Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Comedia dell' Arte Paper Masks

For Teachers 2nd - 5th
Pupils create masks from the Italian Renaisance theatre and use them in one-act plays they write. they analyze the role and development of theatre in world cultures.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Role of Dragons in Chinese Culture

For Teachers K - 5th
Students discuss the concept of symbolism in China and America and create their own "dragon boats" for evaluation and display. This Art lesson can be easily integrated into an elementary unit on China.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson 9- Billy Wilder: Film Noir Inventor and Genius

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students study what influenced and inspired Billy Wilder while determining the plot, characters, and historical context of the film Double Indemnity. They investigate the stereotypes of Film Noir and how it shows the media messages of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Altoona Horseshoe Curve: A Vital Link

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students explain the significance of the Horseshoe Curve.  For this railroad instructional activity students reconstruct elements of a German plot to destroy the Horseshoe Curve. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Japanese Stone Lanterns: Culture and Decoration in the Japanese Garden

For Teachers 4th - 7th
Students examine and discuss the many decorative elements in the Japanese garden. They learn about Japanese gardens and lanterns and create their own model out of clay.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cemetery Art And Architecture Detectives

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers investigate the architecture found in cemeteries in order to separate different time periods of distinct design. The use of examples helps them to recognize the design in correlation to its time. The lesson is delivered...
Activity
Orlando Shakes

Arms and the Man: Study Guide

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Few aspects of life make better fodder for a comedic play than politics. A study guide introduces George Bernard's Shaw comedy Arms and the Man. Along with summaries of each scene and brief biographies of the main characters, two lesson...
Lesson Plan
San Francisco Symphony

Dear Mr. Copland and Mr. Ellington

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
After a teacher-led demonstration on the lives and music of Aaron Copland and Duke Ellington, learners write a letter to them which shows their understanding of how a person's life experiences can be reflected in a composer's music. They...
Activity
Great Books Foundation

Discussion Guide for Handmaid's Tale

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
Great literature discussions are a consequence of carefully crafted questions, interpretative questions that permit more than one response, and responses supported by specific evidence from the text. The discussion questions in a guide...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Introducing Jane Eyre: An Unlikely Victorian Heroine

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students investigate the expectations and limitations placed on Victorian women and evaluate Charlotte Bronte's position and desire for literary achievement in using the male pseudonym, Currer Bell.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Making a Pinhole Camera

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Students participate in a number of activities in order to study the history of photography and to examine the workings of a pinhole camera.
Lesson Plan
The New York Times

Dark Materials: Reflecting on Dystopian Themes in Young Adult Literature

For Teachers 7th - 12th
The Hunger Games. Maximum Ride. Why is so much of young adult literature so dark? What is the appeal of dystopian literature to young readers? The six activities in this resource ask kids to reflect on some of the reasons this genre has...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Getting the Meaning in Pop Music

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Critical thinkers compare the impact of visual versus aural perception in how they comprehend artistic intent. They consider the meaning of a set of pop lyrics first by reading them, then by listening to them orally, and finally viewing...
Worksheet
Curated OER

International Children's Book Day

For Students 5th - 10th
Celebrate International Children's Book Day using this resource. Learners complete activities, such as reading a passage, sequencing, unscrambling sentences, writing questions, conducting surveys, and writing. Students complete twelve...
Handout
ProCon

Video Games and Violence

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
Is screen time dangerous time? Scholars take a close look at the facts surrounding video games and violence. Pros give evidence connecting violence to video games while cons suggest there is no relationship.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Poet James Whitcomb Riley: Famous in His Own Day

For Teachers 9th - 12th
An engaging biography of "Hoosier" poet James Whitcomb Riley serves as a springboard for study of his unique dialect-based verse. Several activities illuminate differences between spoken vernacular and formal language. Learners record...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Introduction to Modernist Poetry

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine the concept of modernism. They analyze different modern poetists writings and identify the context in which the poems were written. They write poems of their own to complete the activity.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Early Jazz

For Teachers 5th - 12th
Young scholars gain an understanding of early jazz. They study Dixieland and the Roaring Twenties. They examine the American historical significance and cultural implications of early jazz.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Media Violence - The Good, the Bad and the Future

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders define, identify, measure, and assess the level and impact of violence in media. The media forms evaluated include music, sitcoms, news, and other programs that are identified and shared by the class. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Quel temps fait-il?

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Hit all the basics with this lesson, focusing on weather, greetings, and dates! Start by singing a weather related song ("Quel temps fait-il by Barbara MacArthur is suggested), and then read a story about getting ready for school. The...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Froggy Gets Dressed

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Froggy wants to know: what are you wearing? Lead young Spanish learners through a review of weather-related terms before reading the popular children's book Froggy Gets Dressed. Then, using a froggy puppet, discuss what you're...
Organizer
Curated OER

Derbyshire Accent Project 1

For Students 5th - 6th Standards
Compare the Derbyshire accent to Standard English. There are eight common differences between the two languages for learners to discover. A great worksheet to start a discussion on the various forms and conventions of Standard English.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What's in a Name? Considering the Shakespeare Authorship Question

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Did Shakespeare really write all that stuff? After viewing a trailer for the film, Anonymous and reading Stephen Marche’s article “Wouldn’t It Be Cool If Shakespeare Wasn’t Shakespeare?” class groups read articles about the Shakespeare...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Allusions, Slang, and Literary Analogies

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Partners identify literary allusions using a provided worksheet and use this knowledge to examine the allusions in Toni Cade Bambara's "Raymond's Run." The class also examines the impact of allusions and slang on the tone of the story.