide to provide structured practice as your class reads to...
Lesson Plan
Scholastic

The Class Election from the Black Lagoon Storia Teaching Guide

For Teachers 2nd - 3rd Standards
One of my favorite things about this resource is that they use a standardized lexile to help you determine who should be reading what book. I also love this great teacher's guide for the book, The Class Election from the Black...
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National Park Service

A Natural Resource Called Peace

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
Get your pupils outside and teach them about peace at the same time! Scholars create a list describing peace, hike outside, add to that list, and later create poems. The exercises support differentiation for your individual classes as...
Unit Plan
Washington University in St. Louis

Teaching Jazz as American Culture

For Students 6th - 12th
Jazz and the City, Jazz and the Civil Rights Movement, Jazz and Gender, Jazz and Literature, Jazz and the Arts, Jazz and Film. Here's a packet of unit plans organized around themes that reflect American culture. Each unit examines how...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Myths, Folktales, & Fairy Tales

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Introduce the concept of myths to your class. Using the link to "Myths Around the World," read a story aloud and have learners list characteristics of a myth. Readers then choose their own myths from the site and work in groups to answer...
Activity
PBS

Dear Pen Pal

For Teachers 1st - 6th Standards
Explore cultures from around the world with an engaging pen pal resource. Through a series of classroom activities and written correspondence, children learn about the favoritec pastimes, schooling, geography, and weather that is...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Teaching the Holocaust through Literature

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Centered on the short story "The Tenth Man" by Polish Holocaust survivor Ida Fink, here is a solid one-day resource to support study of World War II or Nazi history, short stories, or to complement any ELA unit on The Diary of Anne Frank...
Lesson Plan
Avi Writer

City of Orphans: Teaching Guide

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
"Amazing things happen" in Avi's City of Orphans, and the suggestions in this teacher's resource will guide readers through through the many stories of the different characters living in the tenements of 1893 New York.
Activity
Ingram

Teaching Guide Charlotte's Web

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Enrich your study of Charlotte's Web by E.B. White with this useful resource. Included here are 22 discussion questions, 15 extension ideas, and 10 curriculum questions that cover characters, plot, farming, and much, much more.
Unit Plan
Curated OER

Educator's Guide: Holes

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
You'll be a star at your next grade level meeting with an educational unit on Louis Sachar's Holes. Based on both the novel and film, the lessons include applications to language arts with character studies and movie reviews; social...
Unit Plan
University of Texas

Let's Go to Argentina/¡Vámonos a Argentina!

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
Give your young Spanish language learners a lesson in culture! Focus on learning Spanish though exploring Argentinian culture. Pupils interact with maps, fill out travel journals, discuss time and food, learn and practice new vocabulary...
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Curated OER

Basil Heatter, "The Long Night of the Little Boats"

For Teachers 7th - 9th Standards
“It was a miracle.” Basil Heatter’s “The Long Night of the Little Boats,” which details the miraculous rescue of the British army from the shores of Dunkirk in 1940, is featured in a series of exercises that ask class members to read,...
Lesson Plan
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Curated OER

A Test of Faith

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Secondary schoolers investigate the debate surrounding the current sexual abuse crisis in the Catholic Church with this New York Times lesson. Through discussions and written reflection, they explore their own thoughts and opinions on...
Lesson Plan
John F. Kennedy Center

Baila! Latin Dance in the Spanish Classroom

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
One, two, three. One, two, three. Invite your language learners to practice the steps for researching and presenting information. Each small group has the task of explaining one Latin dance in full detail.
Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Building Background Knowledge: The Lost Boys of Sudan

For Teachers 7th Standards
Get deep! Teach scholars how to make connections between texts to deepen their understanding of a topic. Using the resource, pupils read and annotate a short informational text about Sudan's Civil War and refugee crisis. Next, they...
Unit Plan
Children's Museum of Indianapolis

Anne Frank: Facing Hatred, Daring to Dream

For Teachers 6th - 9th Standards
The stories of Anne Frank, Ruby Bridges, and Ryan White illustrate the power of children to make a difference. The three lesson in this must-have resource are designed to inspire young people to make a difference in their world....
Unit Plan
Media Literacy

Good Versus Evil: Exploring Popular Children's Animation

For Teachers K - 2nd
Dora, Buzz Lightyear, Mufasa. Swiper, Dr. Porkchop, Scar. The six lessons in this unit packet focus on how good and evil, and violence, are portrayed in children's animation. The lessons encourage kids to consider how violence is...
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Japan Society

Our Family and Other Families: Using Totoro to Teach Family Structure

For Teachers 4th - 6th Standards
What do families around the world have in common? Explore this theme through the popular animated film My Neighbor Totoro by Hayao Miyazaki. Over the course of two days, pupils view the film, pausing to discuss their own families and the...
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Curated OER

Rediscovering Forgotten Women Writers

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Women's voices are becoming more prominent in the world of literature, but for centuries, this wasn't the case. Young historians research a woman whose writings are considered to be lost, out of print, or forgotten. They develop an oral...