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Words/Music/Images: Interpretation and Meaning A Motivational Activity
Students explore popular music in its historical context. In this music instructional activity, students examine the lyrics, musicical arrangement, and video imagery of selected songs to interpret the messages and themes of the...
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The Amazing and Beautiful Aurora
Students create an oil pastel painting. In this pastel painting lesson, students examine images of the aurora borealis. Students produce an original pastel painting of the aurora.
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Short Story Commercials
Middle schoolers read short story selections, and work with classmates to produce commercials using digital video equipment.
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Deadly Dancing: Failure Proof Field Trips
Learners 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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Using Words to Work Things Out
Students explore appropriate ways to communicate feelings. In this character development lesson, students listen to Hands are not for Hitting and several other books about expressing emotions appropriately. Students observe...
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Families and Neighborhoods
Students distinguish where their homes are in relation to the city of Pittsburgh. For this geography lesson, students read the book All Families Are Specialand find their city on a map of Pennsylvania. Students locate...
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Trustworthy Images
Students investigate metaphors. In this writing instructional activity, students brainstorm traits of a trustworthy person and create a metaphor for a trustworthy person.
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Fifties/Sixties Musical Playwriting Workshop
Students write a coherent script based on characterization, theme, conflict and emotional tone as found in the songs' lyrics and develop an understanding of the enjoyment that comes through discipline and hard work leading toward a...
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Literary Scavenger Hunt
Pupils, in pairs, go on a literary scavenger hunt using the Internet to find information.
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Learning Styles/Holistic Lesson Plan
Students, in groups, research a music composer of their choice. They create a video showing the composer's life in which students act in it. They also create a pamphlet for a future band concert for that composer.
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Picture This
Students examine how to create mental images to help them comprehend what they read. They discuss what it means to visualize and they draw a mental picture of what they read. Students draw a picture of what they see in their minds while...
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Out and About: King Arthur
Pupils explore the legend of King Arthur. For this folklore lesson, students visit King Arthur's Great Halls, King Arthur's Labyrinth, and Glastonbury Abbey online or in person to discover details about the legendary tales.
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12 Days of Christmas
Young scholars utilize different problem-solving strategies and creative writing when dealing with the words from the song, "12 Days of Christmas." They try to problem solve how may presents were given and then explain their sequence in...
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Map It Out
Explore how illustrations add to a story. Young learners will look at picture books to see how the pictures tell the story. They create illustrations to go with a chosen story, and then flip the activity so they have to write a story to...
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Totally Awesome Answers to Wacky Wonders
Middle schoolers work with a partner to gather information on a question from two sources using a computer program and the Internet. They also write a report with visuals to air on closed-circuit TV for the school. Use this lesson to...
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Children's Media and Censorship
High schoolers form opinions about children and television censorship after analyzing literature. They complete a journal writing activity to identify the topic and make a list of inappropriate television shows for children. Next, they...
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Getting to Know You
Third graders explore different types of poetry and illustrate their own experiences through creating their own poem. In this getting to know you lesson, 3rd graders create and recite their poems with a self-portrait.
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Lesson 5- Robert Rauschenberg: Reinventing Art
Students examine how Robert Rauschenberg influenced popular art and how art is influenced by politics, social and cultural messages. They design a new art movement and create art that is indicative of that movement.
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Track Traces
Students explore animal characteristics by participating in an animal anatomy activity. In this animal tracks lesson, students identify the differences between specific animals and the shape of their footprints. Students utilize a...
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Are You Sleeping?
Here is a measurement lesson focusing on length. Learners use their feet as the unit of measurement for furniture in the classroom and at home, and sketch the pieces of furniture they measured.
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Pete And Repeat
Students draw a picture of a person from popular culture, then "clone" it using printing techniques in this Art instructional activity that tackles the questions surrounding cloning, DNA, and current scientific techniques. An emphasis is...
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Lesson: The U.S. Westward Movement
Students research the U.S. Westward movement. In this U.S. history lesson, students research the topic, complete a creative writing activity for the lesson, and a design activity for the lesson.
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Housing Styles Portfolio
Students are introduced to the various types of housing styles. In groups, they use photographs of the styles to determine their architectural time periods. Using the internet or magazines, they find their own images and create a...
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Fun With Formatting
Students investigate the concept of using a word processing program with the intention of improving formatting skills like centering text. They also highlight different text sections and demonstrate how to save changes made to a document...