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Events Leading to the Indian Removal 1830-1832
Students consider the effects of Indian Removal on the Cherokee Nation. In this American history lesson, students research Internet and print sources regarding the Indian Removal Act of 1830. Students write short stories that detail the...
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I Wonder How the Manduca Life Cycle Compares To the Human Life Cycle...
Students study life cycles including developing their understanding of the human life cycle. They decide where they are in the human life cycle and provide reasons for that placement. They compare the human life cycle to that of the...
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Making the Classroom Desk a Trading Desk
Create a stock market simulation to motivate pupils and make economic concepts meaningful.
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Japanese-American Relocation
Consider the causes and effects that led to the internment and relocation of Japanese Americans during WWII. Learners read the story "Baseball Saved Us" and selected chapters from Farewell to Manzanar. Then, they view a slide-show, and...
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Life Reflections in Songwriting and Poetry
Students analyze, discuss and compare sources of inspiration, use of words and imagery, and other differences in writing styles between two featured songwriters. This is an introductory lesson to a creative project unit.
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Narrative Lesson Plan Ideas
Narrative writing lessons can inspire students to write about and share their experiences.
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The Art of Science: Gravity
Through a series of experiments and demonstrations, fifth graders will learn about gravity. They will make predictions, drop various objects, write down their observations, and try to understand gravity through balance. This lesson seems...
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Bird Interdisciplinary Possibilities
Students explore birds, their territory, breeding, and seasonal movement. They research and collect information on birds through writing letters to ornithologists, reading in books, comparing web sites, and observing pictures. Students...
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Life as a Legend: Marilyn Monroe: What is Beautiful?
Students consider the notion of beauty and what impact the media and popular culture have on it. In this cross curricular lesson, students examine print ads, write down and share their thoughts on them. Then students form literary groups...
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Radio Program #3: Company Towns
Students analyze the characteristics of company towns. They locate former company towns on a map. Students classify the perspectives of residents of company towns. Creative writing unfolds within this lesson.
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Nutrition and Health and School Gardening
Students examine how healthy eating contributes to a healthy body and life style. They read nutritional labels on food items. They use the Five Foods Pyramid to evaluate their own eating habits. They plan, design, and create a school...
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Fostering Creative Writing
There are many interesting ways to help students develop their creative writing skills through writing prompts and games.
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My Brother Sam is Dead: A study of the Revolutionary War
Fifth graders complete an analysis of the Revolutionary War through literature. After "My Brother Sam Is Dead," students create a time capsule containing items that would be relevant during the Revolutionary War. They identify key...
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Weathering the War
Learners research maps, weapons and weather from a variety of wars, then create a presentation showing the impact weather and topography has had on military operations.
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Exchange Students
Students discuss as a class the items they value and why. They read an article about the popularity of cellphones in Iraq. In groups, they work together to create a guide to their culture to share with others visiting their classroom....
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We Are Family
Second graders research their family history and how it connects them to the past. They identify their ancestors, graphically organize relatives in a family tree, and chart significant events in their lives on a timeline.
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A Teacher's Guide to the Holocaust: Headlines
Students examine newspapers to research public opinion about the Holocaust. In this critical thinking lesson, students research the information Americans received in U.S. newspapers about events like Kristallnacht, the Berlin Olympics,...
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Finding Information Within a Newspaper
Fifth graders find information within a newspaper in this lesson. They use a question worksheet to locate particular pieces of information. They completely and accurately write the section letters and page numbers in order to answer...
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Harriet The Spy
Fourth graders investigate the style of diary writing as its own genre of literature. They read Harriet The Spy in order to have a text for this literature study. Students use the skill of prediction to preview the story, and then...
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Using a Thermometer
First graders use their senses to formulate questions and make predictions to determine what is in the "Wonder Bag". They hold pieces of ice and examine while listing descriptors on a chart and then take their own temperature using an...
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The Middle Ages
Students discuss the Middle Ages. In this social science lesson, students role-play that they are medieval lords, knights, and ladies who keep diaries. Students write what they would have put in their diaries and decorate their diaries.
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Find the Epicenter
Eighth graders visit the Virtual Earthquake Web site and complete activities that demonstrate how geologists locate the epicenters of earthquakes. The site uses actual data from historic earthquakes.
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Inquiring Minds Want To Know
Eighth graders conduct a scientific experiment that help them explain the concept of nature versus nurture.