Media Smarts
How to Analyze the News
Teach kids how to watch television, specifically the news, with this creative idea for learners of all ages from the Media Awareness Network. The elementary school plan focuses on presenting news as a story and uses Jon Scieszka's story...
Curated OER
Idea-Noun Definition: Source Searching
A great idea for showing language arts pupils the universality of themes, even in the real world! Have class members choose an idea-noun (peace, justice, war, love, etc.) at the beginning of the year or semester. They complete weekly...
Curated OER
Writing as a group activity
Did you know that 50% of all Americans can trace a relative who traveled through Ellis Island? Relive these journeys with your class and then provide sentence strategy templates for them to use to compose their own informative...
Curated OER
New Gun Control Politics: A Whimper, Not a Bang
Using an article from The New York Times, learners answer discussion questions about gun control. They are divided into four groups to research different standpoints on gun control, including the Executive Office, Congress, Gun Control...
Curated OER
The Atlanta Testing Scandal
What happens when a school is caught tampering with state test scores? Learners find out about the Atlanta Testing Scandal as they read a New York Times article. After they read, they test their comprehension by answering seven who,...
Curated OER
An Anti-Gay Bullying Battle
This New York Times article states that one school district's anti-gay bullying policy is not good enough. Learners read to answer nine comprehension questions regarding the issues described in the article. Note: There is a related blog...
Curated OER
Sing if you're glad to be recognised by the law
Equal rights, state law, and Civil Partnerships is the topic of this class discussion. Upper graders hone their research skills to engage in an intelligent and well-supported discussion on the Civil Partnership Act of 2004. Provided are...
Curated OER
An Introduction to Law
With so many different types of law, it can be difficult for learners to discern which is which! Use a newspaper to give tangible examples of various types of law, including criminal, civil, consumer, family, local, state, federal and...
Curated OER
Creating Compassionate Communities
Have you ever lost someone? Middle and high school learners journal about a time they experienced the loss of someone through death, divorce, moving, or another type of change. They share their responses and discuss an article relating...
Curated OER
Cartoons for the Classroom: Google vs. China
Censorship remains a hot topic among teens. Evoke heated discussion with this political cartoon analysis handout, which features 2 cartoons focused on China's internet censorship. Background information gives pupils a brief description...
Curated OER
Trailers Become Schools After Hurricane Katrina
Young scholars share their thoughts about natural disasters, then read a news article about how life at an elementary school was changed after Hurricane Katrina. For this current events lesson, the teacher introduces the article with a...
Curated OER
Putting a Spin on Current Events
Students explore the artistic value of propaganda. In this visual arts lesson, students analyze antique artistic pieces for their political agenda perpetuation. Students discuss propaganda techniques of the past to today prior to...
Media Smarts
Thinking like a Citizen
Explore the influence social activism can have on important issues, and create a class full of young citizen activists. This plan calls for learners to participate in a whole class discussion and brainstorm about ways to effectively...
Media Smarts
Cyberbullying and the Law
Dealing with the very topical subject of cyberbullying, this lesson plan will surely create some engaged discussion in your classroom. Young learners discuss the laws concerning cyberbullying in Canada, and then respond to a series of...
Curated OER
Using Primary Source Documents in the Classroom
Students use primary documents to explore the past. They consider the source of the documents and identify and biases that the author may have held. They identify any questions about the historical event that may remain after reading the...
Curated OER
Kids Get School Named for Obama
Students read about the renaming of a school for Barack Obama. For this political lesson, the teacher presents vocabulary words from the news article, then the students read the article and answer comprehension questions. Lesson includes...
Curated OER
From Quotation to Interpretation in Informational Texts
How to ignite thoughtful written responses with the words of philosophers, artists, and current events.
Curated OER
Artists Teach Us to See the World through Visual Symbols
Tenth graders analyze a biographical piece of art by Raymond Saunders. They identify shapes, symbols, and lines that are used, and how the piece relates to the artist's life and modern society. They design and create an original piece of...
Curated OER
Exploring Leadership:Burma's Aung San Suu Kyi
Students examine the leadership of Aung San Suu Kyi. In this current events lesson, students read a press release from Burma's leader and discuss the impact the she has had on the people of her nation.
University of Florida
The Magic School Bus and the Electric Field Trip
Energize a shared reading of the Magic School Bus and the Electric Field Trip with this collection of supplemental materials. Whether your looking for discussion questions, reading comprehension worksheets, or writing prompts, this...
iCivics
Conflict & Cooperation
Considering such conflicts as the Vietnam War and the war in Afghanistan, what motivates nations to cooperate? Your class members will analyze past and current international events in order to understand the types of conditions and...
Curated OER
The Climate in Class
Students consider the implications of global warming. In this current events lesson, students visit selected websites to discover information about temperature rises in the world and discuss how to solve some of the issues associated...
Curated OER
A Crossroads in Israel
Students explore Middle Eastern relations. In this current events instructional activity, students research the listed Web sites that include information about the history of the conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians....
Curated OER
No Stars in Their Eyes
Students take a closer look at the British film industry. In this current events lesson, students listen to a lecture and visit selected websites to study the history of the British film industry. Students also discuss film locations and...