Curated OER
Iced In
Introduce junior oceanographers to ice conditions in The Great Lakes. The ice map links are no longer available, so you will not be able to have your class perform the mentioned data activity. You can, however, access the Canadian Ice...
Curated OER
Ancient Hunters of the Great Lakes
High schoolers describe theories on how the first humans came to America and show the evidence that supports it. In this investigative lesson students study given material and prepare written or oral reports in their groups.
Curated OER
The Mighty Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway System
Students participate in a variety of activities in a unit about the Great Lakes/St. Lawrence Seaway System. They create a diorama, read related stories, and correspond with other classes located in other port cities along the St Lawrence...
Curated OER
Exploring Great Salt Lake Ecosystem
Fourth graders determine the Great Salt Lake is a unique, thriving, and diverse ecosystem. They engage in an actual or a virtual field trip. They record field trip, whether actual or virtual, in science lab book or journal and...
Curated OER
Students Slide to School on Air-Powered Sled
Students locate the Great Lakes on a US map, then read a news article about a sled being used as a wintertime school bus in Wisconsin. In this current events lesson, the teacher introduces the article with a map and vocabulary activity,...
Curated OER
Exploring The Great Salt Lake
Second graders experiment with sand samples taken from a lake. They use this as part of an inquiry that is based on observations. The properties of the sand are observed in the lab and recorded in writing. Prior to the lab students...
Curated OER
The Great Water Hunt
Students examine a globe to locate the bodies of water present and create a representation of those bodies of water for further exploration of the concept. Extensions of their observations are made at school, home, and the community.
Syracuse University
Erie Canal
While canals are not the way to travel today, in the first half of the nineteenth century, they were sometimes the best way to move goods and people. Scholars examine primary sources, including maps and pictures, to investigate the role...
Curated OER
Lesson Plan on the Edmund Fitzgerald
Fourth graders describe the weather conditions and location of the Edmund Fitzgerald when it sank in Lake Superior.
Curated OER
Summertime Travel
Third graders write about a summer event they participated in. In this paragraph writing instructional activity, the teacher models how to write about a place they have visited. Students then write their own paragraphs. Students will...
Curated OER
Learning from Maps and Timelines Time Travel
Students create timelines depicting the important events in the lives of the groups that arrived at the Fort St. Louis. They include the fate of La Salle and the colonists.
Scholastic
Perfect Postcards: Illinois
Connect the geography and history of Illinois using an art-centered lesson plan on the railroads. The railroad connected once-distant places, particularly in the Midwest. Using research, class members create postcards of fictional...
State University of New York
Going Back in Time Using “George Washington’s Socks”
After reading Elvira Woodruff's George Washington's Socks, young readers and writers embark upon writing their own historically based story, with a focus on developing ideas and details throughout the piece. In small groups, class...
Michigan Sea Grant
Exploring Watersheds
Collaboratively, young scholars partake in a hands-on activity in which they build models of a watershed. Each group member draws an elevation map—a bird's eye view—of their model and predicts how water will flow from the high to low...
Curated OER
Cities as Transportation Centers
Young scholars work in small groups to identify some of the major transportation centers, recommending two as possible sites for a national political convention, based on population density and the travel networks available in 1835.
Curated OER
Richard Misrach
Students analyze the Great Salt Lake as a resource for artistic work and other studies. In this art analysis instructional activity, students view maps that show the location of the Great Salt Lake including a satellite image. Students...
Curated OER
Narrative Literature Response Letters
Learners design, in groups, a travel brochure to address the the idea of migration referred to in the book or books read. The brochures should include graphics, photos, and words. The brochures should also include mathematical...
Curated OER
Heritage: For Some Must Push and Some Must Pull
Learners discuss modes of transportation of pioneers, listen to one of the handcart stories, build model handcart out of paper, and sing 'The Handcart Song.'
Curated OER
P.O.V.'s Borders Picture Project: Lesson 1 - Air
Take photos of human activities that impact air quality. Collaborative groups present one of the photographs, identifying how the activity contributes to air quality and what can be done to minimize the impact. As one in a series of...
Curated OER
Aquatic Exotics
Students identify and describe the aquatic exotic species found in Illinois. Using the internet, they research the species origins and discover their effects on native species in the area. They discuss how appropriate it is to introduce...
Curated OER
Splish Splash
Students study drinking water. In this environment lesson, students draw the path of drinking water from the place of precipitation to the tap after researching a map and information from the United States Geological Survey water...
Curated OER
Exploring the History of the I&M Canal
Learners examine the building of the I & M canal in Chicago. Using the internet, they research the lives of the individuals who worked on the construction and develop a timeline of events. They explore the impact of the canal on...
Curated OER
Air: Air Quality Picture Project
Students recognize which activities contribute to poor air quality and which contribute to good air quality. They discover how air quality is measured, and come up with ways that humans can have a positive affect on air quality.
Curated OER
An Early American Culture
Pupils identify the locations of the Hopewell culture. In this map skills lesson, students use a globe to mark several locations of the Hopewell culture.