Fourth graders read about the era in their history books, write in their journals revolving around the Gold Rush, making crafts such as newspapers, and also play the part of the Forty-niners.

Notan is a Japanese word that expresses the interaction between light and dark. Learners explore Notan while creating dimensional art pieces that examine positive and negative spaces. They'll discuss the art of Notan, create...

Third graders examine photographs as primary source documents. Students are broken into groups and are given photographs of the See Family.

Inspire your class to look at their environments as if they were seeing them for the first time in order to gain a better understanding of the concept of perspective. After exploring their communities and keeping a journal of major...

Build an understanding of the social, economic, and cultural changes that were incited by the American Industrial Revolution. Learners will research the historical context of the Ragtime Era, and compose an oral presentation in the...

Cultural discourse can start through a variety of venues. Learners begin to think about how our minds, memories, and identities shape our attitudes toward culture and history. They analyze seven pieces from the Dongducheon art exhibit...

Help learners use a variety of methods to identify, visualize, and simplify polynomials with like terms. Several different visuals are used to introduce the instructional activity, such as colored pencils, overheads, interactive white...

Critical analysis skills can be built in a variety of ways. Using editorial cartoons (both domestic and foreign) learners will consider how American Imperialism was perceived during the late 19th century. Critical thinking questions,...

Comparing and evaluating various media types is a great way to build critical analysis skills. Learners read about the Vietnam era presidency, specifically the foreign policy established by Johnson and Nixon. Then they compare several...

Here is a different approach: emerging epidemiologists first go home to interview family on the topic of infectious disease. Then they come to class and view a video and PowerPoint that explore how climate change may increase the...

How does consumerism affect global poverty? Upper graders find out about cost benefit, wants and needs, and making good consumer choices as they explore this global topic. They role-play an impulse spending experience and work through...

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...

Take advantage of Banned Book Week to pique learners' interest and get them reading! Create a classroom display of previously banned books and allow each member of your class to choose one to read. After they have read their book, get...

Vladek's attitudes are difficult for many young learners to understand. Prepare your class for the events represented in Art Speigelman's graphic novel with a pre-reading activity that has them read articles about and interviews with...

Experiment with light and dark in a series of interactive activities that lead up to reading and writing poetry. Class members have the opportunity to observe their feelings while sitting in the light and dark and to play with shadow...

They say art often imitates life. Learners research and write an expository paper on modern dance choreographer, Alvin Ailey. They focus on describing how his life and background has influenced his dance creations. This is a great...

Japanese tea gatherings are the inspiration for a great lesson. Learners are provided with an image of a tea caddy made for thick tea and asked to describe what they notice and what that might mean. This leads into a larger lesson about...

"Ballad for Americans" was a song written for performers participating in the Federal Arts Project, during The Depression. Learners will analyze the lyrics of the song and then create informational posters about other Federal Works...

During World War II propaganda was as important to the war effort as the soldiers in the field. Scholars consider how the government communicated messages of patriotism with propaganda by examining pieces from World War II. Then, they...

The final activity in a series of five that focus on developing the interpersonal skills required to develop and maintain positive relationships asks class members to identify their best friend-making skill. Individuals share these...

An overview of deforestation is the focus of this resource, which present the reader with a list of facts. Ten comprehension questions follow; learners can write their answers on a separate piece of paper. Have your environmental...

Students create two literacy (reading and/or writing) centers to implement in an elementary classroom. Students review examples of educational software and determine the best potential centers to use in elementary classroom. Two centers...

Pupils are introduced to the concept of Civil Rights. In groups, they use a timeline of the Navajo tribe to identify the ways the tribe has made advances in Civil Rights throughout the years. To end the lesson, they take notes and...

Students examine philanthropy through art using their senses. In this philanthropy lesson, students investigate what respect looks like, sounds like and feels like using their senses. They talk about diversity and tolerance before...