Overcoming Obstacles
Pass It On!
Inspire teamwork in your classroom with a fun group activity. Peers pass a penny from the back of their hand to their classmate's hand, who passes it down the line, and see who wins the competition.
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Autism and Autism Spectrum Disorders: Disorders Extending Beyond the "Norm"
Learners develop an understanding of autism by engaging in an inquiry-based discussion. Pupils are exposed to the vast array of defining characteristics of autism spectrum disorders. They create posters about the developmental...
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US Government (Cooperative Team and Class-building Activities)
Students participate in team-building activities. In this class identity lesson, students participate in activities and discussion that are intended to improve relationships between students.
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Where in the United States Are We?
Fifth graders collaborate with another fifth grade classroom while learning about various locations in the United States. This is a telecollaborative video conferencing project that is designed for students studying United States history...
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Reliving History through Slave Narratives
Helpful for an American literature or history unit, this lesson prompts middle schoolers to examine slavery in the United States. They read slave narratives that were part of the Federal Writers' Project and then conduct their own...
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Words into Pictures
Students discover the history of writing through images, and the universal themes that are still relevant. In this communications lesson, students analyze a group of symbols on the black board and must translate them into a complete...
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RESPECT -- A Basic Skill
Seventh graders are shown a variety of advertisements and commercials and note the product being sold. As a class, they compare and contrast their answer to the actual product. To end the instructional activity, they discuss whether or...
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Sciences Working Together
High schoolers research articles about science technology and society. In this science and technology instructional activity, students answer questions about an article they chose. They share what they learned with their peers.
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Through Our Eyes
After reading Sandra Cisneros’ novel The House on Mango Street, class members design a canned food drive, create advertisements for the drive, and use digital cameras to document the entire process. In addition, pupils journal their...
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Who Is the Best Person for the Job?
Fourth graders work in groups of four, they are the managers of a new company, needing to hire employees. They brainstorm what they believe is important information to know about a future employee and share their list with the class....
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Cooperative Puzzles
Students discuss and demonstrate how to play and work cooperatively with other people and with a group. In small groups they role-play how to work cooperatively with each other, with the goal of completing their group's puzzle using...
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Lewis and Clark: Prized Possessions
Students consider the role of Sacagawea as part of the Corps of Discovery. In this Lewis and Clark expedition lesson, students discover details about Sacagawea's wampum belt and then create their own wampum belts using their computer and...
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You're Invited to a Ceili: Exploring Irish Dance
Students recognize a Ceili as an Irish dance of celebration and investigate Ireland while studying the dance. In this Irish dance lesson, students search the geography of Ireland, read poetry, identify costumes, draw and perform a dance.
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The Civil Rights Movement
Students learn about the civil rights movement and create a timeline to understand events in chronological order. In this history lesson, students work in groups to choose one activist from the Civil Right era to research. Students then...
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Who’s on First? Cultural Heritage
Students explore their own heritage as they learn more about Roger Clemente. In this social studies and music lesson plan, students study cultural heritage through a study of Puerto Rican music and instruments.
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State Symbols of Michigan
Students study the symbols of the state of Michigan and create a slide show using KidPix. They discuss the diversity of creation within the state of Michigan. Students also discuss how God is in control of the "kings of our earth."
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The Sound of Music in Kenya
Students study Kenya's culture and see how people and things can be different and similar at the same time. They create a pictograph of objects from each culture that are used in similar ways and examine a few Swahili words.
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Africa: Economics And Change
Students examine the gold-mining industry in Africa. In this geography skills instructional activity, students watch "Africa: Economics and Change," investigate the challenges of working in mines, research attributes and production of...
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Introducing the Idea of "Community"
Students work in groups to define the term "community". They draw on personal experiences and create posters to explain and depict various aspects of community life.
Carolina K-12
Making First Vote Your Vote: Designing a Schoolwide Election
Encourage pupils to design an election plan for the entire school. They participate in a Board of Elections, create polling rules, discuss election controversies, write questions about the issues, run the election through an online...
Teaching Tolerance
Fairness Fair
How can we create a more fair world? Chances are, class members have some ideas! After reading a text about fairness, individuals create skits around the ideas of fairness. Extend the learning and make their presentations a...
National First Ladies' Library
Eli Whitney: A Top Ten Inventor?
Middle schoolers conduct research and present their findings in a persuasive manner. Then they work in groups to enhance the development of cooperative work skills. Students also present their findings through persuasive skills in...
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The Camelot Times: Writing a Newspaper
Students create and publish a newspaper based on Arthurian literature and history. After completing a class read of "King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table," students work in groups to write an article based on their...
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Exploring Citizenship: Me, My Family and Friends
Students explore citizenship and identify their interests, families, and friends. They work in groups to discuss each others' interests, friendship, and ways to reach out to others. After discussing their neighborhoods and communities,...