Curated OER
The Lorax
Third graders identify environmental problems. In this natural resources lesson students participate in several activities that support critical thinking about the environment and natural resources. The students write, list, and verbally...
Curated OER
Mini-Unit: Natural Resources
Students explore how their choices affect others. In this character development and ecology lesson, students debate choice-making issues. Students listen to The Lorax by Dr. Seuss and identify choices the characters made...
Curated OER
Land as a Valuable Resource
Students investigate why the soil is important to our lives. In this natural resources lesson, students have a farmer as a guest speaker. Students begin to understand how farmers use and protect our natural resource. Students write...
EngageNY
Building Background Knowledge: How Canada’s Natural Resources Meet the Needs and Wants of People Today
Learners follow along as the teacher reads Products of Mining in Canada: From Batteries to Vehicles aloud. They then discuss the meaning of key terms and determine the gist of the text. Pupils do a second read and complete a graphic...
Curated OER
A Day of Infamy:Analyzing FDR’s Pearl Harbor Address
In 1941 FDR spoke out on the events at Pearl Harbor. The class will get to analyze word choice, word meaning, author's craft and structure by analyzing an actual draft of this speech. They will look critically at the words used,...
Institute for Humane Education
Not So Fair and Balanced: Analyzing Bias in the Media
Life is not always fair. Who's heard that before? This same concept moves to a larger scale using prejudice and bias. Pupils discuss where prejudice attitudes derive and how they develop throughout life. Reading comprehension...
Curated OER
African Masks And Their Impact On Western Art
Explore the influence of African-style masks on Western art. Learners create individual masks using construction paper. They discuss and explore the techniques used to create these types of masks. The resource includes links to...
Curated OER
Compare and Contrast Night to Life is Beautiful
After reading Elie Wiesel's Night, watching the movie Life is Beautiful, and researching World War II, class members write a comparison essay on the book and film. This includes a prior knowledge activity, discussion in whole and small...
Curated OER
Energy, Matter, and Organization
Tenth graders review the Energy, Matter, and Organization unit. They have one week to complete an essay. Students must submit a concept map or drawing. The activity is introduces by reading a short story line which presents a simple...
Curated OER
What Did it Look Like When Europe Met America?
Students view the film 'Black Robe,' which further develop students' abilities to see an event or era of history from multiple perspectives. After the movie, they utilize worksheets imbedded in this plan to write about what they've seen.
Curated OER
Our “Civilized” Society
The Scarlet Letter is the anchor text in a four-week unit that examines Hawthorne's novel through the lens of the intolerances found in a supposed civilized society. In addition to their reading, class members watch clips from...
Curated OER
Using Rhythm Instruments to Tell a Story
After watching a video of Peter and the Wolf, and identifying the instruments used to represent each character, class members use rhythm instruments to represent the actions in the song, "What Would I do."
Institute for Humane Education
I've Been Branded!
How many pairs of Nikes® or Apple® products are in the average American home? What makes someone buy one particular type of laundry detergent over another? Scholars grapple with these questions as they develop a list of brands they use...
Institute for Humane Education
Where Are the People like Me?
Are some characteristics more desired than others?Scholars examine attributes of characters in books, models in catalogs, and articles in magazines. Discussion leads to identifying characteristics they see more often as well as...
Curated OER
Coast-to-Coast Book Design -Part 2: What is Design?
Learners explore the concept of design, and identify items in their lives that have been designed. They explore the concept of book design and create and arrange their own page layout.
Curated OER
“Pardon This Interruption-Columbus Has Landed!!!”
Students research, design, rehearse, record, and present a 60 second Public Service Announcement, based on Columbus' arrival in the America. The students, working in groups, utilize the design process in creating their PSA. This lesson...
Curated OER
60-30-10
Students use ratios and proportions to represent quantitative relationships as they investigate the concept of how percentages are used by designers. Students decorate the same room using three different percentages of colors.
Curated OER
Treasure Hunters
High schoolers design an on campus treasure hunt to find various architectural vocabulary words which they then create definitions for on the blog page on the Environmental Design website.
Curated OER
Credit - Good? Bad?
Students examine credit cards. They explore the detrimental effects that result from debt and poor credit. Students analyze interest rates, minimum balances, and consumer debt. Students survey the benefits of credit cards.
Curated OER
Photojournalism: A Record of War
Students explore who has photographed war and why. They examine Mathew Brady's process for photgraphing the Civil War. Students investigate how photographic equipment has changed and improved through time. They analyze primary source war...
Curated OER
The Lorax
Third graders identify and list five problems presented in The Lorax by Dr. Seuss. They relate these problems to current environmental issues and debate how to make a difference then participate in different activities to improve their...
Curated OER
Our Treasured Trees
Young scholars discuss natural resources and renewable resources with trees being considered renewable resources which need special attention. In this Earth science lesson, students write a list of reasons for why it would be good to...
Curated OER
And Still The Turtle Watched
Third graders discuss ways to be kind to the Earth. In this conservation lesson, 3rd graders listen to the story And Still The Turtle Watched by Sheila MacGill-Callalhan. They compare how the early people treated the Earth to how we...
Curated OER
Be Kind to our Earth
Pupils make a list of ideas on ways we can take care of our Earth and complete a class project planning sheet where they problem solve to help save the Earth. In this Earth lesson plan, students also play a conservation charades game.