Voices from the past. Young scholars listen to a podcast interview with a historical re-enactor as they continue their research in the eleventh instructional activity of this unit on colonial trade. Applying their close reading skills,...

This second instructional 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...

Note-taking is an essential study skill, and it needs to be taught! In the context of a research project on energy sources, learners find multiple sources, evaluating, paraphrasing, and citing them correctly. Two lists with note-taking...

Did you hear that? It's the main idea! Teach your class listening and note-taking strategies for determining the main idea by following the steps provided in this plan.

Encourage your young writers to thoughtfully plan and organize their work. First, model how this is done and vocalize your thought process as you work. Next, create a class list of strategies that they can use during independent writing...

In instructional activity 13 of this unit on colonial trade, young researchers learn about apprentices as they prepare to write help-wanted ads for the specific trade they have been researching. To begin, the class listens closely as the...

How did the ancient people of Egypt preserve their dead so well that their bodies are still recognizable today? Learn the painstakingly complex process they used for preservation. Young scholars read and summarize a narrative detailing...

Understanding the soldier's experiences during World War I sometimes takes a newscast. Learners see the importance of understanding multiple points of view with a newscast project surrounding the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. Compare and...

Take a stand! Even the most reluctant speakers find their voices if the topics are engaging. Use pictures, photos, or word prompts (I think pizza is the best lunch on the school menu. What do you think?) to stir responses. Encourage...

As part of a group of lessons, your class will return to the primary text for this unit, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Key vocabulary as well as close reading strategies continue to be the focus skills; however, this lesson...

High schoolers need to be prepared to enter the job market during or after high school. Here are six preparational activities geared at getting those kids ready to enter the job market. They conduct research on various jobs, learn...

Class members develop interview questions and then one volunteer interviews a new principal (the instructor) while the entire class watches and takes notes. Participants then individually consider an interesting angle from which the...

Great for a reading intervention or remedial Language Arts class, this lesson uses two stories from Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul III ("Terri Jackson" and "Mary Lou" to reinforce note-taking skills, story elements, and comparing and...

Mature audiences are required for this lesson on implementing health-related policies. First, they openly explore the CDC obesity page while taking notes about what they discover. Then they view a PowerPoint about the success of public...

First graders take a look at schools of the past and present, and try to conjure an idea of what schools of the future will look like. After taking a walk around their own school and taking note of the buildings and the things that are...

Introduce your class to epic heroes with these activities for Beowulf. After watching a video clip, taking notes on heroes, and tracking characteristics of heroism throughout Beowulf, class members retell an episode of Beowulf using a...

After preparing baked potato nachos, the class views a PowerPoint about healthy food choices and takes notes on an accompanying worksheet. Although the PowerPoint is educational, the majority of the time is used for preparing and...

Reading, writing, and rings! A lesson plan from NASA combines space science with authentic reading and writing tasks. Included in this lesson plan are pre-reading activities, four mini informational booklets on Saturn, a...

Young biologists take a look at some of the unique ways that nocturnal animals survive in the dark. After reading a terrific student handout which is embedded in the plan, learners work together to answer questions about what they have...

Here is lesson 9 in an extensive series on teaching and learning ASL. Discuss code switching, numerical incorporation, and noun based vocabulary. Then, click on the blue links to view ASL in action. Each link takes you to a printable...

Connect the ideas of jazz improvisation and art to writing poetry. Learners collaborate and write different lines of poetry, imitating the jazz styles of improvisation and freewriting. Take a close look at the poems "Tenebrae" by Yusef...

Space explorers take a virtual trip around the sun right within your classroom! They stand in a circle facing away from the "sun" (a lamp) in the center of the room. As they move according to your instructions, they view different...

Here is an astounding series of lessons, designed for high schoolers, on environmental policy. By studying water conservation in rural India, the role of the government, and the reaction of the people, learners begin to formulate...

Elementary schoolers explore the concepts associated with comparison shopping, and the concept of need versus want. They also look closely at the power of advertising and become more aware of the messages that ads present. After taking...