In this lesson plan, students are guided in how to interpret a portrait and in how to plan a portrait that is a drawing or a photograph.

This lesson plan introduces using the print encyclopedia for grades 3-5. Students are assigned a topic which is selected from their social studies curriculum. Small groups are sent to the reference shelf to select the correct...

Students will learn all about the history of suffrage for women and what influences were used to change people's attitudes. They will then use their understanding to create a modern-day election document of ephemera, for example, a...

Project to learn about the life cycle of a butterfly and how the caterpillar becomes to be a butterfly.

Scholastic presents this discussion guide of "Library Card" by Jerry Spinelli. The guide includes discussion questions, extension activities, and more.

A mini-unit on haiku where students learn about and write haiku inspired by Japanese gardens. This activity is intended to be done in conjunction with a visit to a Japanese garden, but this is not essential.

A multi-faceted activity where students learn about the elements of a Japanese garden, then construct a peepshow book that demonstrates their understanding of foreground, middle ground, and background to represent a Japanese garden....

A scavenger hunt where young scholars find and study examples of leaf adaptations for different environments. This activity is designed to be used on a visit to botanical gardens or greenhouse but could be adapted and used with specimens...

[Free Registration/Login Required] A lesson in which students use the book Zathura by Chris Van Allsburg and fantasy texts from the classroom library to learn about the characteristics that define fantasy. Lesson includes direct...

Lesson plan that takes students through an experiment to test the effects of light levels and temperature on the color of leaves.

Students will explore the value of personal stories and first-hand accounts when exploring history, in this case, the events of the early twentieth century, which included World War I and the Great Depression. Through this five-unit...

A great lesson plan using Stephen Foster's music and lyrics to show what life was like on the homefront during the Civil War.

A lesson unit where students work in small groups to conduct an experiment with two cacti to test whether plants need water.

An activity where students learn about the art of Japanese scroll painting, and create their own scroll painting to reflect the seasonal changes in a garden. This is designed to be in conjunction with a visit to a Japanese garden, but...

An activity where students learn about the koi, an important symbol in Japanese culture, and create a gyotaku fish printing. This is designed to be done in conjunction with a visit to a Japanese garden but can be easily adapted.

A study of the stone lanterns that can be found in Japanese gardens. Students will learn about their history and symbolism, and create lanterns of their own out of clay. This is designed to be in conjunction with a visit to a Japanese...

Search American Memory collections and play the role of a detective in this lesson that seeks to find out if Billy the Kid really was killed by Pat Garrett at Fort Sumner, New Mexico.

The ability to examine a primary source is a gateway to building critical thinking skills and constructing knowledge. This lesson provides the students an opportunity to observe similarities and differences between 2 visual images,...

Students will develop visual literacy skills by analyzing the images from John White Alexander's mural in the Thomas Jefferson building of the Library of Congress while learning about the history of the Library of Congress. Then,...

This lesson plan introduces the practice of using primary sources; where to find primary sources, what they are, how to examine them, and how to construct a context to tell more of the story.

This project investigates and examines the impact transportation has had on peoples' lives. We chose to compare and contrast the turn of the centuries. This lesson introduces primary documents, specifically visuals. We intend for this...

In this lesson, students will learn about types of land use by humans and evaluate the ways land is used in their local community. They will also consider the environmental effects of the different types of land use. Students will assume...

This lesson will analyze Civil War photographs and explore how and why the American Civil War was photographed.

This is a technology-based lesson that will focus on using the Kids Search database in the Alabama Virtual Library. Students will work in teams to access information about animals. This lesson will allow students to research a particular...