MENSA Education & Research Foundation
I Need a Superhero
Once the class learns about the hero's journey, they'll find it in every story and movie they see! Take characters from their humble beginnings to their atonement and apotheosis with a set of lessons about the hero's journey...
Curated OER
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...
Curated OER
Painter of the Caves
What a great lesson! Learners read a story called Painters of the Caves by Patricia Lauber which discusses Stone Age wall paintings in Avignon, France. There is a series of discussion questions, comprehension questions, and a graphic...
Curated OER
"Mambo" from West Side Story by Leonard Bernstein
Students encounter and study "Mambo" from "West Side Story," by Leonard Bernstein. They practice utilizing musical elements (instrumentation, tempo, and dynamics) to create a certain mood for a scene with music. Each student interprets...
Hawaiʻi State Department of Education
Machines
What do science and dance have in common? Simple machines, work, and force! First, children discuss machines, wheels, inclined planes, and wedges. They create inclined planes with their bodies and make up dances about wheels and wedges....
Perkins School for the Blind
Making Choices
Here is an excellent and well-developed lesson intended to promote choice-making skills for learners with visual impairment and intellectual disabilities. It fosters choice-making skills through a soft version of discrete trial training,...
Perkins School for the Blind
Accessible Labels
When you're blind it is extremely important to be able to navigate your environment in as independent a way as possible. This idea isn't a lesson plan, but it is a great way to foster independent mobility and literacy skills while making...
Curated OER
Sergei Prokofiev's "Peter and the Wolf"
Fourth graders study Sergei Prokofiev's "Peter and the Wolf." They explore the characters and the instruments that represent the characters. They create their own version of "Peter and the Wolf" for the purpose of introducing the...
Curated OER
Dr. Seuss Comes to the Gym
Demonstrate different motor activities to honor Dr. Seuss's birthday. A literacy-based physical education lesson prompts young readers to perform group activities such as tumbling, jumping rope, throwing frisbees, and hopping....
Curated OER
Hear No Evil
Students explore the function of the ears. In this sense of hearing activity, students read the book Polar Bear, Polar Bear What Do You Hear and discuss the things the Polar Bear heard. Students construct simple musical instruments and...
Rainforest Alliance
Stop and Smell the Flowers
It's a bird! It's a bee! Actually, it's your learners flying from flower to flower smelling their scents! Using paper flowers and essential oils, pupils flutter between flowers to use their sense of smell to experience how animals use...
Curated OER
Rhythm - "Yankee Doodle Dandy"
First graders practice rhythm and beat. In this music lesson, 1st graders sing and clap to the song "Yankee Doodle Dandy". They find the rhythm of the music and practice making rhythm with other instruments.
Curated OER
Happy Mealtimes
Students read The Hungry Caterpillar to examine healthy eating habits. In this food and nutrition lesson, students role play the various responsibilities during family mealtime. They will discuss the struggles of healthy eating, and the...
Curated OER
Chef for a Day
Students make chocolate chip cookies. In this cooking lesson plan, students follow a recipe by doing each step in sequence.
Curated OER
Musical Mysteries
Students examine the changes that occur to sound as the pressure changes. Echoes and sound changes in caves and tunnels are explored in this lesson.
Curated OER
Discover the History of Melody
Students connect to music resources. In this music lesson, students visit the websites of the Handel House Museum, the Horniman Museum, Reid Concert Hall, and the National Center for Early Music. Students...
Curated OER
Fun With Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
Students read the book Chicka Chicka Boom Boom and listen to the musical tape. Then they make their own coconut trees, adding their own letters. They express and record their favorite parts. All are displayed on a bulletin board.
Curated OER
When a Country Loses Its Songs
Students explore music as a cultural tradition. In this global studies instructional activity, students consider the implications of the loss of childhood songs to a cultural group. Students determine the type of musical "treasures" that...
Curated OER
Hold That Pose
Students discuss the painting The Radcliffe Family and discuss what it was like for them to hold poses for portraits. In this portrait lesson plan, students then pose stuffed animals and make their own portraits.
Curated OER
Media Violence - The Good, the Bad and the Future
Third graders define, identify, measure, and assess the level and impact of violence in media. The media forms evaluated include music, sitcoms, news, and other programs that are identified and shared by the class.
Curated OER
Northwest coast Button Blanket Art
Young scholars explore artistic design by viewing video clips on the Internet. In this blanket making lesson, students view tutorial videos in which they discover the creative process in button blanket designing. Young scholars create...
Curated OER
It's a Wrap!
Students investigate symbols and colors on the Osage blanket. For this visual arts lesson, students examine a blanket from the Osage culture and identify symbols on the blanket. Students create a class blanket, including symbols which...
Curated OER
Do As I Do
Lead your class in practicing gross motor body movements. Put on some background music and lead them through hops, skips, jumps, leaps, and running in place. Think of animal movements and have them move like an elephant or slither like a...
Curated OER
Clay Gargoyles and Grotesques
Grotesques or gargoyles are wonderful subjects for stories or art projects. Here is a simple "how to" for creating a lesson plan about sculpting clay gargoyles. Tip: Have learners research gargoyles throughout history.