Curated OER
100 Famous Quotes
Students explore famous quotes from throughout history. In this multicultural literacy lesson, students work as a team to read and memorize a list of 100 quotes. Students participate in a game in which the first half of a quote is...
Curated OER
Children's Media and Censorship
High schoolers form opinions about children and television censorship after analyzing literature. They complete a journal writing activity to identify the topic and make a list of inappropriate television shows for children. Next, they...
Curated OER
George Orwell's Essay on his Life in Burma: "Shooting an Elephant"
Students read George Orwell's essay "Shooting an Elephant" as an analysis for the historical context. In this historical analysis instructional activity, students analyze the main points in the essay to identify its cultural and...
Curated OER
What Can We Learn about India from a Ten Rupee Bank Note?
The class finds and cites evidence showing India's unity in diversity and work to recognize some of the complex interactions of a civilized community. They read to understand how geography, history, politics, economics,...
Curated OER
THE OCCUPATION OF KOREA BY JAPANESE IMPERIALIST FORCES
Students read and respond to a history of Korea. In this occupation lesson, students work in groups to research the effects of Japanese occupation and create an illustrated timeline. Students listen to a lecture and write an acrostic....
Learning to Give
The Beginning of the Storm
Introduce readers to Mildred Taylor's Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry with a lesson that sets the context for the novel. Class members research the bigotry in Mississippi during the Great Depression and identify examples in the story of how...
Missouri Department of Elementary
Goldilocks Revisited
After a read-aloud of the story Goldielocks and the Three Bears, scholars gather into small groups to answer a series of questions. Peers examine the idea of smart decisions and identify three feelings of characters alongside three...
Curated OER
The Iron Horse vs. the Buffalo: Indian-Settler Conflict on the Great Plains
The Iron Horse encroached upon the land while conflicts escalated between Native Americans and the settlers. Sophomores study the print, American Progress then discuss how American progress affected Native Americans. They will study the...
Curated OER
Ban That Book!
Take advantage of Banned Book Week to pique students' interest and get them reading! Create a classroom display of previously banned books and allow each member of your class to choose one to read. After they have read their book, get...
Curated OER
Picture This - Stars Over Hoke
The classroom becomes a safe and inclusive place for your ELLs as they create documents about their lives. Learners create, read, and present story books based on their own personal experiences. They use digital cameras to take...
Curated OER
Propaganda
How does word choice affect the reading of a text? Compare two headlines that were written about the same event. Is one biased? Discuss how word choice often reveals the author's feelings about a topic. Then look at different techniques...
Curated OER
All About Me
Students identify personal traits. For this autobiographical art lesson, students read the book Whoever You Are and use art supplies to create a body cut-out of themselves. Students include physical characteristics on their cut out.
Curated OER
Minorities in Mainstream American Society
So many people fought for Civil Rights in the United States. Read about the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and discuss what the act guarantees. Then pass out a slew of magazines and encourage them to observe how often minorities appear in...
Curated OER
The Times and Life During the California Gold Rush
Fourth graders read about the era in their history books, write in their journals revolving around the Gold Rush, making crafts such as newspapers, and also play the part of the Forty-niners.
Curated OER
Ann Arbor Growth & Immigration
Third graders describe some of the factors that brought early settlers to Ann Arbor. They read Narrative-A Trip from Utica, New York, to Ingham County, Michigan in 1838. As an added challenge, 3rd graders can use maps to track Silas...
Curated OER
Red Riding Hood in China
Inspire young writers to compose their own version of the fairy tale "Little Red Riding Hood." They begin by reading "Little Red Riding Hood" and the Chinese version <i>Lon Po Po</i>, then they compare and contrast the two...
Curated OER
Measures To Combat Mad Cow Disease
Students read an article at CNNfyi.com about Mad Cow disease. They identify and explain bovine spongiform encephalopathy and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. They formulate ways to combat mad cow disease.
Curated OER
Desert Fever: A Student-Centered Approach to Learning About the Middle East
Explore the exciting and diverse geography, people, history, governments, and economies of the Middle East. Curious minds develop a basic vocabulary of Arabic terms and work with various materials to create an aesthetically pleasing,...
National Endowment for the Humanities
The Rise and Fall of Joseph McCarthy
"I have here in my hand . . ." The war against Communism and Joseph McCarthy’s place in it are the focus of a series of lessons examining postwar America from 1945-1954. Joseph McCarthy takes center stage in this, the final lesson...
Curated OER
Sacred Places: California Missions from Different Perspectives
Students create a project poster displaying photos, drawings, and journal writings that incorporate the major themes of California's missions, and use perspective and point of view both visually and in writing.
Curated OER
Up From the Streets: Hip Hop as a Recognized Art
Students discuss the historical roots of Hip-Hop to the present as an example of an art form that arose from the street into popular culture. Emphasis is placed on in-class discussion and written reflections in this introductory lesson...
Curated OER
Different Ways We Celebrate
Students examine a variety of ways that families celebrate winter holidays. They complete a graphic organizer comparing Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa, and write a five-sentence paragraph about one of the holidays discussed. Students...
Curated OER
Reading and Activity Suggestions for The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Students learn about characterization techniques in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. In this Adventures of Tom Sawyeractivity, students write a description of one character through the eyes of another character and identify scenes...
Curated OER
Working With Environmental Issues
Pupils consider the source of disease and parasites in West Africa. In this environmental issues instructional activity, students read "Working with Environmental Issues," by Fred Koehler. Pupils participate in an activity that requires...