To appreciate the oratory of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech, scholars examine the rhetorical devices and influences that make the speech so famous. They examine background information, conduct a close reading of the...

"And the award goes to. . . " High schoolers investigate bias in the movie industry by reading articles, watching a short video, and examining data about the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) membership, nominees, and...

Readers learn how to choose specific details drawn from a primary source (Steve Jobs' 2005 Stanford University commencement address) to support an analysis of informative text.

The focus of the day's instructional activity is methods for creating a formal style and objective tone in an argument essay. After examining models, pairs engage in peer review of their essay drafts and continue to revise while...

After analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of the evidence they have recorded on their argument outline tool, writers draft their essay's first body paragraphs, ensuring they have properly cited their source material.

Scholars analyze the use of active and passive voice in The Montgomery Bus Boycott speech and refer to an Active and Passive Sentences handout while viewing the text. Pairs of learners then work together to identify passive and active...

What exactly is a visual representation? Scholars use a think-pair-share to answer questions and record their information on anchor charts. Next, they use what they've learned to create visual representations of their position papers on...

Scholars explore the question of whether labor unions are the agents of change as they continue reading César Chávez's 1984 speech, "Address to the Commonwealth Club of California." They discuss rhetoric in Chávez's speech and discover...

Scholars continue reading César Chávez's 1984 speech, "Address to the Commonwealth Club of California." Working with partners, they complete graphic organizers to determine a claim that Chávez makes about the UFW. 

Scholars complete a mid-unit 2 assessment, analyzing how César Chávez supports his claims in his 1984 speech, "Address to the Commonwealth Club of California." Learners focus on paragraphs 18 and 19 of the speech, answering text-based...

Scholars continue reading and analyzing César Chávez's 1984 speech, "Address to the Commonwealth Club of California." Working with partners, they answer text-dependent questions about how governments and consumers affect working...

It's time to weigh the risks and benefits of screen time! Pupils work in triads to identify the strongest positive and negative consequences from their Cascading Consequences chart. Next, using the chart and their researcher's notebooks,...

Time to pick a side! Building on the Fishbowl activity from the previous instructional activity, scholars choose a position about whether the American Academy of Pediatrics should raise its screen time recommendations. Using notes,...

Here's a surefire way to ensure that class discussions go swimmingly! Using the resource, scholars participate in a Fishbowl activity, forming two concentric circles in the classroom. As the group on the inside of the fishbowl discusses...

Welcome to the World Café, where lively debate is on the menu! Scholars participate in the World Café protocol, moving between discussion groups to decide if the American Academy of Pediatrics should increase its adolescent screen...

Students investigate a list of archaeological ethical questions. They select a question/issue and design a 3-minute (maximum) PSA to persuade the public to agree with their idea. They conduct research or interviews with experts to be...

Students identify and review persuasive literature looking at the characteristics, traits, and uses for this type of literature.  In this persuasive literature instructional activity, students read and discuss articles...

Students research early suffragists in an effort to find the most influential leader of the movement. They give presentations and the class chooses a winner. They write letters to the postmaster suggesting they be placed on a stamp.

Students write a curator's report in order to persuade a board of directors to purchase an artwork for a museum.

Fifth graders listen to Lynne Cherry's novel, The River Ran Wild. They work in two groups one of whom represents the native people and the other represents the English settlers from the book. They look at the geography of the settlement...

This lesson will help students learn more about current immigrant experience, nvestigate U.S. immigration and labor laws, consider the meaning of citizenship, gain knowledge about the economics of poverty, practice research skills and...

Students explore the concepts of community, belonging and human relationships through an Internet application designed to foster neighborly relations and write a persuasive statement to recruit others to join their community.

Young scholars investigate the Gettysburg Campaign and the major actions for each day of the battle. They read primary source documents, write a diary entry, analyze the Gettysburg Address, and write a persuasive speech regarding an...

Students examine the music of Woody Guthrie and how the political and economic climate influenced his work. They read and discuss online articles, define key vocabulary words, take a Political Orientation Survey, and write a position...