A terrific lesson focused on the design process. It begins with a presentation, "Design: Solve a Problem," which lists the steps of the process and then introduces the specific challenge: to build a device that measures wind speed....

Students comprehend the purpose, function, origin, and historical development of the electoral college. They evaluate issues of fairness and representation in the electoral process, both individually and through group discussion....

Develop the writing skills of your high school class. Writers consider their personal style and voice, read selections by other authors, and then write pieces that challenge them to experiment with their own style.

Explore the writing process by reviewing previously written work. First, middle schoolers analyze a handout in which they must read the text and correct the mistakes with an editing checklist. They proofread their editing and share their...

Students examine the writing process of Kate DiCamillo, the author of "Because of Winn-Dixie." They read author's comments, watch a slideshow narrated by the author, complete a free-write activity, and discuss Kate DiCamillo's top five...

Students explore what impact the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 had on nine different American novelists. They write and share their own thoughts and feelings, then consider the role writing plays in their own lives,...

Students create journal entries on-line as part of a "Kidlink Day" activity. Entries are compared and evaluated by their peers. The writing process is practiced in this lesson plan.

Third graders generate a written paragraph by following the 5-step writing process. In this paragraph writing instructional activity, 3rd graders practice brainstorming, prewriting, revising, creating final drafts, and publishing an...

Assist your pupils with literary analysis by discussing and exploring theme. This plan, the twelfth in a series of fourteen, builds in some time to explore theme as a class. Learners also blog about the main event in their stories and...

Happy birthday! Celebrate everyone's birthday with this writing activity, which prompts seventh graders to research historical events in a country at the time of their birth to create an essay. Working in pairs, they proofread each...

Therefore! However! Furthermore! Explore the power of transition words and phrases. Signal your readers by suggesting the relationship between different thoughts or points. Help them demonstrate an understanding of word relationships. 

William Golding's Lord of the Flies is a treasure trove of symbolism and literary themes. Help your kids note the richest passages in the book with a lesson and graphic organizer. The lesson prepares kids to come up with a thesis...

What important facts about Dr. Seuss influenced the Read Across America movement...? This is the driving question of a research project that requires scholars to find information about Dr. Seuss' life and work. Class...

What is a reasonable percent yield in the manufacturing process? Scholars develop a process for producing chalk in the third lesson of a six-part series. Then, they must determine the theoretical and percent yield. Discussions about...

After listening to a story about the water cycle, learners create their own versions of this tale. This is a great way to have your class review the concepts of evaporation, condensation, precipitation, and runoff.

Here is a great way to get pupils to express a scientific concept in a fun way. After hearing the story of Walter the Water drop and learning facts about the water cycle, the class will write a creative expository piece describing what...

Upper elementary and middle school writers learn how to craft an expository paragraph by following the six steps detailed in a 48-page instructional guide. Learners learn how to write six different types of informational paragraphs:...

Although the article that launches this instructional activity is about the history of the Periodic Table, the objective is reading comprehension. Using the eight-page informational text, learners answer five comprehension questions and...

Running an election campaign takes money. Class groups must effectively budget money in order to design and purchase sufficient advertising aimed at procuring classmates' votes. After completing an online tutorial, they also write and...

It's tough for high schoolers to assess what is a credible resource and what is not. A helpful resource prompts class members to research a particular topic and record two facts—and create one lie—while documenting the sources. They...

An interesting way to look at the kitchen floor is to count the number of tiles in the border. Fred starts with four white floor tiles and writes an expression for the number of tiles needed for the colored border. Algebra learners are...

Boost observational skills with an inquiry-based lesson that takes scholars on a virtual field trip. With help from webcams, learners observe animals in a zoo or aquarium. Observations go into a journal and a discussion is held to review...

Explore women's history through films and filmmaking. An innovative research project prompts class members to create their own screenplay about a figure in women's history. After outlining their characters, settings, and plots, young...

The Pledge of Allegiance, the Gettysburg Address, the National Anthem, and the Preamble to the Constitution all get close attention in an exercise that asks learners to rewrite these formally-worded documents into informal language....