Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Writing a Topic Sentence

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Here is an inventive, and easy-to-implement lesson on the writing of topic sentences. Learners review what a topic sentence is, practice identifying topic sentences in an informational article, then play a really cool game. All of the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Press Review

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
How can word choice affect a political speech? Middle and high schoolers examine the text of the 1999 State of the Union Address, and then determine how newspaper articles and television reports describe and analyze the event. Use this...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Gaining Perspective

For Teachers 5th - 12th
Discuss race in the United States. Start by having each learner read a copy of Martin Luther King Jr's famous speech, "I Have a Dream." Then, have them read the article "Shared Prayers, Mixed Blessings" about a church in Atlanta,...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Curated OER

Pig Products

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
How do you feel about cloning? This issue is highly debated, so educate your class before they participate in a similar debate! Read a New York Times article related to the use of cloned pig organs for human transplants. Groups develop...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Creature Seekers

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Does it actually exist? Consider the sighting of a giant squid, much like the one that appears in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Middle and high schoolers read the article One Legend Found, Many Still to Go, and research other mysterious...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Black Power

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Use this New York Times lesson plan to research contemporary leaders in the African-American community. After reading the article "Blacks Weigh the Impact of the Post-Jackson Years," middle and high schoolers discuss the varying...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

You've Got Spam

For Teachers 6th - 12th
What is spam mail? Discuss examples of spam mail and read about the "Can Spam Act." After reading the New York Times article attached, brainstorm why the act hasn't had much impact yet. Several discussion questions are listed. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Rave Reviews

For Teachers 6th - 12th
A fun instructional activity that utilizes toys and persuasion! After reading the article, which was written in 2005, pull some advertisements for toys currently being sold. These will be more relevant to your middle and high schoolers....
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Tracing Genetic Ancestry Using DNA Microarrays

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High school learners read and discuss an article about genetic ancestry and genetic ancestry testing. They complete a paper and pencil activity that mimics the function of a DNA microarray and consider the ethics of genetic testing in...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Surviving AIDS

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Enhance your middle and high schoolers' research skills with this lesson. After viewing a video clip about HIV and AIDS, high schoolers identify the facts and issues surrounding the disease. They work together to create a newspaper...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Denial on Trial

For Teachers 6th - 12th
What is the "Faurisson Affair”? What is “Holocaust Revisionism”? What does freedom of speech entail? Do revisionists have a right to voice their ideas? Such questions are at the heart of a richly detailed, thought provoking lesson...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Loose Lips

For Teachers 6th - 12th
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...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Media Babies

For Teachers 6th - 12th
What is a media baby? Discuss at what age children should be exposed to electronic media. After reading an article, they identify the types of media products for infants and toddlers. Learners will predict the effects of media on the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

P.C. Games

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Discuss and share opinions on violent computer games. After reading an article, your class will discover the controversy surrounding online games. They analyze the suitability of computer games and write their own letters to a developer...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Whose Rite Is It?

For Teachers 6th - 12th
The class explores and debates, from multiple perspectives, a petition to allow Hopi Indians to take golden eagle hatchlings from a federal wildlife sanctuary for use in a religious ceremony. Pupils defend their personal views on the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

All About Aid

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Begin this instructional activity by estimating the cost of a college education and comparing it to actual data. After reading an article, high school seniors discuss the processes of the college loan corporations. They listen to a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Oh, I Believe in Yesterday

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Who is Aimee Mann? Read the New York Times article "P.S. I Loved You," included here, and have your readers answer a series of reading comprehension questions. Afterward, encourage your class to brainstorm ways in which they...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

NASA Plans Moon Base

For Teachers 2nd - 6th
Students react to statements about the moon, then read a news article about NASA's plans to build a permanent base on the moon. In this space science and current events lesson plan, the teacher introduces the article with a discussion...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Read All About It! California History of the 30s and 40s

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Explore the Great Depression! Discover the challenges people experienced during the time period. Learners investigate photographs from the Dust Bowl and WWII era and create a story line about the photographs, writing a newspaper article...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Activism or Slacktivism? The "Stop Kony" Campaign as a Teachable Moment

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Engage your learners in global events. The makers of the film Invisible Children began the Kony 2012 Campaign to bring awareness to the Lord's Resistance Army. You can show your class the video Kony 2012 and spark discussion with the...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Curated OER

'Hunger Games' Science: Investigating Genetically Engineered Organisms

For Teachers 7th - 12th
In The Hunger Games novel and movie, a futuristic, dystopian society is the setting. In it, a genetically engineered bird escapes control of the government. Using this as a starting point, teenagers examine the realistic possibility of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Dictating the Future

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Read the article "Bush Lays Out Goals for Iraq: Self-Rule and Stability" and examine the keys points from President Bush's speech. Whether presented in written text or as an audio bite students will work in groups to research world...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Extra Credit: It’s No Fairy Tale

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers discuss their knowledge of payday loans and credit cards. In this Economics lesson, students complete a read an article and Q&A activity in groups, and play a vocabulary bingo game and a quiz game on payday loans. High...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Recurring Nightmares

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Does history really repeat itself? Encourage your middle and high schoolers to answer this age-old question by reading the attached articles on the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 and the Iraq Crisis of 2002. How similar or different are...

Other popular searches