Here is an authentic assessment task for Shakespeare's Macbeth. Young literature scholars prepare, perform, and record a news broadcast about the major events in the play. For example, groups may choose to report on the death of Lady...

There is nothing more exciting than allowing learners to express themselves through a creative medium. In groups, they write narrative stories, focusing on building a strong storyline and dialogue. Next, they transform their stories into...

Write with the senses! Try using art to inspire writers to consider all of the senses. Here, the class is divided in half. Each group looks at one of two images, imagines the senses that would be engaged, and records answers to five...

Let your learners be the judges for a series of case studies that focus on broadcast codes in Canada. In order to familiarize your class with the codes and guidelines that govern the broadcasting industry, in particular Canada's...

Using Walt Whitman's Song of Myself and Hart Crane's The Bridge as models, class groups first craft their own epic poems for 1900 and, using primary sources, create a multi-media presentation that captures the sights and...

Eighth graders examine the role of intended meaning in Ralph Earl's portrait of Andrew Jackson. They, in groups, research periods in Jackson's life and use gathered information to create their own portraits of Jackson.

Young readers bring characters to life by working in small groups to script and perform stories that contain a community concept. Detailed questions and activities are outlined for the class. Consider having your groups create...

Examine the contributions of African-Americans in the worlds of art and literature. Over the course of a few days, young scholars will read and analyze a poem, a short story, and a piece of art. They complete a range of...

It's the end of the sixteenth century in the middle of the Spanish Inquisition when a group of prisoners decides to dramatize the story of Don Quixote. A study guide provides a summary and other important information about the play Man...

Before Hamilton, Lin Manuel-Miranda gained fame with In the Heights. A study guide prepares theater goers for a performance of the musical about a group of friends living in the New York City neighborhood of Washington Heights....

What is an advocate? Help high schoolers understand the issues forcing refugees to leave their home country. After gaining some information on the subject, high schoolers create a dynamic presentation and persuasive essay encouraging...

Introduce learners to allegorical art with four bronze sculptures by Francesco Bertos. After modeling how to recognize bias and allegory in Bertos' Africa, class groups examine the other three sculptures in the series before creating...

Make origami ducks with your class to reinforce geometry concepts and vocabulary; develop fine motor and visual translation skills; and enrich study of Japanese culture, the pond habitat, or migration. Create a whole group "worksheet"...

Learners examine the life and art of Romare Bearden. Using his "Mill Hand's Lunch Bucket" for inspiration, they write a first chapter for a book. Students observe numerous other works of his art and discuss them from artistic and...

Does your class love reading cartoons? Use their talents and interests to examine the process of writing a story they wish to tell through a cartoon. They develop the beginning, middle, and end of a story based on their original...

The task of creating a set for a theater production may leave theater arts students asking where to begin. Set their minds at ease with a packet that not only provides information about the elements of design, but also guides them...

Young scholars research the Gray Whale. In this Gray Whale lesson, students use KWL charts to organize information. Young scholars do Internet research to gain information about the whales. Students get into groups and create a mock...

Students study the various geographic regions of the U.S. and discuss how popular music is influenced by cultural/regional factors. Groups choose East Coast, West Coast, Midwest, or South in rap/hip hop music and create a PowerPoint or...

Students listen as the teacher tells about the life of Keith Haring. Using drawing paper and pencils, they sketch figures and shapes in the style of K. Haring. They discuss the mural with students, and they vote on colors to use....

Note values are the focus of a short worksheet that asks young musicians to respond to short-answer questions and to complete a measure with notes of the appropriate value.

Amazing efforts of African American leaders are celebrated in a lesson on civil participation. The engaging resource focuses on primary and secondary sources to analyze the impact of African American leaders such as Ella Fitzgerald....

Young mathematicians investigate the use of symmetry in graphic design. After first learning about reflection, translational, and rotational symmetry, children use this new knowledge to identify symmetry in letters of the...

Shakespeare loved to write plays about famous kings. A study guide for Richard II explores the drama surrounding the reign of King Richard while reinforcing important language arts skills. After attending a performance of the play,...