Good question are the heart of great discussions. To prepare for a book club discussion, introduce young readers to the characteristics of good conversation-starting questions. Practice crafting questions for a text the class has...

In this creative writing lesson, pupils listen to the song "It Ain't Gonna Rain No More", read the book adaptation titled I Ain't Gonna Paint No More!, and pay close attention to the rhyming scheme, punctuation and illustrations. ...

Learners read an article on Darfur prior to class, discuss the conflict in Darfur, visit a series of websites, and complete a worksheet evaluating the reporting and sources used. They view films on genocide to decide if the Darfur...

After reading Love That Dog by Sharon Creech (and possibly shedding a few tears), middle schoolers work on their own sixteen-word poems with a Six Trait writing activity. They focus on word choice in this activity to capture an...

Get your historians to hop into someone else's 18th century shoes with a simulation on rights in early America. Each individual gets an identity card, indicating their race, gender, and status (slave or free). Areas around the room are...

Actual ship diagrams and a table of voyage data gives young historians an authentic glimpse of on-board experiences during the Atlantic Slave Trade. The class examines a projected diagram of the slave ship Brooks, recording thoughts....

Students determine the workings of the Braille alphabet and how people with visual impairments learn how to use it. For this Braille lesson, students study the associated vocabulary, read about Helen Keller, and complete associated...

Junior high schoolers learn how to read a water meter, track their family water usage, and discuss the amount in class with other pupils. They will interpret real-world data and graph it. It is ideal for increasing awareness and...

Who knew a state quarter could say so much? Alabama's quarter is embossed with an image of Helen Keller, pupils will use this image to think about what the phrase "Spirit of courage" means. They will use a graphic organizer to...

Third graders will research the Ring of Fire and be able to share their findings with their partner. They will also demonstrate volcanic eruptions using a baking soda and vinegar volcano model. Then they will discover how continental...

Should Charlie undergo an operation to increase his intelligence? A mini-lesson plan for a unit on Daniel Keyes novel Flowers for Algernon uses a RAFT activity, which prompts students to write a letter to Charlie's doctors explaining why...

Dirt babies are an excellent way to show young botanists the plant life cycle. They explore the functions and industry behind grasses before growing some of their own. Use the informational text here and consider implementing some...

What can young scientists discover from dissecting an owl pellet? Explore the owl food chain, beginning with an introduction to these predatory birds. Suggested strategies here include creating a podcast and purchasing a poster, however...

Readers learn together with a group discussion activity. As they read William Shakespeare's The Tempest, high schoolers prepare for a fishbowl discussion in which three or four learners sit in the middle of a large circle and...

Examine three speeches while teaching Aristotle's appeals. Over the course of three days, class members fill out a graphic organizer about ethos, pathos, and logos, complete an anticipatory guide, read speeches by Martin Luther King Jr.,...

You can mix almost any subject with an arts curriculum. Find out how to use drama to find the main idea of a literary text. You'll read a story, and then learners will make tableaus showing what happened, or what they think will happen...

Grab a debatable (or controversial) moment from your current reading, and use this task to progress the persuasive writing skills of your high school scholars. Divide your learners into four small groups and let them collaborate, debate,...

Get even your most reluctant pupils reading, writing, reciting, and maybe even enjoying poetry! A four day lesson, young writers learn about Golden Shovel poems: a poem format that uses borrowed words from other poems as the last words...

What was the relationship like between George and Martha Washington? To protect their privacy, Martha Washington destroyed all her husband’s letters after his death so historians have little evidence of their lives together. Two letters...

Even kids in grades two through five can start thinking about the part they play in sustaining endangered species.  They consider what endangered species are, how they become endangered, and what conservationists can do to help. In...

Just like so many other birds, swans migrate during the cold winter months. Your class can gain a better understanding of migration and bird life as they act out some of the activities common to the tundra swan. They make a nest, sit on...

Life in the Bering Sea, food webs, and the ocean ecosystem are introduced with a map activity. The lesson starts as kids explore maps and images of the Bering Sea, then it kicks into high gear as they start to discuss the types of...

Teach your class about the necessities of life using the book Tillena Lou's Day in the Sun. After a teacher-read-aloud, students make puppets depicting different plants and animals from the story and illustrating the habitat in...

This cool lesson plan is ideal for elementary engineers or physical scientists, especially when learning about heat transfer and insulation. After reading a page of background information, engineering teams collaborate to design and...