National Endowment for the Humanities
Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart: Oral and Literary Strategies
Readers are first introduced to Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart by making a map of Africa. They will better understand the novel's historical and literary contexts, European and African literary traditions, and how...
Curated OER
"Be the Kiwi" - Maori Oral Tradition and Performance
Students create a story similar to those of the Maori oral tradition. In this Whale Rider lesson plan, students discuss the way that Maori legends were passed down from generation to generation. Students choose a land...
Curated OER
Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart: Teaching Through the Novel
Learners are introduced to Chinua Achebe's first novel and to his views on the role of the writer in his or her society. It can be used alone or in conjunction with the related lesson Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart.
Curated OER
Music of Russia
Music around the globe may sound different, but it always tends to function partly as a mode of communicating religion, rights of passage, and oral tradition. Delve into the world of Russian music. Folk, peasant, Cossack, and...
Curated OER
Aboriginal Legends
Students listen to and read legends and see that these legends helped the Aboriginals explain their everyday life. Through their stories and legends we find that Aboriginal values, attitudes and cultural identities are shared.
Curated OER
Pablita Indian Legends
Scholars are introduced to the characteristics of a legend. They read and discuss Old Father Story Teller by Pablita Velarde. Then, in groups, they write and illustrate a poem based on one of the legends from the book. This lesson plan...
Curated OER
Literature of the Ancient World
The literature of the ancient world can provide a motivating way for students to explore history.
Curated OER
The Art and Culture of Spain
Students can explore the history, culture and art of Spain with motivating activities.
Curated OER
Exploring Community Through Local History: Oral Stories, Landmarks and Traditions
Students explore the history of their local community. In this local history lesson, students analyze primary documents to develop an understanding of the local culture and traditions of their local community.
Curated OER
My Favorite Holiday
Students create a My Favorite Holiday Calendar Page. They recall the months of the year and identify the various components of a calendar. Students also apply their learning about holiday customs to consider their own favorite holiday...
Curated OER
Religious and Cultural Festivals of the World
Here are some interesting activities teachers can do with students to teach them about the religious and cultural festivals of the world.
Curated OER
Early American Oral Tradition Lesson Plans
Students open their minds to the relevance of early American myths and legends by sharing their own family stories.
Curated OER
Seeing Words in a New Way
What's the best resource to use when looking up words? Use Visual Thesaurus to see a word's meaning. The class accesses the interactive website and then compares and contrasts the difference between using a traditional dictionary and the...
K20 LEARN
Here's How I Heard It: Using Folklore To Improve Close Reading Skills
"X" is for exaggeration, and "F" is for fact. To encourage close reading and to improve literary analysis skills, class members annotate fables and tall tales, like Paul Bunyan, with symbols that identify key features of this genre.
Curated OER
Holidays in Lands Far Away - Boxing Day
A lesson on the holiday known as Boxing Day is here for you. In it, middle schoolers read a passage about the history of the holiday, then complete some reading comprehension worksheets embedded in the plan to reinforce what they have...
Curated OER
Family Quilts Keep us Warm
Students explore families and culture. In this family and culture lesson, students discuss their families and their similarities and differences. Students read the book The Keeping Quilt by Patricia Polacco and create their own quilt...
Global Oneness Project
Flamenco: A Cross-Cultural Art Form
Notes of pride and persecution, exclusion and isolation resonate in flamenco. Introduce this musical art form to your social studies or Spanish language classes with a resource that follows a young flamenco guitarist as he...
National Endowment for the Humanities
A “New English” in Chinua Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart”: A Common Core Exemplar
To examine the “New English” Chinua Achebe uses in Things Fall Apart, readers complete a series of worksheets that ask them to examine similes, proverbs, and African folktales contained in the novel. Individuals explain the meaning...
Curated OER
Questions for Traditional Artists
In this classroom applications and fieldwork basics worksheet, learners utilize the 20 interview questions once they locate someone in their community who creates traditional art. An oral release is included.
Curated OER
Questions for Traditional Musicians
In this classroom applications and fieldwork basics worksheet, students utilize the 15 interview questions listed once they locate someone in their community who plays traditional music. An oral release is included.
Curated OER
Preserving History for Illuminating Today's Values and Traditions
Students discover the value of oral history by creating their own audio recordings. In this traditions and customs lesson, students listen to a local historian discuss the idea of preserving history through oral traditions....
Curated OER
The Punch and Judy Show
Students view a puppet show and learn how people from the past spent their leisure time. In this puppet show lesson plan, students view the show and see how people 400 years ago would spend their time. Then students get to ask the...
Curated OER
"Julie of the Wolves"
Fifth graders research life in Alaska and compare life there to their lives in this lesson. They read "Julie of the Wolves." They research through the novel and other reference books facts about the Alaskan climate and geography. They...
Curated OER
The Great Explorers
Students examine the importance of culture and economy changes that occurred due to the great explorations. In this explorations lesson, students create a list of major explorers. Students focus on one main exploration and give an oral...