Curated OER
Folklore and Culture
Sixth graders explore the four kinds of folklore in this seven lesson unit. Through reading a variety of legends, muths, fables, and folklores the concepts pf the lessons are synthesized byStudents.
National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science
Mask of the Black God
Finally, an astronomy lesson for the high schooler! Explorers are able to read star maps for finding objects in the night sky by determining celestial coordinates. In particular, they locate the Pleiades and read about a Navajo legend...
Curated OER
Myths, Folktales, & Fairy Tales
Introduce the concept of myths to your class. Using the link to "Myths Around the World," read a story aloud and have learners list characteristics of a myth. Readers then choose their own myths from the site and work in groups to answer...
Curated OER
Legends in Their Own Times
Students learn folk tales from many different cultures and retell them using the medium of their choice. They write about the cultural indications found in these tales.
Curated OER
Discover and Celebrate the Chinese New Year
Spring into Chinese New Year with a look at the history, food, and traditions associated with this holiday.
Curated OER
Trickster Tale Comics: The Cunning Coyote
The trickster tale "The Coyote Places the Stars" tells how a coyote is sneaky but helpful. After listening to the tale, scholars use their imagination to create a trickster tale about a coyote, displaying their journey through a comic...
Curated OER
Early American Oral Tradition Lesson Plans
Students open their minds to the relevance of early American myths and legends by sharing their own family stories.
Curated OER
Fieldwork Basics Overview
Put your feet up and grab a cup of coffee before going through this extensive field work unit plan! Based on folklorist studies of traditional culture and ethnography, several activities focus on topics such as cultural sensitivity;...
Curated OER
Lesson Plan: Musical Myths
Create musical myths in this West African tales lesson. Middle schoolers read myths from African Myths and Legends as well as West African Trickster Tales. They note when music could be used to enhance the tales, and then write their own...
PE Central
Celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with Dance
Erin go bragh! Enliven your St. Patrick's Day celebration by teaching your class members some of the combinations found in traditional Irish step dancing.
Curated OER
Norse Mythology
Are your mythology students fans of Marvel Comics or the movies, Thor and The Avengers? Planning a unit on Norse Mythology? The Eddas, Asgard, Yggdrasil, and all the gods and goddesses of the Norse tradition are included in this...
Curated OER
Gapminder World 2012
Here is a very interesting infographic that compares the average life expectancies, per capita incomes, and population sizes of every country in the world in 2012.
American Museum of Natural History
Make Your Own Mythic Mask or Puppet
No need to wait until Halloween to create a mask. Young anthropologists get involved in the centuries-old tradition of mask and puppet making with the help of an engaging resource that shows them how to craft their own masks or puppets.
Curated OER
Storytelling With Artists
Middle schoolers retell a legend orally, illustrating it with the art style of the source culture.
Curated OER
Magpies across the milky way
Learners make origami birds after studying about Asian legends and culture. In this Asian legends lesson plan, students also learn about Asian art, constellations, and the Milky Way Galaxy.
Curated OER
"Be the Kiwi" - Maori Oral Tradition and Performance
Students create a story similar to those of the Maori oral tradition. In this Whale Rider lesson, students discuss the way that Maori legends were passed down from generation to generation. Students choose a land formation and write a...
Curated OER
Heritage: Legends, Fairy Tales and the Native Americans
Fourth graders read a Native American legend local to the Utah region and compare it to a traditional European fairy tale. They use a Venn diagram as a graphic organizer for the comparison.
Curated OER
Gluskap Story Skits
Students read and analyze a Gluskap (Algonquin legend) story. Together, they discuss the morals and values these stories demonstrate and in groups, create and perform an imaginative skit based on one of them. They perform their skits for...
New York State Education Department
Global History and Geography Examination: August 2010
Three major faith traditions have shaped world history: Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism. Using secondary sources from textbooks, as well as primary source documents, such as Aztec legends, pupils explore the interplay of these...
Curated OER
Children's Literature Across the Curriculum Ideas-Dancing With the Indians
Students read Dancing With the Indians by Angela Shelf Medearis. They complete a variety of cross-curricular activities surrounding the study of Native American festivals and traditions. Included are reading, art, math, science, writing,...
Curated OER
Dancing through Poetry
Get your class up and moving as they explore how to express movement and dance through words. Designed around two poems by Lillian Morrison about break dancing, the activity truly captures the creative and multi-sensory aspects of...
Curated OER
Facts of Halloween
From Catholicism to candy corn, this presentation has it all when it comes to Halloween. The history of the holiday is discussed in these slides, as is the stories behind seasonal traditions (trick-or-treating, jack-o-lanterns). The...
Curated OER
Cats and Superstition: Fun Trivia Quiz
Answers to this quiz are very well cited, so if your class is studying Halloween, symbols, superstition, world cultures, or cats, it could spark spirited discussion about comparative traditions.
Curated OER
Don't Stop the Weaving
The importance of oral tradition is evident throughout time and across space. Introduce your learners to some interesting stories and then test their knowledge with these questions. Ten multiple-choice questions focus on characters and...