Annenberg Foundation
Reconstructing a Nation
Think back to the aftermath of an family dispute. The awkwardness of having to make up, get along, and move forward can be very difficult. The tenth lesson of a 22-part series on American history examines the Reconstruction Era following...
Star Date
Shadow Play
Three activities make up a solar system lesson that features the sun, its light, and the shadows it produces. Scholars step outside to discover the changes shadows make at different times of day, take part in a demonstration of how Earth...
Starry Night Education
The Stars
Three astronomy activities in one resource! Here you will find one hands-on activity, one demonstration, both with discussion questions, and one activity worksheet. During these lessons young scientists discuss how stars are different,...
College Board
Reasoning from Tabular Data
Don't table the resource—use it now. An AP® Calculus curriculum module encourages the use of tabular data throughout the course. It provides some example topics, such as rate of change, net change, and average value of a function, where...
C-SPAN
Primary and Secondary Sources: Trailblazers in Congress
Trailblazers forge the path into uncharted territory, they establish a precedent for others to follow. Young historians research trailblazers in Congress using primary and secondary sources to profile outliers that changed the face of...
Curated OER
The Greenhouse Effect
Why does it get so hot inside of our cars in the summertime? The greenhouse effect! Lab groups experiment to see what happens to an ice cube enclosed in a jar and placed in sunlight as compared to an ice cube outside of the jar. They...
D-Day Normandy 1944
D-Day Normandy 1944
No study of World War II would be complete without an in-depth examination of the events of June 6, 1944. Pascal Vuong's D-Day Normandy:1944, is the perfect vehicle to convey the sheer magnitude of the events that have been called the...
Curated OER
Our Family and Age
Start by playing a song about numbers. "Sing, Dance, Laugh, and Eat Quiche" is suggested. Then, start counting things around the room. Introduce yourself, and have kids start to introduce themselves when they catch on to the vocabulary....
Curated OER
Money Counts
Fourth graders identify bills and coins to $20 bills and make equivalencies. They organize bills and coins in groups from greatest to least and least to greatest. Students count out change.
Curated OER
Programs
Students discuss programs designed for people with disabilities. In this language arts and social studies lesson plan, students discuss programs started by the Kennedy family and create posters in order to share their findings.
Curated OER
Mixed Math Millionaire: Math Game
Play a game to review a variety of math concepts. Factoring, square roots, number sequences, division, multiplication, order of operations, and word problems are all covered in this Millionaire style quiz game. Tip: Keep this resource as...
Griffen Publishing
Learning From the Past
The big idea for this lesson is that the past enriches our present and future. Learners explore the origin of the Olympic Games and how one man took an event from the past and reinvented it for modern times. They compare and contrast the...
Curated OER
How Time Flies!
Students explore and document how things change over time by creating a layered-tab book with illustrations. They assess how the passing of time affects them, their family and the area in which they live. Each student makes a list of the...
LABScI
Taxonomy: Who is in My family?
Find similarities in seemingly unlike organisms. The second instructional activity in a series of 12 builds the concept of a taxonomy and explores the use of a dichotomous key. Learners begin in part one by attempting to group a set of...
Virginia Department of Education
Owl Family Natural Selection
How do genetic mutations within a population lead to future variations? Provide your class with the resources to answer this question and more upon completing an activity on natural selection. The entire class participates in a fun role...
PBS
Curious George: Sand and Soil
Two sensory tables—wet and dry—allow scholars to use their sense of sight, touch, and smell to observe the changes when the dirt mixes with water. A short video relates the STEM learning experience to a fun video clip where Curious...
Health Smart Virginia
Taking Turns
Scholars work cooperatively, taking turns, to boost peer relationships and fairness. Rotating through five stations, players practice tossing, bouncing, push-ups, and working together to clean up fallen equipment, then rate their...
Curated OER
Confucianism in a Changing Society
A great lesson promotes thoughtful discussion, global perspectives, and links between economics and culture. Learners view four clips showing how Confucian teachings have shaped Chinese culture and how filial piety plays a role in...
Overcoming Obstacles
Good Citizenship
An individual's background and experiences affect their worldview and interaction. In this activity, scholars draw a pair of glasses with pictures of experiences they've been through, relate the responsibility to social media and the...
Bonneville
Creating the Most Effective Solar Heater
If changing one variable can improve a design, why not try changing more? Using the results from the previous activity, scholars decide on the variables that caused the most improvement in the effectiveness of the solar heater. They take...
School Improvement in Maryland
Immigration Legislation
What is the purpose of immigration legislation? How has this legislation evolved over the years? What are the factors that caused these changes? Class members research immigration legislation to determine whose rights the laws are...
Curriculum Corner
All about Me T-Shirt
Encourage learners to wear their interests on their sleeves, literally. Class members decorate a blank t-shirt with personal information, including their hobbies, favorite part of school, and details about their family and self.
Penguin Books
Wonder in the Classroom
Would you rather be right, or would you rather be kind? A novel unit based on R.J. Palacio's Wonder focuses on the need to be kind to others and to accept their differences. As learners read the book, they discuss the themes of family...
Advocates for Youth
What Are My Personal, Family and Community Values
What are your values? Where did you learn them? How are they reflected in your everyday life? Middle and high schoolers reflect on their personal and community values with a variety of group activities.