Facing History and Ourselves
Fishbowl Discussion
Filter young teenagers' opinions and perspectives with a classic fishbowl discussion. Given any topic relevant to your curriculum, a group of class members engage in discussion for their peers to observe.
Curated OER
Observing the Pumpkin Cycle
Students observe and listen to nonfiction books about the life cycle of pumpkins. They practice early reading skills in a shared reading related to pumpkins. They observe the life cycle of a pumpkin including growth and decay.
Curated OER
Speed
Fifth and sixth graders practice working in pairs to determine whether they can walk with constant speed. They test themselves, collect their data, draw graphs with their data collected, manipulate the data, and then draw conclusions...
Curated OER
Initial Fraction Ideas Lesson 16: Overview
Kids will compare creating fractions from pieces of paper to chips. They begin with a fractional part and work back to a whole. Then order fractions from smallest to largest. They also complete a worksheet to find the missing pieces to...
Curated OER
Spelling Detective
Put on your Sherlock Holmes hat and become a spelling detective! Scholars hunt down the spelling errors in a short passage of a high-interest current events text. Here is a great way to develop editing and reading skills.
American Chemical Society
M&M's in Different Temperatures
Help your class come up with a procedure for comparing the dissolving rates of colored candy coating in different temperatures of water. If you are placing importance on controlled variables with your class, make sure that they use equal...
Curated OER
Quilting
Students use a monochromatic palate, select shades and tints for a selected hue, or select complimentary or analogous colors for a quilt design. They design quilt squares using basic geometric shapes, repetition, balance, and proportion.
Curated OER
Fire Fight
While somewhat dated (students write letters to President George W. Bush about the Iraq War), this lesson could be a good way to reinforce rhetorical reading and critical thinking. Students examine information regarding Operation Iraqi...
Curated OER
SOS Rescue
Here's a 32-count, get-up-and-move line dance done to "A Girl Like Me" by Rihanna. Move left, move right, step kick, clap, pivot and turn. These are some of the moves in this line dance. Make adjustment according to what you learners can...
Curated OER
"Here We Go" Parachute Routine
Rather than just shouting out commands on what to do with a parachute, turn some music on and make it a dance routine. This seems like a pretty cool way to engage young learners. Make a dome, hop, make waves, walk, twist, and shake that...
Cornell University
Constructing and Visualizing Topographic Profiles
Militaries throughout history have used topography information to plan strategies, yet many pupils today don't understand it. Scholars use Legos and a contour gauge to understand how to construct and visualize topographic profiles. This...
Curated OER
Piglets
Students are asked have they ever seen a pig? They are asked what are young pigs called? Students are given the Pigs Display Sheet. They see that on the sheet there are two piglets and their mother. Students are told that mother pigs are...
Curated OER
ABC and 1-2-3 Farming
Students demonstrate how to alphabetize animal names. In this word study lesson, students identify animals that live on the farm and conduct a favorite farm animal survey. Students order animal pictures in alphabetical order.
Curated OER
Human Body Series - Respiratory System
Elementary schoolers play a respiratory relay toss in order to take in the respiratory system! They also create their own question cards based on several kid-friendly online articles about breathing and the health of the lungs. They use...
Curated OER
Swiss Ball Square Dance
Combine square dancing and a Swiss ball. There are quite a few square dance moves and how to do them while sitting on, or carrying a Swiss ball. Teach these square dance moves to the class. Then have them work together in small groups to...
Curated OER
Pocket Solar System
The scale of the solar system is difficult to grasp without some sort of concrete visual; with some register tape and different-sized stickers, teach astronomers of any age just how spread out our solar system really is. Try to use...
Curated OER
Money
Students use play coins to solve problems. They imagine that someone handed them two coins. One is a quater and one is a dime. Students are asked by feeling the shapes of the coins, how could they tell which one was the quater? They are...
Curated OER
Earthquake Analysis
Students analyze and plot the coordinates for several recent earthquakes on a world map. They learn not only about research and geology, but about map-making and data analysis. They think of other ways to analyze the data given.
Curated OER
Physical Education Unit Plan: Soccer - Lesson 7
Attack and defend are the focus for this instructional activity, seventh in a series of 10. It basically pulls some of the skills together that have already been taught and allows the players to practice their specific skills in a...
TCI
Celebrating Our Constitution
School House Rock's "Preamble" launches a study of the Preamble of the US Constitution and the relevance of this 200 year-old document today.
Curated OER
Lesson Plan Outline for Rainbow Science
Young scientists study light reflection and refraction as they determine the critical angle, the rainbow angle, and color separation in rainbows. Teams record the data they collect in a shared spreadsheet and discuss results with the class.
Curated OER
I Knew Him When
Students research the life of Abraham Lincoln and write a first-person account from the viewpoint of someone who knew him. They develop a timeline of Lincoln's life, research a particular period of his life, and write a first-person...
Curated OER
Birds
Students arms are measured with a yardstick and a tape measures. They discuss the many different types of birds. Students are asked to name some birds. They are given the worksheet Horned Lark Display Sheet. Students are told that Horned...
Curated OER
Apples
Students are asked what kinds of vegetables do they like to eat, and what kinds of fruits do they like to eat? They are asked to describe how an apple might taste. Students count the number of green apples, they are told the different...