Here is a way to build your pupils' public speaking abilities. The instructional activity describes a reader's report chair, which is used each week by a student who has just finished reading a book. The featured reader sits in the chair...

Individuals each select a healthy habit to explain and demonstrate with the rest of the class. They are assigned a partner to evaluate and videotape them, but they will create their own class presentation. The document includes a peer...

Learners create a nature journal for an imaginary trip around France. They Identify animals and plants that live in France and describe its landscape. In addition they research a period in France's history and prepare a brief summary of...

Investigate ethical issues surrounding the Decode project in Iceland. Middle and high schoolers take the positions of the Icelandic government, scientific researchers, and citizens and defend or refute the Decode project in a Reykjavik...

The class explores and debates, from multiple perspectives, a petition to allow Hopi Indians to take golden eagle hatchlings from a federal wildlife sanctuary for use in a religious ceremony. Pupils defend their personal views on the...

Working in groups, learners create a mnemonic device, give an oral presentation, and create a pictorial representation of the correct sequence of the planets and asteroid belt from the sun. An assessment rubric is included in the lesson.

There is no better sight to see than a classroom full of eager young adults, hands raised high, eager to jump into a class discussion. Get your class identifying and discussing rhetorical strategies and then debating long into the night...

Start the day by sharing opinions about human rights. Then, read "A Defiant Hussein Pleads Not Guilty to Mass Execution" with your middle and high school class. Your pupils research the specific charges in the case against Saddam...

Synthesizing information from a PBS documentary Ralph Bunche: An American Odyssey, its companion website, and several other resources (links to which are provided), high schoolers evaluate whether Bunche did all he could to advance the...

Students perform a reader's theater based on the Civil War. For this dramatic arts history lesson, students review the purpose of reader's theater and are given a script to read. The script can be based on an important Civil War figure....

Have your class acquire research skills such as using hotlists and evaluating websites while they study major literary eras. They create multimedia presentation using information from the Internet research.

Students investigate major landforms (e.g., mountains, rivers, plains, hills, oceans and plateaus). They build a three-dimensional model of a landscape depicting several of these landforms. Once they have built their model, they act as...

High school scholars learn valuable information about how to run a newspaper in the third and final installment of a media literacy series. The unit scaffolds learners to success with background information before they plan for...

Challenge scholars to speak up about a topic by creating a public service announcement or social media blitz about an issue they feel passionate about. Have them research their issues, then decide the best way to take their messages to...

Fahrenheit 451 depicts firemen like never before ... rather than putting out fires, they start them! Scholars read to understand why firemen now burn books. As they read, they work through two vocabulary activities, answer 10...

Little Man, in Vince Vawter's Paperboy, is a great baseball player, but due to stuttering he'd rather not speak to a soul. Scholars read how Little Man deals with his fears as they use vocabulary words to complete sentences,...

A unit on persuasive writing guides elementary learners through the writing process. The first part examines the elements of persuasive writing, including expressing an opinion, connecting ideas, using supporting facts, and writing...

Who are the Grimke sisters? Scholars find out with a activity that details the struggles and triumphs of the lives of Angelina and Sarah Grimke. After reading an informational text, class members have the opportunity to show what they...

No study of World War II would be complete without an in-depth examination of the events of June 6, 1944. Pascal Vuong's D-Day Normandy:1944, is the perfect vehicle to convey the sheer magnitude of the events that have been called...

So, what's the plan? Seventh graders begin their college and career journey in the first of six lessons. After creating their online profiles on a career resource website, individuals conduct extensive research to determine the courses...

It's a time of change. A hands-on activity engages young scientists in a lesson highlighting the change of seasons. They brainstorm indicators of season changes in nature and then look for them. Next, they record observations in a field...

Prepare your learners to make good decisions about drinking by providing them with the real facts about alcohol and substance abuse. This resource includes several worksheets explaining how alcohol affects the brain, as well as a...

Though the scientists who developed the atom bomb did not believe it should be used to end World War II, American President Harry S. Truman and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill were of like mind in their decision to drop the bomb...

Seventh graders conduct research on important background information regarding the role of religion in American public schools. In this Ethics lesson, 7th graders examine and become familiar with the First Amendment of the Bill of...