Students brainstorm a list of characteristics that friends should and should not have. In groups, they are given a set of hand puppets in which they role-play different scenerios in front of the class. To end the lesson plan, they are...

Learners investigate community issues with solid waste. In this mock trial lesson, students examine the issues of solid waste from an ecological and economical perspective. They will develop a mock trial which encourages preservation of...

The practice of developing lyrics by elaborating with sensory details and examples continues in the third lesson on songwriting. This time class members examine Jesse McCartney's "How Do You Sleep?" Using procedures established in the...

Research the lives of famous women in this social studies lesson plan. Middle schoolers use various sources to research a famous woman and create a presentation about the accomplishments of the woman. They can find the central idea...

Combine math and vocabulary in a fun activity based on Lois Lowry's The Giver. Before kids begin the book, they look up the definitions of 16 vocabulary words and complete a puzzle that will give them the same number.

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...

The Secret Life of Bees provides high schoolers an opportunity to connect the events in the novel to events in America’s history. After choosing a topic from a provided list, individuals research how the event affected the Civil Rights...

Build your library of strategies and activities for teaching phonemic awareness with the ideas provided in this resource. Described here are five different activities to try out with your class.

The challenge in telephone conversations is that speakers and listeners cannot rely on body language to communicate. This 31-page packet includes a curriculum guide, lesson plans, assessments, and resource lists designed to help...

A reading of Peggy Parish's Amelia Bedelia launches a study of idioms. Groups then select several idioms, write the meaning of the expressions, draw or select images, and use GIMP or Photoshop to create an idiom book. 

The 1939 Oscar-winning Gone with the Wind, is the focus of an informational packet designed to be used with a viewing of the film. As part of their analysis, media students respond to a series of discussion points about the...

Why did Chinua Achebe write "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness" in response to Conrad's novel? As part of a study of Things Fall Apart, class members conduct a socratic seminar focused on Achebe's purpose and...

What skills do storytellers employ to bring to life the characters and events in their tales? After listening to a recording of a Haitian folk tale, class members consider how tone of voice, pace, and gestures can be used to enliven a...

Imagine a war being fought to free slaves, with slaves on the front line. Scholars use primary documents, videos, and research in the second installment of a three-part series to guide their analysis of the first African-Americans on the...

After a read-aloud of the story Goldielocks and the Three Bears, scholars gather into small groups to answer a series of questions. Peers examine the idea of smart decisions and identify three feelings of characters alongside three...

Twelfth graders write creatively and reflectively on 20 different events or memories that shaped their senior year. They organize memorabilia into a scrapbook with 20 entries and create a cover that represents their senior year. They...

Second graders discuss nouns. In this language arts activity, 2nd graders discuss nouns and pronouns. Students identify various types of nouns on a worksheet. Students play "Popcorn" Nouns.

Students explore number sense by completing a statistical analysis game in class. In this data graphing lesson, students utilize visual references such as colored cubes and tiles to map out the results of an experiment outcome such as a...

Students develop their expository writing skills while integrating various other subjects. In this writing skills lesson, students complete 4 multiple activity lessons to improve their expository writing skills.

Fourth graders research the Native Americans of Texas using the Internet. They create a Power Point presentation over the four Indian tribes of Texas - Caddo, Jumano, Karankawa, Apache.

Young scholars examine the importance of physical activities and use word parts to infer meaning to a story. They discuss agility, baseball, and ballet dancing, read an article, and observe a demonstration on breaking down words and...

Middle schoolers brainstorm possible problems they could face with a teacher. They read a handout about dealing with teachers and how to handle situations.

Young scholars use various sources to compare and contrast information about the Titanic. In groups, they create a list of questions and use the internet to find the answers. They write a report with the new information and use their...

Students analyze the writing process through the ten lessons of this unit. The expository lessons address topic and detail sentences, paragraph organization and development, note taking, reports and letter writing.