Curated OER
Civil Rights Video Essay
High schoolers investigate a decade of American history when the civil rights movement was a focus of national attention. They create a video essay about a person or event that played an important role in shaping the civil rights movement.
Student Achievement Partners
Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm - "The Fisherman and his Wife"
Help young readers learn to read and interpret complex text independently. Teach young children to ask interpretive questions and use the text itself to answer them. Use art, word play and drama to provide a deeper understanding of...
Curated OER
Life in a Hurricane Zone
Students research the effects of living in a hurricane zone. In this hurricane zone lesson, students research the impact of natural disasters on humans and the environment, and write a press release describing the devastation of...
John F. Kennedy Center
Acting Up, A Melodrama: Performing Like Jo March and Her Sisters in Little Women
Lights, Camera, Action! Pupils read Little Women and create, act, and direct a melodrama that Jo March and her sisters would enjoy. The lesson plan comes complete with resources for the educator on melodrama as well as examples...
Curated OER
Shadows & Light, Science & Puppetry
Lights, shadows, action, and inquiry await your artistic scientists. They explore the way light travels, absorbs, reflects, and transmits through shadow play. They create folktale-inspired shadow puppets, explore the science of light,...
Curated OER
A Way with Words or Say What?
Students explore the language of Shakespeare. In this literature lesson, students examine words invented by Shakespeare as they interpret their meanings in drawings. Students pantomime the meanings and then write a short story...
Curated OER
Punctuating a Paragraph
Do your fourth graders need a little help with punctuation? Use this run-on paragraph to demonstrate proofreading for capitalization, punctuation, and separating ideas into separate paragraphs. At the end of the activity, learners...
Beauty and Joy of Computing
Unsolvable and Undecidable Problems
Try as you might, some functions just cannot be computed. The lab introduces the class to the possibility of unsolvable problems. The fourth lesson in a series of seven begins with a logic problem, then progresses to looking at functions...
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
One Land, Many Trails: Extra Support Lessons (Theme 5)
Grammar, vocabulary, and comprehension strategies are all part of the journey toward understanding a text. The last in a series of three extra support lessons designed to accompany Theme 5: One Land, Many Trails provides a wealth of...
Curated OER
Cultural Creation Myths
Students write original plays based on supernatural explanations of existence. In this cultural creation myths lesson, students listen to five different stories about supernatural creation. Students record similarities and differences in...
National Endowment for the Humanities
A Raisin in the Sun: Whose "American Dream"?
How does Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun factor into a discussion of the American dream? High schoolers define the American dream and recognize the historical setting of the play. Additionally, they identify...
Curated OER
Self Acceptance
Students develop confidence about themselves. Students imagine they are a rubber ball and think about how strong they are inside themselves. They read a story about an elephant and a lion and reflect on questions provided. Finally,...
Curated OER
Ode to the Ordinary
Ninth graders identify an ordinary object and write an ode for the subject. In this poetry writing instructional activity, 9th graders select an ordinary object and define its uses. Students then write an ode for the poem.
Curated OER
Characterization in Literature
Students discover characterization techniques and methods. In this characterization lesson plan, students choose favorite fiction characters and discuss what makes a character come alive. Students then describe a family member or a...
Curated OER
Mythology: Reader's Theater
Build reading fluency and classroom community with a Reader’s Theater activity. Class groups select a myth, or if part of a myth writing unit, select a group member’s myth, craft a script, and perform for the class. Directions for...
Google
Friends: Imaginator
What does a future as a computer scientist look like? Pupils learn about loops in computer coding by writing a story about the future. They include the repeat until and wait blocks in the Scratch program to incorporate these loops.
Curated OER
Sly Book Channel
Create a commercial for a favorite book and broadcast this pitch on the Sly Book Channel! Learners practice retelling, summarizing, comparing/contrasting, and evaluation skills as they prepare their scripts. The approved scripts are then...
Curated OER
Swamps, Shrimp, and Tsunamis: A Simulation of Sustainable Development Issues in Coastal Ecuador
Middle schoolers examine the economic benefits, environmental losses and dangers of the shrimp farming industry on the coast of Ecuador. They read a script, role-play people involved in the shrimp business, and write an essay of the pros...
Chandler Unified School District
Art Masterpiece: Leonardo’s Inventions—Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci is the focus of a hands-on activity that encourages scholars to become inventors. Pupils brainstorm and sketch their idea, compose a detailed depiction using a mirror writing technique, and antique the paper for a...
Curated OER
Literary Terms: Take Me to the Theater!
Take your class to the theater! First graders will examine characters that actors play such a villians and heroes. Then participate in creating plays and performing in them. They will also research what it takes to create scenery, props...
Curated OER
The Transit in Pictures
Learners investigate the June 2004 Transit of Venus, write a screen play, and produce a movie or animation of the transit including a narration. The difference between storytelling and storyboarding is made clear in this lesson.
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Give It All You’ve Got!: Extra Support Lessons (Theme 2)
Understanding word parts can play a crucial role in understanding a word in the context of a larger text. A series of extra support resources designed to accompany Theme 2: Give It All You've Got offers activities related to grammar and...
Curated OER
Vocabulary Instructional Routine: Multiple Meaning Words in Context
Tackle multiple-meaning words with your youngsters using this scaffolded lesson which features a detailed script. Begin with the word shoulder, using context clues to help scholars understand the meaning. Next, they observe a second...
Social Skills Central
Hidden Rules: Conversation
Ever spoken with someone who monopolized the conversation? Explain to learners the benefits of giving others a chance to speak and balancing a conversation with this set of worksheets. Pupils discuss the ways in which you can show...