Mr. Wormwood, one of the characters in Roald Dahl's Matilda, is not the most trustworthy of characters. Have student groups take on the roles of car salespeople and play a game to see who can make the most profit by selling...

Upper graders view a series of films that depict rituals or celebrations as they occur in different cultural settings. They conduct a cultural investigation about one culture, brainstorm and research objects that have cultural or...

Sixth graders use the internet to answer questions about Gutenberg's invention. As a class, they discuss their findings about society and technology in the late Middle Ages. They discover the influence of a certain group of people in...

Ninth graders examine how literature connects to real-life and see how irony aids in the development of theme. They read Shirley Jackson's The Lottery, and discuss elements of foreshadowing and situational irony. Then learners will write...

Students explore ancient tradition and craft of mask making, examine role or function of masks in African culture, create instruments, and participate in class projects.

Students investigate how sound influences meaning in poetry by listening to sonnets. They write an analysis after listening to and reading sonnets.

Students examine how portraits can tell us more about people of the past than just what they looked like. They compare three portraits of U.S. Presidents, analyze portraits of Americans from the Revolutionary War, and write a report on...

Students research historical events of the past century to recognize that society impacts the themes within art and literature. They then interview an individual to develop a biographical narrative, a collage and finally an oral...

Students compare two paintings, depicting urban life in America in the 1940's, answering a series of questions, then create a short story about the paintings' characters. They compare 'Nighthawks' and 'Nightlife.'

Young explorers investigate Australian Aboriginal culture by listening to traditional Dreamtime stories and examining dot paintings created by Aboriginal artists. In addition, they locate the country on maps, discuss the geography of...

High schoolers examine role spirituals have played in African American history and religion, examine Harriet Tubman's use of spirituals in her work, explore power of spirituals in Civil Rights Movement, and work with oral tradition,...

View a video presentation comparing chemosynthesis to photosynthesis. Review the findings of the 2004 Ring of Fire Expedition that studied biological communities around the hydrothermal vents of the Mariana Arc. In...

Students examine the presidential candidates and their election platforms. They further analyze the platforms by creating a chart to determine which candidate most represents his or her beliefs and values.

Help young readers examine historic artifacts to determine if they were designed to help people survive or to create enjoyment. They identify objects that were designed to help people to survive and to enjoy themselves. Then compare and...

Students, assessing a variety of sources, explore the growth of inventions that were brought about by the Industrial Revolution. They analyze labor practices and philosophies within the history of the United States. A timeline is set in...

Students create models of the three major types of volcanoes and determine how a volcano's shape is related to the type of material erupted. They then observe a demonstration that simulates the nature of two volcanic materials: lava and...

Writers use varied sentence patterns. They listen to the story of Cinderella rewritten so that each sentence starts with the next letter of the alphabet. They create their own version of The Three Little Pigs using the same concept.

Begin writing personal narratives in this writing instructional activity. Junior high writers start by writing a journal about their favorite holiday. They read a book at their skill level and use graphic organizers to record their ideas...

Oral storytelling has been an important part of every culture. The time-honored practice uses stories as a conduit for a culture's values and customs from one generation to the next. Keep the tradition going with a family interview...

Explore early American documents that qualify as primary sources. Tenth and eleventh graders use the provided worksheets to analyze the texts of the Articles of Association, the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation,...

Sixth graders evaluate photographs as historical documents.  For this social studies lesson, 6th graders analyze photographs as propaganda. 

Students analyze how Emily Dickinson perceived herself as a poet. Students read correspondence between Dickinson and her preceptor, Mr. Higginson to determine the depths of their relationship. Students interpret several of her poems.

Students examine the relationship of man and nature in "To Build a Fire" and discuss the juxtaposition of knowledge and instinct. They investigate third person, omniscient point of view.

Shapes in art, shapes in stories, shapes in the environment, shapes all around. A multi-part lesson that includes looking at the artist Paul Klee's work, reading books about shapes, taking a walk in the neighborhood and identifying...