National Endowment for the Humanities
Dramatic and Theatrical Aspects in Thornton Wilder’s “Our Town”: A Common Core Exemplar
“So I’m going to have a copy of this play put in the cornerstone and the people a thousand years from now’ll know a few simple facts about us.” Our Town is used as the text in a Common Core exemplar that examines the dramatic and...
Curated OER
Thornton Wilder's Our Town: The Reader as Writer
Students read a play and create their own play using Thornton Wilder's Our Townas a resource. In this play lesson, students analyze how theatrical elements contribute to a play's meanings and effects. Students recognize differences...
Curated OER
Our Town
Students read and discuss an online article as they consider what makes a center of activity in a city or town. They produce a documentary film of the hub of activity in their school.
Curated OER
Our Town
With the songs "My Hometown" by Bruce Springsteen and "Allentown" by Billy Joel, learners examine external versus internal conflict. When they have finished the first part of the lesson, they create their own poem (or song) about the...
Curated OER
Our Town: Using Song Lyrics in the Classroom
Bruce Springsteen’s “My Hometown” and Billy Joel’s “Allentown” motivate young lyricists to craft poems about their own home town. Groups compare the two songs, identifying details, symbols, and conflicts. Individuals then picture a place...
Discovery Education
Is Our Community Influenced by the Opioid Epidemic?
Opioid abuse is becoming a national crisis, but combating the influence of opioids requires examining the ways it affects individual communities. A thorough teacher guide provides step-by-step instructions about implementing an...
Advocates for Human Rights
The Rights of Migrants in the United States Lesson Plan: Traveling Suitcases
Two activities bridge English language arts and social studies to take an inside look into immigration. Scholars interview a family member or someone they know who immigrated here. A crafted suitcase features information obtained in the...
ESL Kid Stuff
Wheels on the Bus
Take a trip all around the town! Kids go round and round with a fun set of lessons based on "The Wheels on the Bus." After singing the song together, little learners figure out the hand gestures, reenact the song, and read an...
Curated OER
How Cultures Differ "Two Different Perspectives on the Same Event
Students read excerpts from Peter Hessler's River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze and discuss his difficulties in learning the language, cultural clashes and how cultural perceptions shape our understanding of the world.
Curated OER
When the Wind Blows Lesson Plan
Learners read a book and observe the wind and how it affects the environment. They explore what wind does by looking at pictures, reading a book, and by completing an experiment. They will use their own knowledge of the wind and compare...
Curated OER
Our Town
Students discover what makes a community run smoothly by reading signs and visiting various places in their community. In this social studies lesson, small groups of students take photographs of community signs and places and then ask...
Curated OER
All About Our Town
Pupils explore brochure writing. They work in groups to brainstorm and categorize important places in their community. In addition, they gather information from the Internet, take pictures using a digital camera, and create a community...
Curated OER
Traveling aroud Our Town
Students are asked to describe to a partner how he or she walks to school or the bus stop. They are shown on the overhead an one-inch grid paper, and at the intersection of two lines on the grid paper, students are shown a house and...
Library of Congress
Investigating the Building Blocks of Our Community’s Past, Present, and Future
As Ken Jennings said, "There's just something hypnotic about maps." Certainly, the longer you look at them the more you can learn. In this project-based learning lesson, individuals study both historic and present-day maps of their area...
Curated OER
Buildings in Our Community: What Do You See?
Students investigate the architecture in their hometown by visiting buildings. In this geometry lesson, students examine buildings through photographs and explain the different geometric shapes found in the architecture. Students take...
Curated OER
Our Town
Fifth graders discuss the variety of feelings and emotions they may experience when someone or something dies. They identify emotions they have experienced and examine how experiencing a wide range of feelings is normal after the loss of...
Curated OER
Our Town Store
Students purchase items in their classroom store. In this money activity students create a classroom store. The students have a given amount of money and have to decide if they have enough to purchase the items that they would like to.
Curated OER
The Waterfront Debate
Tenth graders debate a resolution about a planned waterfront community from the point of view of various interest groups. They have a "Town Meeting" in which members from each interest group debate their researched opinions for points....
Curated OER
A Tale of Two Towns
Students compare their community and region with other communities around the world. In small groups they complete a questionnaire about life in their community and correspond with e-pals, take digital pictures, conduct research on...
Curated OER
Our City, Our Words
Students write poetry that captures their feelings about their city or town. After presenting their poetry at a class reading students compare their poetry to the work of published poets who have written about the same city.
Curated OER
Our Many Shapes and Sizes
Students discover humans come in all shapes and sizes. In this equality lesson, students evaluate different bodies among their peers and discover no human body is "perfect". Students discuss different ways to keep their bodies healthy.
Federal Reserve Bank
What Do People Say?
After reading a series of fictitious letters that represent actual events during the time period, young historians craft a small town newsletter to explain the causes of the Great Depression.
Curated OER
Arkansas History Lesson Plan: Identifying Arkansas on a Map
Students investigate their hometown of Arkansas. In this U.S. Geography lesson, students identify Arkansas on a map and distinguish it form the other states. Students investigate the history, state line, and personal experiences that...
Curated OER
Our World With MapsQ
Young scholars examine and compare different types of maps. In this map skill instructional activity, students look at neighborhood and national maps on the overhead projector while making comparisons of the symbols and locations. They...