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Folktales (African American, Chinese, Japanese and Korean)
High schoolers participate in a variety of activities that are concerned with comparing different cultures through the literary genre of folktales. The stories are used to stimulate student interest and provide a context for how a...
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Identity in A Raisin in the Sun
Ninth graders read the play, "A Raisin in the Sun," and participate in a class discussion about "identity." They discuss racial identity and examine and interpret how community influences a personal identity. They demonstrate how...
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Social and Cultural Issues in the Civil Rights Movement
Students watch videos, listen to speeches and analyze the information that is presented about the civil rights movement. They examine visual art of the period.
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The Village and the Stars
Eighth graders discuss early school memories. They assess hopes and aspirations in greater detail and discover the importance of education as one of the shapes of our 'selves'. They observe parents' reactions to children growing up...
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Discovering Russian Folk Dance
First graders explore the art of Russian folk dancing. For this cultural traditions lesson, 1st graders research the Troika and incorporate attributes of the Russion folk dance into their own renditions.
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Folktale Unit Outline
Seventh graders analyze grammatical structures and identify literary elements in a variety of texts. Through the genre of folktales, ancient or indigenous cultures are studied.
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Rehearsal and Sightreading Techniques
Eighth graders prepare the two pieces "American Celebration" and "Patriotic Bits and Pieces" for an upcoming performance. This lesson is a forty-five minute lesson geared towards a middle school advanced band (8th Grade). National and...
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Voyage to the New World
Students examine the exploration of the New World. They write a descriptive account of the first encounter between Europeans and Native Americans, analyze and label maps, plot Columbus's journey on a map, and write a chapter summary.
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Grappling with Identity in Latino Poetry
Students identify some common themes involving the Latino immigrant experience as conveyed through a variety of media, explore issues of identity in some examples of poetry written by Latinos and learn some basic poetry reading strategies.
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Disease and Culture through Literary Time
Students select books to read that include disease as a plot or theme component. They fill out a matrix for the disease in their novel and write a five-paragraph paper about their book. Students use the rest of the week's classes to...
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Oregon Trail Maps
Fourth graders explore the Oregon Trail. In this Oregon Trail lesson, 4th graders collaborate to conduct Internet research regarding states along the Oregon trail route. Students present their findings to their peers.
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Discovery of America
Students examine the European conquest of North America. They participate in activities which allow them to discover the indigenous peoples of the region. They also place events in chrongological order.
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Egyptian Mummification
Students explore Egyptian mummification and burial practices. They conduct research on gods, goddesses, afterlife, and mummification. Students dissect and mummify a frog "pharaoh and create a tomb wall for their frog "pharaoh."
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Getting Down and Dirty: An Exploration of the 1930's
Pupils complete an exploration of the 1930s. Using artwork and primary source documents, they compare, contrast and identify cause and effect relationships in the events of the decade. They discover how the events then affect people...
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Stories of Nepal
Young scholars explore folktales and fairy tales from Nepal to help them understand the Nepalese culture, and to compare the stories to the ones the students may know. After reading the stories, young scholars consider what rural life is...
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A Year in Arizona
Fourth graders create a calendar about their state. In this state calendar lesson plan, 4th graders select a state theme and create a calendar based on that theme. Students write paragraphs for each month related to the theme and design...
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A Kids Guide to...
Students look into their community's historical changes. In this community activity, students see what draws people to their community and research important buildings or national historic sites. They look at local architecture and...
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VH1 And You Don't Stop - 30 Years of Hip-Hop
Learners examine the origin and elements of Hip Hop music and the associated culture. They visit websites and listen to examples of the music.
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Hong Kong Symphony: Heaven, Earth, Mankind
Students complete a unit on the reunification of Hong Kong with China in 1997. They watch and discuss a documentary, write an essay about unification, conduct Internet research on three artists from the film, complete a data sheet, and...
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Biotechnology
Students introduced to the genre of science fiction and the theme of biotechnology within that genre.
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How We Have Changed!
First graders practice using their writing skills. They create memory books through the use of daily journal writing questions of the day. Students respond to story prompts and write autobiographies of themselves and another classmate.
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The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush: Native American Life
Students read," The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush" by Tomie dePaola and discuss the way legends are passed down orally. They then create their own legend and illustrate it on a simulated "Buffalo Skin" made from brown paper.
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Graphic Novel/Comics with Josh Elder
Young scholars read about graphic novels and complete related activities. In this graphic novels lesson plan, students read about the genre and author Josh Elder. Young scholars complete novel analysis activities for the lesson plan.
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Fiction vs. Nonfiction
Students explore fiction and nonfiction writing. They identify the elements of fiction in a short story and identify the criteria necessary in a nonfiction piece. Students distinguish the author's purpose in an expository text,...