Curated OER
Water: Read All About It!
Students discuss newspapers and water and work in groups to develop their own paper focusing on water issues. In this journalism lesson, students discuss the value of newspapers and water as an issue. They work as a group to develop a...
Curated OER
Bad Algae!
Learners explore algal blooms. In this ecosystem and health lesson, students define and describe harmful algal blooms, then discuss ways in which the impact of these algal blooms could be reduced. Learners work in groups to research...
Curated OER
It's All Greek to Me!
While the ideas for Ancient Greek research are solid, there is little detail to help make your job easier. The focus here is familiarizing your class with online databases and print resources in their school library. After direct...
Curated OER
Learning Life Lessons through Fables
Explore a variety of fables to learn life's lessons through engaging stories. Add rigor to the learning process with activities that include matching a a fable to the story's moral, short answer exit slips, and a three-column graphic...
EngageNY
TASC Transition Curriculum: Workshop 8
Lights, camera, action! Math educators consider how to improve their instruction by examining a model of the five-practice problem-solving model involving a movie theater. Participants examine cognitive demand in relation to problem...
Teaching Tolerance
Community Arts Showcase
An art showcase encourages class members to explore the themes of social justice and tolerance. They create an original artwork, engage in group discussions, and journal writing. The art gallery also provides a chance for families and...
Library of Congress
Determining Point of View: Paul Revere and the Boston Massacre
If you're teaching point of view, this is the lesson for you! First, decipher the writer's point of view from a primary resource, then compare and contrast the primary source with a secondary source to explore the Paul Revere's engraving...
Curated OER
Phineas Gage: “Medicine: Then and Now” Pre-Reading Activity
What did medicine look like a hundred years ago? Two hundred years ago? Invite small groups to conduct research on the history of a chosen medical advancement before reading Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science....
Curated OER
Pride and Prejudice: ABC book (Vocabulary Activity)
Master Jane Austen's language from A to Z with an activity based on Pride and Prejudice. As kids read the novel, they find (or are assigned) words that begin with each letter of the alphabet, and create one-page documents that show the...
Edible Schoolyard
Pan de los Muertos
Accompany instruction and the celebration of El Dia de los Muertos with a loaf of Pan de los Muertos. Here, scholars measure ingredients precisely to create tasty bread, write a remembrance for someone who has passed away, and take part...
Digital Writing and Research Lab's – Lesson Plans
Teaching Close Reading through Short Composition/Revision
This activity may have writers evaluate short compositions, but their subjects are quite tall: great Americans. Pupils read one another's compositions and closely examine how specific phrases and diction contribute to shaping American...
Curated OER
Library of Congress Learning Page: The Historian's Sources Lesson Overview
Students study techniques for analyzing primary sources. Finally, students apply these techniques to analyze documents about slavery in the United States.
Curated OER
Hero Holiday and Portfolio Completed
Young scholars summarize the unit on heroes and present picture books to younger students. In this hero instructional activity, young scholars compile their portfolios, in which they have presented heroic characteristics of their own...
Curated OER
Invent a Critter
Students create a living animal that could survive in at least one specific region and use the digital desert library to gather information. In this invent a critter lesson, students draw a picture of their animal, describe their animal...
Curated OER
Designing Carousels
Students design a carousel for an amusement park. In collaborative groups they conduct research, develop a presentation, write a descriptive paragraph, evaluate design features, and draw an artistic rendering of their carousel.
Curated OER
An Actor's View of Shakespeare
Students research characters from different plays. In this Shakespeare and performing arts lesson, students discuss the portrayal of characters from the perspective of real actors. Students work in groups to examine the technique for...
Curated OER
The Living Environment
Students explore the cycles of an ecosystem. In this environmental science lesson, students work in groups to research the nitrogen cycle, the water cycle, or the oxygen-carbon dioxide cycle. Students prepare a PowerPoint or other...
Curated OER
Traveling Museum Book
Students research the Ndebele tribe. In this research project, students work in groups to create a traveling museum about the Ndebele tribe.
Curated OER
Mouse
First graders are exposed to a variety of texts that deal with mice. The use of the library is recommended to saturate the classroom with available books. Young students work in groups with the help of the teacher to define traits and...
Curated OER
Service Learning/Then and Now
Eighth graders explore service learning projects. They work, in groups, to choose a video project. Students collect information and present it in a storyboard. Next, they use music, video clips, and still pictures to create their video...
Curated OER
Analyzing Poetry
Students research a poem using the Internet or library source. They analyze their selection including a line by line explanation of the poem. Students create a powerpoint presentation of their analysis.
Curated OER
Christopher Columbus: Historical Perspective
Sixth graders study Columbus Day in relation to who discovered Canada. They complete a KWL about Canada and discuss Columbus Day as an American holiday. After viewing a video, they read articles of Christopher Columbus and work in groups...
Curated OER
Navigating Nonfiction
Third graders explore the arrangement of nonfiction. In this library skills lesson, 3rd graders examine Dewey Decimal classification as they collaborate to locate nonfiction materials in the library/media center.
Curated OER
Animal Research Project
First graders are introduced to the topic of researching by the librarian. Using a worksheet, they use various sources in the library to choose one animal from various groups. They complete a fact sheet on each animal and report their...