Middle schoolers have a bushel of fun as they engage in activities and research core facts about apples. Packed with suggestions for in-class activities and out-of-class research, the colorful 6-page packet is sure to satisfy hungry...

Students read "Fish Tale: Falling For a Live One" from The New York Times and discuss the methods and techniques the writer uses to create a strong mental image. Students pick a place in their community they wish to write about and...

Third graders read Barbara D. Booth's, "Mandy" while noting each time they read a sensory detail. They read about the young girl in the story who is hard of hearing and determine how her other senses are heightened. Also, they determine...

Students listen to N.C, Wyeth's Pilgrims and discuss what the Mayflower looked like.  In this Mayflower lesson, students use sensory words to describe what it was like on the Mayflower.  Students illustrate their vision of...

Helpful for an American literature or history unit, this lesson prompts middle schoolers to examine slavery in the United States. They read slave narratives that were part of the Federal Writers' Project and then conduct their own...

Students explore cultural history by participating in an arts and crafts activity. In this weaving lesson, students identify the many cultures that used weaving methods and local plant life to create baskets and other useful tools....

Encourage creative, independent, and reflective thinking and writing throughout the school year by having your class members keep Interactive Student Notebooks (ISN). Here you'll find a presentation designed to...

Learners explore examining something through one sense but experience competing input with another. The lesson also shows the plasticity of the brain and other cognitive functions.

Students explore similarities and differences. In this Teaching Tolerance lesson, students read literature and participate in activities that features mammals and their hair. Students learn that they share things in common while we are...

How do you assure that the resources you find for your classes are of good quality? Check out a vetting rubric that suggests eight questions to ask when considering lesson plans, activities, demonstrations, and pictures for classroom use.

Fighting a war over home soil makes a living nightmare even more real. Class members describe the experience of a Civil War soldier during the Battle of Franklin, poised right at a major turning point of the war, after researching the...

Sixth graders write a short story about being stranded on a deserted island. After a brief geography review of locations at various latitudes and longitudes, 6th graders draft their story about being stranded. They use sensory and...

A great resource for your unit on Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart. Small groups conduct research about related topics (list included), write papers, present PowerPoint slide shows, and take a student-created test. Fill in a few...

Learners discover competition and trickery by participating in a class game. They participate in a role-playing game called "Survivor" in which students utilize critical thinking skills to identify who is the "Bad Guy." Students win the...

Students create individual "travel logs" for a world explorer whom they studied in history class. This lesson is an interdisciplinary activity for the Language Arts and History classroom.

Fifth graders participate in read aloud activities of three books about life in Colonial times. They compare their life to that of children of Colonial times using a Venn diagram. They draw a picture and write about what a day in the...

Students read slave narratives and retell the stories to the class, identifying sensory details. In this slavery lesson, students discuss the importance of sensory details, then read the slave narratives looking for specific examples. ...

As part of their preparation for a visit to the Museum of Tolerance, individuals are asked to write about a time when they witnessed or experienced unjust, biased, or prejudicial treatment. A great way for writers to make a personal...

Students participate in tactile and visual exploration. In this tactile and visual exploration lesson, students listen to John Archambault's, Grandmother's Garden, and sing the song, "Friends Are Like Flowers." They participate in ice...

Ninth graders explore civil rights by reading several biographies. In this Nelson Mandela lesson, 9th graders discuss the trials and tribulations Nelson Mandela had to face in South Africa and how they were similar to the problems Martin...

Fourth graders write a diary entry. In this journaling lesson students examine a 1880's primary source document. Students read about a young girl visiting her Aunt in rural Indiana. Students write about what they did in the last day.

Learners analyze photographs to understand life on a plantation.  In this vanished occupations lesson, learners examine why iron plantations were created and what natural resources were needed to make iron. Learners compare the...

Pupils read several poems related to the life and culture of the Appalachia region. They are introduced to the poetic forms of simile, alliteration and onomatopoeia and respond to the poems through journal entries and poetry of their own.

Third graders examine and compare practices and products of the cultural groups that have settled in the local area. Students develop and use graphic organizers to aid them in the comparison of artistic expression, places of worship,...