Museum of Tolerance
Improving My Community Through Social Action
Action is the heart of change. Encourage class members to not only identify critical social justice issues in their school or community but to take action as well. As individuals or as groups, they research a situation, develop a...
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Waterproof that Roof!
Stop the raindrops from getting into the house! Eager engineers learn about roofing history and waterproofing by nanotechnology. They get into groups and work on designing a waterproof roof for a small model house. The accompanying...
Science Matters
Energy Flow
Budding scientists work collaboratively to reenact energy flow in a food chain. Scholars take on roles such as producer and consumer and perform tasks that symbolize energy flow in order to provide evidence of how much energy passes...
Illustrative Mathematics
Making a Clock
Have a fun time teaching children to read analog clocks with this whole-group math activity. Using large sets of the numerals 1-12 and 0, 5, 10...55, the teacher creates a large clock on either the carpet or the white board, explaining...
Curated OER
Roller Coasters
Twisting and turning through the sky, roller coasters are popular attractions at amusement parks around the world, but how exactly do they work? Explore the physics behind these thrilling rides with an engineering design activity....
Chicago Botanic Garden
The Carbon Cycle
There is 30 percent more carbon in the atmosphere today than there was 150 years ago. The first lesson in the four-part series teaches classes about the carbon cycle. Over two to three days, classes make a model of the cycle,...
Science Matters
Energy Transfer and Transformation
When you take a simple task and create an exceptionally difficult way to complete it, it is known as a Rube Goldberg machine. These machines are filled with many types of energy transfers and energy transformations. Here, pupils...
American Chemical Society
Developing Tests to Distinguish Between Similar-Looking Liquids
Each group talks about how to test unknown liquids based on their findings in the previous experiment. In this second of four activities, they test unknowns on wax paper, newspaper, and construction paper. As a stand-alone, this lesson...
NOAA
Build Your Own Ocean Ecosystem
Hold the sea in the palm of your hand! Amateur oceanographers work together to create models of an ocean ecosystem in the sixth and final installment in a series. Raise awareness of global ocean health issues through guided research,...
August House
A Tale of Two Frogs
Ribbit ribbit! Hop through a series of activities based on A Tale of Two Frogs. Kids read the Russian folktale and answer reading comprehension questions before working on phonics exercises, tracing dotting lines to make a path...
ARKive
Species Discovery
How do you classify a newly discovered species? Learners view a presentation and complete research about biodiversity and the classification hierarchy. The lesson includes activities with dichotomous keys and work on classifying both...
EngageNY
Close Read, Part 1: “Hugo, the Lord’s Nephew”
Fourth time is a charm. Learners complete multiple reads of Hugo, the Lord’s Nephew. On the fourth read, they make notes about each page on sticky notes. They then complete a think-pair-share activity with a partner to determine the...
iCivics
Mini Lesson A: Monetization
Advertising is everywhere! Does your class know that their attention span is for sale, even when they're watching a simple news story? The second installment in a five-part series from iCivics examines the relationship between news...
EngageNY
Grade 10 ELA Module 1: Unit 1, Lesson 3
Poets write love letters, but how often do the objects of their love write back? Compare Christopher Marlowe's "A Passionate Shepard to His Love" to Sir Walter Raleigh's response, "The Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd," with an engaging...
Kenan Fellows
The Little Stuff Can Make a Big Difference
Great things come in small packages! What better way to illustrate this point than a week-long look at nanotechnology? Earth science scholars explore water quality issues through lab activities, then research new innovations in nanotech...
Media Smarts
Movie Heroes and the Heroic Journey
An exciting twist on the study of the classical hero and the heroic quest! Using film to explore modern-day tales of heroes, the resource contains complete, ready-to-use lesson plans for as many as twelve days of instruction. Throughout...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Revolution '67, Lesson 1: Protest: Why and How
To some people, protesting is as American as apple pie, but the factors that lead to protests can be as confusing to veteran activists as to today's youth. Revolution '67 explores the riots in Newark, New Jersey as a case study. ...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Revolution '67, Lesson 2: What Happened in July 1967? How Do We Know?
Even in a world in which dozens of participants and curious onlookers record every controversial event, the basic facts of what happened are often in dispute. Revolution '67, Lesson 2 explores 1967 Newark, New Jersey using an examination...
Curated OER
The Seven Continents Scavenger Hunt
Who doesn't enjoy an engaging scavenger hunt? Here, scholars listen to, and discuss, the informative text, Where is my Continent? by Robin Nelson. They then explore the seven continents and four major oceans using...
ESL Holiday Lessons
Kwanzaa
Teach English language learners about the week-long holiday of Kwanzaa that is celebrated around the world during December. It includes holiday-themed reading comprehension passages, phrase matching, fill-in-the-blanks, and journaling...
Channel Islands Film
First Contact: Lesson Plan 4 - Grades 5-6
After watching Treasure in the Sea, a documentary about Channel Islands National Park and the video First Contact, about the voyage of Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo to the Channel islands, groups research and then compare the...
Northern Nevada Council for the Social Studies
What Are the Origins and Influences of Rap Music?
Considered an American art form, rap has its roots in places from Jamaica to the Bronx. Using a series of readings, comprehension questions, and videos, scholars explore the history of rap and its connections to the African diaspora....
Curated OER
Gravity Versus the Mighty Egg
Students design, revise and construct a method for protecting an egg from cracking when it is dropped from a height. They work in small groups to develop their protection method and then collect and analyze data as a class when each...
Curated OER
Edward Jenner
Here is an interesting instructional activity that tells the story of Edward Jenner, who came up with an immunization for smallpox. After watching a video that describes him, learners use an outline of a man to draw his picture and write...