Curated OER
The Magic School bus Inside A Hurricane
Students investigate the concept of a hurricane by using the cartoon series "The Magic Schoolbus" to simulate the fantasy of traveling through a hurricane. The lesson uses a KWL graphic organizer in order to guide student inquiry and as...
Curated OER
After Reading: "Plot the Plot" Activity in the Library Media Class
"Plot the plot" of "The Adventures of the Speckled Band" with your young readers. Take a few days to read Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's short story as a class or in pairs, having learners write down what they consider to be the most important...
Curated OER
School Museum
Fourth graders research individuals who contributed to the history of Illinois, and what school was like at that time. They compare schools of various times.
Curated OER
Library Lesson Plan: Table of Contents
Third graders create a table of contents. In this library skills lesson, 3rd graders read Welcome to the White House and use the provided worksheet to create a table of contents for the book.
Curated OER
It's All Greek to Me!
While the ideas for Ancient Greek research are solid, there is little detail to help make your job easier. The focus here is familiarizing your class with online databases and print resources in their school library. After direct...
Cornell University
Forensic Science: Case of the Missing Diamond Maker
Someone stole a diamond-making machine. Who done it? Scholars use forensic science at six different stations to determine the culprit. They analyze fingerprints, use their senses, and complete chemistry experiments to determine the...
Curated OER
Does Candy Belong in Your School?
Students use the program MediaBlender to create a persuasive presentation about candy being allowed in school vending machines along with healthy snacks. Presentations are geared toward the school board.
Curated OER
School Temperatures
Students collect and record temperatures throughout the school. Using this information they compare and contrast the temperatures recorded from various spots throughout the school.
Curated OER
Create Your School Lunch Menu
Students develop their own school menu with as many healthy choices as possible. They keep a journal of what they eat on one day and then research nutrition. They present their new menu to the judging committee.
Curated OER
CDVs at Home and School
Students identify the rules they have at home and at school. They connect the values to the core democratic values and discuss whether all rules should connect to the core values. They create a mural showing students following the rules...
Curated OER
Make your Garden Grow
Fourth graders role play as certified horticulturists as they study the biology of plants and gardening. They design a garden for their school based on what they researched and a given budget.
Curated OER
Learning a New Environment
Students review a school map with color-coded markers and use it to locate classrooms, bathrooms, library, principal's office, etc. They color a school map, cut it into puzzle pieces and then reassemble the pieces.
Curated OER
Transportation Systems: Two Liter Boat Activity
Students design and build full-size boats made out of two-liter plastic bottles, chicken wire, and plywood. Then they race the boats, with the boat's designers "manning the hull", in the school's swimming pool.
Curated OER
Important Arkansas People
Famous people in the history of Arkansas are the focus of a history lesson for kindergartners. Pupils identify important Arkansas citizens, such as President Bill Clinton. They create an illustrated poem that features some of the...
Curated OER
Basil Heatter, "The Long Night of the Little Boats"
“It was a miracle.” Basil Heatter’s “The Long Night of the Little Boats,” which details the miraculous rescue of the British army from the shores of Dunkirk in 1940, is featured in a series of exercises that ask class members to read,...
Alabama Department of Archives and History
"Scottsboro Boys": A Trial Which Defined an Age
Here's a must-have resource. Whether your focus is racism, the Great Depression, the "Scottsboro Boys" trial, or part of a reading of To Kill A Mockingbird, the information contained in the seven-page packet will save hours of...
International Reading Association
Literacy Survival Tips for New Teachers!
Whether new to teaching or a seasoned pro, this 12-page phonics and phonemic awareness guide is a must for your curriculum library. Everything from a summary of research on the topic to exercises and activities is included.
Curated OER
Information Shuffle
Gather some information, print it onto sentence strips, and then have your class physically shuffle the cards to better understand the importance of organizational patterns in writing. Middle school learners examine information for a...
Curated OER
5 Broken Cameras: How Storytellers Shape the Story
5 Broken Cameras, the award-winning documentary nominated for a 2013 Academy Award and winner of the Sundance 2012 Directors Award is the focus of a resource packet that includes a lesson plan, discussion guide, reading lists, background...
John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum
Analyzing the Inaugural Address
Get high school historians to step outside their own shoes by responding to JFK's inaugural address from the perspective of a civil rights activist, a soviet diplomat, or a Cuban exile. After a class discussion about the address,...
Curated OER
Ben Franklin Timeline
Celebrate inventions such as lightning rods, bifocals, and stoves with a Ben Franklin Day. Young historians conduct research and write a paragraph about an accomplishment of Benjamin Franklin including an illustration...
Curated OER
School Sleuths Treasure Map
Students are explained how a grid and compass work. They are also explained that archaeologists use grids as a record of the exact location of artifacts. Students define the term datum as a point of reference on grids from which all...
Curated OER
The nutritional value of snack foods
This lesson is intended as preparation for a school health fair but could be used anytime. Learners discuss and compare the nutrition found in typical snack foods. They compose investigative questions, collect data, and research a...
Curated OER
Mathematics: A Picture's Worth a Thousand Words
Students examine school yearbooks from 1950 to the present. They count the number of male and female teachers and administrators. They compile date and extrapolate changes in job trends.