Sixth graders experience the stages of process writing, work cooperatively, to critique and to incorporate software tools to enhance writing and problem solving skills.

Examine artwork, research literature, and create art pieces for a monument to a literary figure. Young scholars analyze the sculpture Model for a Monument to Alexandre Dumas père and compare it to other well-known monuments. They...

Teach young adults how to become advocates for their privacy in the modern information age. In a series of five lessons, learners explore their beliefs and opinions about privacy vs. the actual laws regarding who has the right to access...

How do scientists provide evidence to support the theories they put forth? What clues do they put together to create these theories? After watching West of the West's documentary Island Rotation class members engage in a series of...

Scholars work collaboratively to compose a found poem from one of their favorite stories. With a finished product in hand, class members form a circle and perform their work for an audience by taking turns reciting one line till the poem...

Improve high schoolers' public speaking with an engaging activity. Class members select three personally relevant quotes from a list. They then write a short speech for each quote, explaining how the quotes are personally relevant....

Accompany a novel study of Hatchet by Gary Paulson with a unit consisting of 16 lessons focused on physical and emotional survival. Reading the story along with a variety of informational texts, scholars compare and contrast reading...

After viewing the West of the West's documentary Cache, individuals craft either a newspaper article chronicling the discovery of the cache on San Nicolas Island, a historical narrative of the placement of the cache in the cliff side, or...

How did the environment and natural resources found on the Channel islands influence the culture of the Chumash? Archaeology meets technology in an activity designed for middle schoolers. After viewing West of The West's documentary Once...

Distinguish between primary and secondary source documents using the theme of philanthropy. Middle schoolers discuss Anne Frank: The Diary of Young Girl as a way to study the past using a primary source. Then they investigate how to...

Kids make big artistic gestures, just like the abstract artist, Lisa Signal. They use her work as inspiration for making simplistic, abstract, statements in an artistic way. They analyze her work, then walk through an unfamiliar...

Learners view a slide show featuring famous athletes and educational institutions that have played a part in the history of basketball. They participate in a game in which a basketball is tossed from person to person as facts and...

Use the Peace Corps to explore a different place and different perspectives. Your class reads the personal narrative "Cross-Cultural Dialogue" by Roz Wollmering, completing an attached story frame sheet in preparation for a class...

Imagine being part of a team of scientists that discover the oldest human remains in North America. Imagine being part of the crew that documents this discovery. Class members get a change to be part of such an exciting adventure in a...

Two lessons focus on making a beat. Using popular African American music of its time, scholars listen and analyze the rhythm then recreate it with hands drums, and cups. 

Foster's Rule? Allopatric speciation? After watching West of the West's documentary Island Rotation, class members use Venn diagrams to compare endemic species on the Channel Islands with mainland related species. They then create a...

Students create family banners. In this early childhood lesson plan, students develop language, creative thinking, and social awareness by creating banners about their families.

Twelfth graders read different versions of P'ansori in an attempt to gain exposure to this form of literature. They gain information in order to help understand the context of how they are part of the Korean culture.

Young scholars explore the element of "line." In this beginning art lesson, students listen to the book Harold and the Purple Crayon, then describe the types of lines Harold drew. Young scholars identify straight lines,  jagged...

Students study Amelia Earhart and Eleanor Roosevelt. In this biographical lesson, students read Amelia and Eleanor Go For a Ride. Students write their own biography, create a timeline of events from the book, and write a story based on...

Eighth graders discuss their plans for after high school and complete a portfolio. Individually, they use the information from their portfolio to create puzzle pieces of their past to help them plan their future. In groups, they put...

Guide your class through reading various versions of The Three Little Pigs. Talk about the traditional story line and then discuss a different point of view: Maybe the wolf was just an innocent bystander! This lesson plan, which has...

Young writers read excerpts from Gary Paulsen's memoir to identify figurative and literal language that contain sensory details. They determine which selections are examples of sensory language and fi the language is used literally or...

Eighth graders examine what they need to do to meet their career goals. They design a four to six year plan for the classes they need to take in high school after listening to high school mentor tell about their experiences with this...