The topic of gun control is vast, controversial, and difficult to introduce to students. This gem of a resource covers both sides of the issue and provides topic background, various multimedia and print resources, analysis questions, and...

Pupils work in cooperative groups to explore communication needs of our world. They are assigned a demographic area and asked to create ways to solve communication problems with innovative ideas. They also explore areas that can help...

Students explore the life cycle of a butterfly. In this life cycle lesson, students read the book the Very Hungry Caterpillar. Students use this book throughout the year to create a year round bulletin board showing the stages of the...

How did Native Californians and Franciscans influence one another in early California? Learners analyze a few cultural pieces to examine the impact that integration had on Franciscan and Native Californian culture.

Here is an authentic assessment task for Shakespeare's Macbeth. Young literature scholars prepare, perform, and record a news broadcast about the major events in the play. For example, groups may choose to report on the death of Lady...

Young learners explore nutrition and the food groups in these two mini-lesson plan ideas. First, kindergarteners have a discussion about their health and how different foods contribute to it before making their own personal food pyramid....

Learners will compare and contrast two songs from the Civil War era, one from the North and one from the South. They'll write a comparative essay on their songs, and then compare their essays and songs with others in their small groups....

Archaeologists have discovered a cache of Native American relics. They want to preserve these relics by removing them from the rapidly eroding site to a lab where they can be studied. Native American traditions demand that the items...

Learners explore cultural myths in America by collecting images and characteristics of stereotypical Americans. They read a primary source document, discussing the views of the author in class. Next, they compare the terms used to...

Mystery is an exciting genre for young readers to investigate. The plots are so intriguing! Here is a series of lessons featuring Sherlock Holmes stories that invite learners to enter the world of the mystery genre.  Based on what...

Learners create a car using physics. In this forces and motion lesson, students create a car and test which changes in design change the performance of the car. Learners complete a graphic organizer with the different changes...

Fifth graders design a brochure that identifies types of solid waste that are often improperly disposed, explains the effects of this disposal and proposes a solution to the problem. The read humorous books, define vocabulary words and...

Third graders explain the definition of integrity and respect and provide examples from the story The Lost and Found's characters and their own lives that illustrate both. They describe in their journals why and how they think Wendell...

Fifth graders read the story of "Katie's Trunk". They identify the traits of integrity and fairness in the characters John Warren and Katie. Students explore how people can experience the same event but interpret it differently. They...

Students study Greek mythology. Among other activities, they evaluate a work of art and discuss the influence, significance, and history as it pertains to mythology. As a culminating activity they create a board game that shows their...

Learners find a Dr. Seuss quote or saying from a selected book and relate it to their own life experience by using the quote in a short story. They choose a Dr. Seuss book from a pre-selected group or from the school library. Students...

Students read a New York Times article in order to explain how American courts and communities are dealing with the unanimous Supreme Court decision to end "separate but equal" education. They analyze how this affects the nation's youth.

Students practice their writing skills by creating a children's book. They integrate five elements of short stories into the narrative. They share their stories with their book buddies.

Tenth graders explore WWII by reading a book with their class. In this Holocaust research lesson, 10th graders read the book Night, and discuss the horrors of the concentration camps and Nazi brutality during WWII. Students complete...

First graders identify community helpers and their roles. In this transportation lesson, 1st graders complete a series of lessons integrating technology and literacy. Students decode sounds of short u, c/s/ and g/j/ words and improve...

Students read the story behind objects in the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum and create a story about an object in the exhibit. For this design lesson, students explore the "Design for the Other 90%" exhibition and create a...

First graders learn the uniqueness of their names by reading the book, Chrysanthemum, and completing other integrated math counting and graphing activities.

Third graders examine various stories and poems and identify characteristics that make each individual unique. After analyzing the readings, they create their own personality poems to accompany self-portrait drawings. The poems and...

Students write an essay describing the Curtis Center and what they learned there. In this descriptive writing essay, students discuss the five paragraph essay and review sensory discoveries from their trip. Students draft an outline and...