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Acting Out
Sixth graders investigate peer pressure, gangs, drinking, and using drugs. In small groups, they conduct research, develop, edit, and write a three-minute script, and perform the script for the class.
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Fairy Tales
Students write and draw fairy tales based on modern themes and/or their own experiences. The class is divided into groups and are assigned a fairy tale. The groups develop a modern story based on this fairy tale through group discussion.
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Famous African Americans ABC Book
Students investigate the concept of a biography by using famous African Americans for a subject. Each student is assigned one biography and conducts research in order to complete an ABC book for the class that is used for display...
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Whose Shoes?
Students explore the meaning of objects. Students conduct research on the history of shoes, and write an imaginary story about a pair of shoes. They host a group presentation to share their stories.
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Are You Ready for Personal Independence?
Third graders discover what independence means to different individuals. They write two paragraphs. In the first paragraph they describe how they are independent. In the second paragraph they describe how they are still dependent.
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All About My School
Students construct a website with several links to pages they create. The site weaves logo titles, photos, animation, and textured backgrounds created and edited in PhotoShop into pages created using Dreamweaver software. The project...
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We Garden: My Life as a Fruit or Vegetable
Students explore agriculture by participating in a role-play activity. In this farm to fork lesson, students ask and answer questions as though they were a specific plant about to be eaten. Students write responses to critical thinking...
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This Is Our Town
Students use digital cameras to document their community through the use of photographs, artwork and writing. They create a community tribute book that includes essays, artwork and pictures. Afterwards, they debate the benefits and...
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Who, What, Where, When, Why, How
Young scholars take a closer look at the organization of news stories. For this journalism lesson, students identify the elements of news stories and then write their news stories on the same topics using different types of leads.
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Commemorative Coin Poetry
Students discuss and research an individual or event that has been memorialized on a commemorative coin. They use the information they found to write acrostics, creating stand-up accordion books to display the poems.
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Language Arts: Native Americans and Onomatopoeias
Fifth graders read the Native American tale, "The Frog and the Crane," focusing on the use of onomatopoeia in it. In groups, they brainstorm list of words that are examples of the device. Finally, 5th graders write their own stories...
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One Thing Leads to Another
Students analyze the storytelling methods in wordless books. In this visual storytelling lesson, students write a story that correspond to a specific wordless picture book. Students create their own wordless picture book after...
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Exploring & Creating Mythology
Middle schoolers read and compare mythological stories from ancient cultures from around the world. In small groups they read a myth and present the storyline and themes to the class, and write an original mythological story of their...
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The Life and Times of Tomie dePaola
First graders research information about the author Tomie dePaola. In this author studies lesson, 1st graders use the computer to find information about Tomie dePaola's life and writing accomplishments. Students create booklet about the...
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Making News
Students explore the news media. In this social studies lesson, students discuss what the definition of news is. Students write a newspaper article about positive activity that students at their school are involved in.
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A Brainstorming Activity for ESL/EFL Students
Students connect with new creative ways to brainstorm ideas. Students encounter role playing with this lesson. Students predict future brainstorming topics. Students are encouraged to work with others in small group sessions.
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Deadly Dancing: Failure Proof Field Trips
Students are given an opportunity to role play a particular period of American History. They engage in a field trip that is then reflected upon and further research is done in the class. Their final project is to act out a play they...
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Fifty States
Fifth graders find each state and its capital city on a map before memorizing the information. They work in small groups after watching a modeled lesson by the teachers. They write a statement about their assigned states and capital...
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Social Studies: 9/11 Banners
Students explore the history of flags and design banners for their communities. their designs reflect sentiments shaped by the events of 9/11. In addition, they write phrases beginning with, "being an American means..." Students...
John F. Kennedy Center
Acting Up, A Melodrama: Performing Like Jo March and Her Sisters in Little Women
Lights, Camera, Action! Pupils read Little Women and create, act, and direct a melodrama that Jo March and her sisters would enjoy. The lesson plan comes complete with resources for the educator on melodrama as well as examples for drama...
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The Environment In The News
Students explore environmental issues. Using a newspaper, students scan headlines for articles related to environmental or sustainability issues. From the article title, students predict the article's intent and then read the article for...
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Look It Up!
Sixth graders improve their writing skills by finding, defining, and correctly using new and interesting vocabulary words. Groups of students work together to find, define, and use in sentences ten words with which they are all unfamiliar.
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Looking Back to 1980
Students use clustering/mind mapping techniques to generate ideas, graphically represent inferences, organize their conclusions and write a report that presents conclusions the writer has reached, and facts substantiating those conclusions.