National Energy Education Development Project
Introduction to Wind Energy
The U.S. produced enough wind energy in 2015 to power all of the homes in Alaska, California, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Idaho, Maine, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, and...
Curated OER
Ag in My Community; Agriculture
Learners build knowledge about agriculture as it relates to their communities' commodities. In this agriculture instructional activity, students brainstorm about conditions in their community with regards to growing different types of...
Curated OER
The Freeman School: Building Prairie Communities
Students examine this one-room school in Nebraska and consider the important role it played in the community during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. They compare their educational experience with those of rural students of...
Curated OER
Exploring the Illinois and Michigan Canal
Seventh graders locate the Illinois & Michigan Canal and related landmarks on various maps. They explain the challenges associated with building a canal. They access websites imbedded in this plan and watch a video to aid their...
Scholastic
Perfect Postcards: Illinois
Connect the geography and history of Illinois using an art-centered activity on the railroads. The railroad connected once-distant places, particularly in the Midwest. Using research, class members create postcards of fictional...
Curated OER
Connecting Downtown
Students examine how engineering and design make cities more livable and efficient. They study different types of walkways including elevated and underground walks, and where and why they would be used. They design their own walkway...
Curated OER
Deck the Halls with Literature Trees
Reinforce and assess reading comprehension by having your class make a literature tree! After reading a book, pupils make decorations to represent the book's themes, characters, and setting. Materials for decorating can be as diverse and...
Curated OER
Understanding Dialect as Used by Mark Twain
A reading of Mark Twain’s The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County not only offers pupils an opportunity to practice their listening skills but also provides them with examples of dialectic speech. This is the gol’derndest lesson...
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: My School's a Zoo (Smith)
Your classroom may feel like a zoo sometimes, but it's nothing like this! Stu Smith's book My School's a Zoo is an excellent way to introduce some fun vocabulary words in context, and it's available on YouTube in case you don't have it....
Reed Novel Studies
Owls In The Family: Novel Study
As wise as an owl may not be true if the owls are out-of-control pets. Farley Mowat's Owls in the Family features two pet owls that turn the neighborhood upside down. Scholars read about their adventures while learning new vocabulary...
Curated OER
Where the Buffalo Roam
Second graders explore what life in the Chicago area was like hundreds of years ago. They discuss how settlers impacted the environment, and why there are no longer herds of buffalo in the Chicago area today. They read an article and...
Curated OER
Bye-Bye Bison
Fourth graders investigate the bison's struggle for survival. They discuss the importance of bison while participating in an role playing activity showing how important the food supply and surroundings are to their survival.
DePaul University
Settlement
Early settlers in the American Midwest experienced constant struggle. This reading passage describes for young learners the hardships of homesteaders as they journeyed west and sought to start a new life. When finished, students identify...
Curated OER
Taming Wild Land
Third graders consider the habitat needs of living things and how extensive farming in an area can affect the plants and animals of a region. They participate in a simulation to show how changing the habitat in one area can greatly...
Curated OER
Fires and Fire Suppression
Students examine their assumptions about forest fires. They explore the conflicts involved with the forest service's new strategy. in addition, they will study one case where a prescribed natural burn had a significant impact on a later,...
Curated OER
The Built Environment-An Integrating Theme
Students observe, record, and present knowledge of their local built environment while conducting a walking tour of their community. They develop written and photo journals, drawings, time lines, graphs, and charts to engage in...
Curated OER
Pioneering Children on the Move
Students inquire about life for pioneer children. In this pioneer period lesson plan, students analyze photographs of children, make information foldables, and create a covered wagon that was typical of the ones of the past. Students...
Curated OER
A World of Soils
In this word search worksheet, students read several paragraphs about the types of soil. Students then use the bold words to complete the word search puzzle.
Curated OER
Oklahoma Grown: Discovering Oklahoma's Agriculture
Fourth graders investigate where Oklahoma's variety of crops are harvested, and grown their own plants. A printable map and crop information guide are provided.
Curated OER
Animal Smarts Question Report
For this 10 question multiple choice worksheet, students choose the correct answer based on reading Animal Smarts. They read the non-fiction piece before determine the correct answers to the questions.
Curated OER
City People, City Stories
Young scholars create fictional inhabitants to scale for a place called 'Box City'. They develop stories and personalities to go with the created people, share the stories with the class and write a newspaper for their city.
Curated OER
The Sparrow
In this reading comprehension worksheet, students read a detailed one page story which gives facts about sparrows. Students answer 4 questions.
Curated OER
Self-Test Quiz: Wild Children Part III: Comparing and Contrasting
In this comparing and contrasting worksheet, learners are given pairs of sentences they must combine using the conjunction but.
Curated OER
Cranes, Crosswalks, and Big Gulps
Pupils watch a video and answer questions based on wildlife jobs. For this wildlife lesson plan, students learn that biologists don't just play with animals but that there is a lot of study involved.