+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Critical Thinking With Fables New and Old

For Teachers 3rd - 12th
Explore the fables of today along with Aesop's ancient fables. Learners will understand the structure of a fable, critically think about the fable's message, and create a lesson that they would like to teach through a fable. Suggested...
+
Worksheet
1
1
Curated OER

To Kill a Mockingbird: End of Novel Critical-Thinking Questions

For Students 9th - 10th
Chapters 28 – 31 of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird are the focus of a series of critical thinking questions. Responders are encouraged to refer directly to the novel to support their inferences and interpretations. 
+
Writing
Curated OER

What Do You Think of Obama's Oval Office Speech on the Oil Spill?

For Students 7th - 12th
Kids age 13 and older are asked to read the provided Times article and background information in order to construct a thoughtful blog response to Obama's first Oval Office speech. They work to address each of the related critical...
+
PPT
Curated OER

The Science of Thinking

For Teachers 8th - Higher Ed
How is fixing a flat tire like reading and writing? By thinking about each activity properly - identifying the problem and purpose, gathering information, and making inferences - you can exercise your thinking skills equally. This...
+
Worksheet
Curated OER

Critical Thinking Problems

For Students Pre-K - K
Young mathematicians practice their reasoning as well as adding and subtracting skills with this worksheet that includes five simple word problems about birthdays. Learners are give pictures of birthday cakes and based on the number of...
+
Worksheet
Curated OER

Spinelli's Maniac Magee (excerpt): Reading and Critical Thinking Practice

For Students 4th - 6th
A brief, dialogue-rich passage from Jerry Spinelli's novel Maniac Magee is accompanied by a well-written literacy assessment tool. Thematic content lends itself to age-appropriate discussions about race relations and social justice....
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Critical Thinking Strategies

For Teachers Pre-K - 12th
Teach your readers to be critical thinkers. A strategy is outlined that can be used to compare and contrast entities. An example lists four states. The learner removes one state that "does not belong" in the list for some reason, and...
+
Lesson Plan
1
1
Curated OER

The Last Word: Using Critical Thinking and Analysis to Reach a Decision

For Teachers 5th - 9th
Want to explore the process of writing a persuasive essay and tie it in with the upcoming elections? Class members use Venn diagrams and the hamburger model of persuasive writing to write a five-paragraph essay on elections and...
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Tomma Abts: Abstract Painting

For Teachers 9th - 12th
One must first learn how to analyze art before they can properly respond to it. Here, young analysts examine six abstract pieces in a systematic and formal way. They then respond to one of the pieces in either a poem or an essay. An...
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Critical Consumerism

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Develop critical thinkers and awareness of the media's techniques. Impressionable minds analyze advertisements they see all around them in this potentially 3-week long unit of five complete lesson plans. Extended discussions, outside...
+
Lesson Plan
Pyro Innovations

Get into Shape

For Teachers K - 1st Standards
Shapes are so fun! Little ones explore, identify, and create shapes using tangrams or pattern blocks. The activity is intended to stimulate critical thinking while engaging learners through play and shape identification. Each child will...
+
Writing
Curated OER

Do Presidential Candidates Need to Be Good Debaters?

For Students 7th - 12th
Blogs can be a good way for learners to engage in writing, critical thinking, and social media in a formal way. The New York Times has provided learners age 13-18 with an article, background information, and several prompts to get them...
+
Writing
1
1
Curated OER

Is It Ethical to Eat Meat?

For Students 9th - 12th
Have your class join a blog about whether or not eating meat is good for you. They'll read several passages regarding meat processing and consumption, then they post what they think. There are six critical-thinking prompts to help them...
+
Worksheet
Curated OER

Do You Have Good Manners?

For Students 7th - 12th
Who cares about manners anyway? According to the New York Times, Mrs. Mason does. Learners read and consider an article which addresses the decline of manners and the impact it has on society. They answer seven critical thinking...
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Diversity in Media: Looking Critically at What We See

For Teachers 8th - Higher Ed
This learning experience fosters awareness of representations we see, and don't see, in the media. Learners list TV programs, games, and films they enjoy, identify characters' ethnic, religious, (dis)ability, and sexual orientation...
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Detective Fiction: Focus On Critical Thinking

For Teachers 6th
Turn your 6th graders into detectives while growing their love of reading. Using critical thinking skills, they will be able to describe the five basic elements of detective fiction, read detective novels, make predictions, use the...
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Weaving Words

For Teachers 6th - 12th
A woven rug depicting birds and cornstalks becomes the inspiration for a lesson on critical thinking and creative writing. Learners analyze the symbolism found in the rug and then compose a descriptive paragraph or poem that embodies the...
+
Worksheet
Curated OER

Writing Exercises: World War II, #2

For Students 7th - 8th
Comprehending the role of key players and events of WWII is a task all learners must undertake. Here, they respond to three critical thinking questions regarding the roles Roosevelt and Stalin played during the war as well as Germany's...
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Bias and Crime in Media

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Critical thinking and social justice are central themes for this resource on bias and crime in media. The class views and discusses an incisive PSA that highlights assumptions based on race. Small groups read newspaper opinion pieces...
+
Lesson Plan
Media Smarts

Kellogg Special K Ads

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Foster class discussion about body image with the resources and questions provided here. Focus on Special K's "look good on your own terms" ad campaign. Learners start by reading about this campaign and analyze a series of print ads,...
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Political Cartoons: Literacy

For Teachers 8th - 11th
Readers decode and deconstruct political cartoons to heighten critical thinking, extra-textual literacy, and making meaning from symbolism and metaphor. A compatible activity to use in English class when your 8th or 11th graders are...
+
Worksheet
Curated OER

Sentence Completion 6: Low-Advanced SAT Level

For Students 9th - 12th
Consider using this instructional activity, another in a series of sentence completion exercises, as the basis of a lesson on test taking or comprehension strategies, as a critical thinking exercise, or as extra practice for up-coming...
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson Plan: Before and After a Moment in Time

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Think about a moment, frozen in time. Now take a critical look at the painting, Better, Homes, Better Gardens. This painting works to provide learners the opportunity to analyze art, critique artist's choices, and write a story inspired...
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Working in your Cubicle: Critical Thinking and Writing

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Explore informative and explanatory writing with this lesson. Using a cube labeled with directives to describe, analyze, compare, associate, apply, and argue the topic, middle schoolers work individually or in groups to answer questions....

Other popular searches