Curated OER
Identifying My Spider
Third graders navigate the Internet and research spiders. In this spider instructional activity, 3rd graders view photos of spiders and use their characteristics to determine the variety of spider. Students complete a spider data sheet.
Curated OER
Billie Holiday's Song "Strange Fruit"
Pupils analyze a variety of primary source materials related to lynching (news articles, letters written to or written by prominent Americans, pamphlets, broadsides, etc.) in order to assess the effectiveness of the anti-lynching...
Animoto
Animoto Video Slideshow Maker
Turn the pictures on your phone into a great looking movies that will blow the hair back of whoever watches it. It is easy to make people laugh, cry, or just inform them about something interesting by using the creative tools available.
San Francisco Symphony
Mr. Lincoln Through the Eyes of Aaron Copland
Use Aaron Copland's symphonic piece, "Lincoln Portrait" to engage learners in a cross-curricular experience. They'll listen to the piece, watch a video, read the Gettysburg Address, and write a series of fact or opinion sentences. An...
Poetry Out Loud
The Tabloid Ballad
What do the theme song from Gilligan's Island, the nursery rhyme "The Owl and the Pussy-Cat," and the poem "The Shooting of Dan McGrew" all have in common? Why, they're ballads of course! Challenge your young balladeers to compose their...
Curated OER
Arkansas Festivals of the Land
Middle Schoolers research Arkansas community festivals which are tied to the landscape. They create brochures that reflect the festival from a geographical and historical perspective and share them with the class. This ambitious and...
Curated OER
Sexual Exploitation, Day 1: Communication
Learn about the two main components of good communication - being assertive and active listening - as well as passive, aggressive, and manipulative communication. There are skits to read out loud as well as scenarios to practice with a...
Curated OER
Sexual Exploitation, Day 3: Continuum of Sexual Touch
A sensitive topic to teach, but definitely a topic that needs to be discussed. The more aware your high schoolers are of sexual exploitation, the better they will be able to handle such situations. Read the case studies to set the stage,...
Curated OER
Art Critic for a Day!
Middle schoolers practice evaluating art by creating a research project and presentation. They use the Internet and library to discover a piece of art or artist whom they feel has an impact on the world of art. Next, they create a...
Curated OER
Fitness Notes - Weight Training
In this resource, the fitness notes cover the five principles of fitness, the principles of training/exercise, and cardio-respiratory fitness. The weight training notes cover the principles of weight training, proper techniques, and the...
Curated OER
Aristotle's Six Elements Of A Play
Fifth graders view the play, The Ant and the Grasshopper. They define Aristotle's six elements of a play. At the end of the lesson plan, 5th graders be asked to participate in the play by acting like busy ants. This lesson plan would tie...
Curated OER
Weight Training: Lifetime Fitness
Students research the relationship between physical activity and the prevention of illness, disease and premature death. Students understand that working out regularly will increase muscular strength, endurance and improve many areas of...
Curated OER
Find the Main Idea
It's important for learners to be able to identify the main point in an article, paper, or essay. Start by having them identify the main idea in a short paragraph. There are three short paragraphs (each with four multiple choice options)...
EduGAINs
Introduction to the Great Depression—Canadian and World Studies
Ah, the classic business cycle model: recession, depression, recovery, prosperity. And then there was the Great Depression. Groups investigate the economic conditions that led to and social movements of the 1920s that great out of the...
The New York Times
Super Brand
Children can recognize popular brands from an early age, but these images symbolize much more than what they advertise. Take a journey through the design of a logo with a instructional activity that focuses on the history and ubiquity of...
PBS
Breaking the Code: Actions and Songs of Protest
Ezell Blair, Jr., David Richmond, Franklin McCain and Joseph McNeil changed history. Their sit-in at the lunch counter of the Woolworths in Greensboro, North Carolina on February 1, 1960 became a model for the nonviolent protests that...
American Documentary
American Aloha: Hula Beyond Hawai'i
In this activity, high schoolers will examine Hawaii's issues of colonization, authority, authenticity and cultural identity, and understand the distinction between native and non-native Hawaiians. This activity includes links to videos,...
Curated OER
Those Fabulous Fables
A video leads off this activity on fables, introducing the class to this important form of traditional storytelling. The group defines fable and hears an explanation of the origin of this type of folk tale. They summarize the story they...
Curated OER
Lesson: Urs Fischer: Reviving the Past Art Movements
Seven major abstract art movements are analyzed by learners in groups. Each group analyzes various works by determining which work belongs to which movement. They then read Flatland, engage in an art and literary analysis discussion,...
Curated OER
Family History Through Art
Students discuss various ways families and communities pass down oral and visual art forms to younger generations. This multi-subject introductory lesson prepares students to create a project about their own families.
Curated OER
Can You Build a Better Mousetrap?
Students use a variety of linked sites to research information about student inventions and contests that are available for them. They research an invention they would like to see become available. They communicate their results to their...
New Class Museum
Lesson: Elizabeth Peyton: Portraits: Androgyny in Contemporary Culture
Portraiture, artistic expression, romanticism, and androgyny are discussed in a thought-provoking lesson. Upper graders first discuss and examine the history of portraiture and the elements common to the Romantic style. Then they turn...
Sargent Art
Rainsticks
This rainstick instructional activity isn't just about making art; it's about understanding Native American symbols and culture. Kids read about the use of rainsticks and why specific symbols were used to decorate them. They then make...
Museum of the Moving Image
Evaluating Information: Focus on the 2008 Election
Just how true is the information contained in political ads? Determining the veracity of campaign ads from the 2008 presidential race is the focus of a lesson that introduces class members to several fact-checking resources.