Novelinks
The Dark Is Rising: Problematic Situation Strategy
What items would you need to save the world from an evil wizard? Prior to reading Susan Cooper's young adult contemporary fantasy The Dark is Rising, and to generate interest in the tale, class groups must reach consensus on a...
Virginia Department of Education
Inductive and Deductive Reasoning
Introduce pupils to the two types of reasoning, inductive and deductive. Classmates work in pairs or small groups to learn the difference between the two and apply these reasonings to develop valid conclusions.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Lesson 2: What Has Happened in the White House?
Working in small groups, or individually, learners are given images of events that took place at the White House. They study the image and research that time in history to better understand how the White House has been affected by...
Curated OER
Maximize area
For this subscription-based activity, algebra learners model changes in the length and width of a rectangle to determine the maximum area possible for a given perimeter and solve several application problems involving area, included in...
Curated OER
Treasure Tales
Create an artifact kit to engage your young learners. Then, assign small groups a section of chapter three. They will identify the main idea and three supporting details for their section. Then, they select one artifact from the kit that...
Rutgers University
How the Allies Won World War II: Island-hopping in the Central Pacific
Using primary source documents, young historians explore the strategies the US used to defeat Japan during WWII. They also learn about the American military experience, and innovations that changed the style of warfare. High schoolers...
Illustrative Mathematics
Assessing Writing Numbers
Can I say a number by its name, and can you write it for me? Working in small groups or with the whole class, give your kindergartners a piece of 1-inch graph paper and have them write numbers 0 to 10 and 11 to 20. Next, pass out blank...
Science NetLinks
Green Roof Design
Green roofs aren't just eco-friendly — they are literally green with trees. Groups learn about the concept of green roofs in order to be able to design one. The groups design a 5,000-square-foot green roof for a fictional apartment row...
Missouri Department of Elementary
The Problem Solving Game
Creativity, communication, cooperation. Pupils assume the role of employees at a game factory working together to develop a new game. Using the principles of the STAR method (Stop, Think, Act, Review), they work in teams to create game...
National Council of Teachers of English
Acrostic Poems: All About Me and My Favorite Things
Budding poets create two acrostic poems, one for their name and another using a word of their choice. Over the course of five days, scholars compose, revise, publish, and share their work with their peers.
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Cast Your Vote
In a simple but unique lesson, youngsters learn about the history of voting systems. They then collaborate in groups to develop a new honest and consistent voting method. A class-wide poll is taken, evaluating the designs of other...
Curated OER
The Play's the Thing
Young scholars describe to a partner theater experiences they have had in their lives that were memorable, and analyze why. They study about one director's original artistic choices for staging Shakespeare by reading and discussing...
Curated OER
Dr. Seuss Day
First graders celebrate Dr. Seuss's Birthday. Moving through six stations in small groups, first graders rotate on the teacher's signal through several engaging activities connected to Dr. Seuss's books and poetry.
Curated OER
Parts of the Plot: Constructing A Plot Diagram
After reading "The King of Mazy May" by Jack London, learners reinforce their literary analysis skills in this SMART board lesson. The provided SMART board file allows themto define elements of a short story, and then add it to the plot...
Curated OER
Lesson 2: Helping
Students role-play taking care of each other. In this cancer lesson, students examine how to help someone who is sick. Students discover that cancer is not contagious. Working in small groups, students role-play how to take care of each...
School District of Palm Beach County
Egyptian Hieroglyphs
Humans have been developing number systems for thousands of years, and while they can be very different from one another, they can also share surprising similarities. Take your young mathematicians on a journey through the history...
Skyscraper Museum
Designing a Skyscraper
Besides serving as awe-inspiring monuments of human achievement, skyscrapers are built to perform a wide range of functions in urban communities. The second lesson in this series begins by exploring the history of the Empire State...
Curated OER
Is Social Media a Trustworthy News Outlet?
Examine the role of social media in social and political uprisings. Pupils listen to NPR audio clips about social media and the Arab Spring and read an article that proposes the idea that revolution will not happen through social media....
Berkshire Museum
Backyard Rocks
You don't have to travel far to learn about rocks, just step outside, pick up a stone, and begin investigating. After taking a class walk around the school grounds collecting rocks, young scientists practice their skills of observation...
Curated OER
Investigating Our Past: Where Did Humans Come From?
Investigate the theories of human evolution. In this research based lesson, learners research and discuss how geographic isolation, interbreeding, generalization, and specialization are factors in the history of humans. Groups work...
ESL Kid Stuff
Shapes
Work on shapes and body parts at the same time with a fun set of activities. Kids sing and read about Mr. Shape Head, who has shapes on his face, before making their own Mr. Shape Head.
Virginia Department of Education
Normal Distributions
Pupils work to find probabilities by using areas under the normal curve. Groups work to calculate z-scores and solve real-world problems using the empirical rule or tables.
Global Oneness Project
What Does it Mean to Be Resilient?
Imagine the determination it would take to build a helicopter out of scrap. Now imagine doing it while hindered by the effects of polio. Everything is Incredible, a short film by Tyler Bastian, introduces Agustin who has been...
Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media
American Indians and their Environment
People could take a page in ingenuity and survival from the Powhatans. Deer skins became clothes, and the members of the Native American group farmed the rich Virginia soil and hunted in its forests for food. Using images of artifacts...