Take a trip all around the town! Kids go round and round with a fun set of lessons based on "The Wheels on the Bus." After singing the song together, little learners figure out the hand gestures, reenact the song, and read an...

The transition between rebellion to reunification was not smooth after the Civil War. Young historians compare primary and secondary source documents in a study of the Reconstruction era in Virginia, noting the rights that were not...

How do Poe's choices of imagery, rhythm and rhyme scheme, and structure help build the desired single effect of "The Raven"? After listening to a dramatic reading of the poem, class members consider whether Poe's choices do...

Following an attention-grabbing read-aloud, scholars brainstorm ways they can change negative thoughts into positive thoughts. Small groups plan and perform a skit that showcases one of the new ideas to uplift one's feelings....

Through reading a variety of news articles and other informational texts, learners discover the political turmoil and intense ethnic and religious tensions that envelop the Ivory Coast today. Class members research the historical...

High school artists observe and research the illustrations and techniques of N.C. Wyeth. They read (and reread) stories and illustrate the texts using methods inspired by Wyeth's practice. Includes detailed instructional plan and useful...

Demonstrate how to engage in a polite and professional conversation with this banking and interfacing lesson. Focusing on explanatory and informaitonal texts, middle schoolers write sentences using banking and finance terminologies....

Thirds graders reinforce that a map is a drawing that shows what a place looks like from above. They use a map key and symbols to create a map of the school and its neighborhood.

Aesop's Fables are the focus of this language arts lesson. Young philosophers study and discuss the morals found in the most famous of Aesop's Fables. They write an original fable that teaches a common moral. A "Fable Listening Library"...

Young scholars examine the use of topographic maps as two dimensional representations that show elevations and slopes with contour lines. They read maps of the Salt Lake City, Utah area and complete the associated worksheets that show...

A superb interdisciplinary approach highlights this instructional activity which incorporates space science knowledge and narrative skills. After reading The Magic School Bus, two excellent poems, and watching a video, all about our...

Students practice identifying and pronouncing the short letter "u" sound. In this phonetic awareness instructional activity, students access the Starfall.com website and follow the directions on the screen to reinforce the short "u"...

The best way to be a good writer is to read good writing. Learners read and discuss an excerpt from a book that will help them comprehend the relationship between setting and character. They will use what they've gleaned from discussion...

Children who are three to five years old study two rank badges from the Qing dynasty to develop an understanding of social rank, language skills, and symbolism. The lesson is discussion-based and requires learners to compare and contrast...

Take young scientists into the depths of the world's ocean with the second lesson of this three-part earth science series. After first drawing pictures representing how they imagine the bottom of the ocean to appear, learners...

Everyone deserves to read a great book! Here, pupils write a persuasive letter to the school's librarian detailing their favorite story and why it should be found on the shelves. Class members' persuasive reading passages are shared with...

To gain insight into the many different types of habitats, individuals must first get to know their own. Here, scholars explore their school environment, draw a map, compare and contrast their surroundings to larger ones. They then...

To middle schoolers, there's nothing worse than being excluded from a peer group. Developing important self-esteem skills can not only get them through awkward adolescent times, it can carry them through the rest of their lives as...

Imagine living in the hold of a sailing ship for 63 days, enduring rough seas and autumn storms. As part of a study of the voyage of the Mayflower, class members examine an online resource that details life about the ship, watch a slide...

Walt Whitman's poem "As I Walk These Broad Majestic Days" offers scholars an opportunity to practice their noticing skills. They first examine a postcard of the Newport News Shipyard listing things they notice about the image and how...

Disrespect can be as subtle as a frown or a turn of a head. To prepare for a study of Toi Derricote's poem "The Weakness" class members create wordless skits that demonstrate subtle or not so subtle signs of disrespect. After a...

Be more specific. Scholars take a look at domain-specific vocabulary by discussing an anchor chart. They then look at vocabulary words recorded from paragraphs one through five in Water of Life. After analyzing the vocabulary used in the...

Identify and develop strategies for proofreading with your class. They read and identify the grammar rules for capitalization, end punctuation, and commas, correct errors as a class, and complete three worksheets. This resource includes...

Get your future professionals working in teams as part of a college and career readiness lesson. Discuss times learners have been on teams. What worked and what didn't? How did they settle disagreements? There is a teamwork handout here...