In order to create a classroom full of active participants, students need to feel that they are part of the decision-making process. Using this 15 question activity, learners can explore the importance of developing leadership skills.

Students complete writing lessons to help students select a writing topic, prepare a writing plan, and create an interesting beginning. In this personal narratives lesson, students complete intensive modeling activities to write their...

Third graders spend time identifying the characteristics they have and ones they would like to develop for their own personal growth. As a class, they brainstorm ways they can tell they are growing up or being mature. Individually, they...

As part of a study of  Sean Covey, the author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens learners write autobiographical e-mails, hold discussions, create a collage, and compose a personal mission statement. Pupils then have a...

Out of the classroom and into the streets! With Ben Franklin’s Junto society as inspiration, learners develop their ideas for improving their communities and put them into action. After analyzing meeting notes to discover what the Junto...

Sixth graders investigate the parts of a seed by using a digital camera.  In this botany lesson, 6th graders plant their own seeds in class and demonstrate the necessary attributes for growing a plant.  Students utilize a...

Students read one teen's story of personal growth through learning about racism and the criminal justice system to explore how individuals' world views are shaped and changed through experiences and education.

Students work in the classroom and in the computer lab to produce a Personal Poetry Book.

What effect could one person's invention have on the human race? In the case of the Neolithic Agricultural Revolution, small improvements in farming methods led to increased food production. The human population began to boom, leading us...

Middle schoolers explore how to build their character by respecting and appreciating various cultures. In this character education lesson, students read the book Seedfolks and answer questions based on the character's cultural...

Students, after defining/reviewing an extensive list of vocabulary terms on the board, discuss and explore acceptable and unacceptable parenting skills with a variety of disciplinary practices to assist them.

How was your year? Create an individual timeline that document learners' personal history from the previous year. After reading an article about celebrating New Year's in Japan, pairs interview each other to gather information about...

Middle schoolers write a personal narrative that is designed to help them reflect on the nature and meaning of change in their lives.

Learners complete a variety of writing and yearbook activities to complete the school year. They write a letter to the student that will sit in their desk the next school year, and a letter to their next year's teacher. As a culminating...

Learners read the folktale, "The Magical Stone", and discuss questions imbedded in the lesson.

Students identify objects using more than one word. They describe personal pictures using at least two words. They describe Playdough creations using at least two words.

In order to make evidence-based claims, one must be able to draw explicit information from text. From here, learners take that information, analyze the text to develop a deeper understanding, and connect with the information in order to...

Prompt your class to interact with Jack London's Call of the Wild. By analyzing the events in the novel, middle schoolers discover how human experiences create who a person becomes. They critique and analyze the reading, focusing on...

Here is an outstanding series of lessons on journalism, writing newspaper articles, and writing editorials. This type of writing has long-been neglected in our schools, so this collection of writing activities is most-valuable. Along...

Pupils differentiate among and explain various levels of economic development around the world. They see that levels of economic development vary greatly in different countries according to many different measures.

Get your young writers outside of the traditional essay writing mode with Free Write Friday. Free Write Friday encourages your class to use personal experiences or knowledge to write more creative pieces. Young writers could experiment...

Students read one teen's story of dealing with her best friend's anorexia to explore the dynamics of friendship relationships and the qualities needed to sustain a friendship through challenges.

The importance of cultural awareness, of becoming aware of our own and other cultures, and the benefits of gaining a deeper understanding of the differences between cultures, is the focus of this resource. Working individually, in pairs,...

Explore a variety of fables to learn life's lessons through engaging stories. Add rigor to the learning process with activities that include matching a a fable to the story's moral, short answer exit slips, and a three-column graphic...