Curated OER
The Water Cycle
Learners list the nine places on earth where water is found. They define the terms cycle and water cycle. Students explain how energy from the sun powers the movement of water molecules through the water cycle. They name and describe...
Curated OER
Exploring the Night Sky: Fall/Winter
Students explain how moon phases occur. They explain three ways that the night sky has been used through history. Students locate some of the constellations in the night sky. They discuss stories and myths surrounding stars.
Curated OER
The Impact of the Cotton Gin
Fourth graders study Eli Whitney and the cotton gin. In this lesson on the cotton gin, 4th graders use primary and secondary sources to gather information about Eli Whitney, the cotton gin that he invented and how it changed the south.
Curated OER
Lesson Plan for "The Ballad of Dirty Joe"
Upper elementary learners explore and practice identifying poetry in the ABAB rhyming format. In groups, they participate in choral reading of the poem, "The Ballad of Dirty Joe," emphasizing words appropriately and speaking in the...
School City of Hobart
Too Many Types Of Titles
Direct instruction on punctuation rules for titles is followed by collaborative practice in class. Two worksheets with aesthetically engaging graphic design provide practice. For 12 examples, small groups either underline, italicize, or...
Street Law
Mock Trial - Ricki Jones v. Metro City
Was Metro City negligent? The parents of a young AIDS patient sue the city when their son dies after drinking water from contaminated pipes.
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...
Federal Reserve Bank
Income Taxes
Most adults dread April 15 — tax day! Tax preparation can be intimidating even for adults. Build confidence by leading individuals through the process and then give them a scenario to practice. The exercise uses tax vocabulary to give...
Workforce Solutions
Thank You Letters
An important step in the job search process is sending a thank you note to any professional that has been of help. First, pupils discuss the etiquette of thank you notes, then draft a practice letter.
Curated OER
A Primary Source Picture Book
Travel through Europe with ten-year-old Teddy Roosevelt in this writing activity, which uses the picture book My Tour of Europe: by Teddy Roosevelt, by Ellen Jackson. After reading the book, readers compare it to passages from The...
Code.org
Multi-screen Apps
Scholars continue their study of event-driven programming by creating a multi-screen app in the fifth lesson of the series. They incorporate previously learned elements and events in the mini-project.
Teaching Channel
Storyboard Lesson Plan
Good books are accessible through a variety of literary lenses. To consider how the same story can be seen in different lights, groups develop a storyboard for a movie teaser that would focus on one of six concepts found in Suzanne...
Deliberating in a Democracy
Parental Liability
How many teenagers have wanted their parents to let them make their own decisions? The answer is ... all of them! Scholars investigate where parental liability begins and ends in the eyes of the law. Using case studies and legal...
Workforce Solutions
Workplace Personalities
Being able to get along with a variety of personalities in the workplace is a key job skill. To gain insight into the importance of this skill, class members take on roles of various personality types and work in groups to try to build a...
Workforce Solutions
Newton's Laws
Two lessons explore the connection between energy transformation and a given job. In lesson plan one, small groups role-play a scenario that showcases the energy transformations that may take place during a job-specific task. The second...
It's About Time
Succession in Communities
What occurs following a natural disaster? High schoolers research this question and others as they investigate natural succession after a disaster. First, as they differentiate between primary and secondary succession, they explain...
Dream of a Nation
Read, Watch, Write for Pathos, Logos and Ethos
Encourage your young citizens to make a difference. Using Tyson Miller's Dream of a Nation: Inspiring Ideas for a Better America as a starting point, class members watch documentaries, investigate issues, and then write letters to...
NOAA
Sediments
Calcareous ooze ... what an interesting name! The 15th installment of a 23-part NOAA Enrichment in Marine sciences and Oceanography (NEMO) program focuses on sediments found on the ocean floor. After viewing the slideshow lecture,...
Generation Nation
Propaganda
How does propaganda influence our vote? Through grand conversation, scholars gain information about what is and how to identify the different ways propaganda is used in a presidential election. Using their new-found knowledge, citizens...
Mascil Project
Pottery
Don't cry over broken pottery. A cross-curricular lesson plan challenges pupils to consider how to restore ancient pottery. Using a computer program and their knowledge of transformations, they come up with a way to recreate the original...
Perkins School for the Blind
Building an Organic Molecule
Glucose is a simple sugar and a molecule that can be illustrated through modeling. Scientific investigators with visual impairments use hands-on models to reconstruct the process of bonding molecules. The tools used in this activity are...
Curated OER
Written Document Analysis Worksheet
In this writing and reference worksheet, students identify and name the physical qualities of a document of their choice. Then they identify three major things the author stated that are important and why they believe the document was...
Curated OER
Language Arts: Two Specific Documents
Students are able to read and analyze the essential parts of two specific types of documents, the informed consent document and the position paper, used by scientists to communicate information about their research to two different kinds...
Curated OER
The Declaration of Independence
Learners explore the Declaration of Independence. In this civics activity, students read handouts regarding the document as well as the document itself. Learners respond to discussion questions regarding the handout. Students then...