Curated OER
The Palm of My Heart: Poetry By African American Children
Elementary students explore African American culture by reading children's poetry. They read the book, The Palm of My Heart which features poetry by an assortment of young African American boys and girls. Students define several...
Curated OER
Mexico's Culture
Young scholars compare and contrast the culture of Mexico to the United States. They brainstorm what makes up a culture and develop a model of their own culture. Students explore Mexican music and dance. Additional cross curriculum...
Curated OER
Accepting Another Culture
Learners explore cultural diversity. In this cultural acceptance lesson plan, students read Molly's Pilgrim and examine the message of the story. Learners research other cultures and create culture-grams and complete research...
Curated OER
Discovering Mexico through Murals
Students describe the Mexican culture and relate it to their own culture. They investigate the Mexican culture through internet research, textbooks, and class discussions. Students create a mural of their school culture. They interview...
Curated OER
Black and White = Polka Dots
Students read about other cultures. In this cultural diversity instructional activity, students read a story about a culture that is different than theirs. Students discuss the ways the characters in the story are like them and the ways...
Curated OER
Harmony Day - Listen In
Here is a great idea for building cultural awareness and good listening skills. The lesson suggests having a guest speaker come to the classroom to share his/her experiences. Prior to the visit, the class will generate a list of...
Curated OER
Oral Interviews on Traditions and Celebrations
Students practice speaking in a target language through the use of oral interview techniques. They engage in conversations with peers using a certain theme of celebration and tradition. Students plan questions that they use in the...
Curated OER
Symmetry with Shapes
Students analyze a symmetrical stamp design with an equal balance of light and dark to create a pattern in succession. In this shape design lesson, students review concepts of sign, symbol and language across cultures. Students analyze...
Curated OER
Putting the Sitcom into Perspective
Students identify and compare similar characters and situations in stories and dramas from and about various cultures, illustrate with classroom dramatizations, and discuss how theater reflects life.
Curated OER
A Toast to Our Community
Students bake bread with a dual purpose: to explore, through the metaphor of baking bread, the potential dynamics and purposes of a classroom, and to begin investigating the idea that everyday things are connected to the local/global...
Curated OER
Christmas Games
Your class will practice language and dialog skills by playing games associated with Christmas through these lesson ideas. Learners practice English conversation skills while simultaneously acquiring insight into their new culture. Games...
Curated OER
Day Two: Greeting and dialogues
Learners practice greetings and dialogues in English. For this ELL lesson, students watch a silent video with people greeting one another and make predictions about what they are saying. They write dialogues and share them with a neighbor.
Curated OER
Writing Myths
Students read and write myths. In this world mythology lesson, students read and analyze myths from various cultures and then recognize their attributes as they write their own myths that explain natural phenomena.
Curated OER
Pop Tart or Pop Art?
Students explore pop art. They research the history of pop art and identify artist (s) responsible for this movement. Students produce a print using images from our culture. Additional cross curriculum activities are included.
Curated OER
Folktales around the World (Middle, Reading/Writing)
Students analyze, synthesize, and use the elements of various US cultural folk tales to describe the elements of fiction in general and in folk tales specifically.
Curated OER
Caps for Sale!
If you can find the book Caps for Sale in the target foreign language, this is a great activity to accompany it! After reading and modeling the story, the teacher models a dialogue that would take place between a salesman and a customer....
Curated OER
JANE AND THE DRAGON
Third graders act out a play called Jane and the Dragon. Students develop vocabulary through dialogue. They delve into the feelings of others through learning about the characters. They also identify the characteristics of various types...
Curated OER
French Sayings
Students become investigators by examining "Elements of French and English Conversation, in new, familiar, and easy dialogues" 1814. They create a written paragraph to accompany the responses of the dialogues. Student create a slide show...
Curated OER
Parody Hilarity
Upper grade and middle school writers study the art of parody. In this language arts instructional activity, learners study the work of Lewis Carroll, read and discuss parodies from the book, Alice in Wonderland, and construct their own...
Curated OER
Introduction to Ludwig van Beethoven
"Ode to la Tortilla" and "Ode to Joy"? Sure! Use Gary Soto's poem to introduce learners to the ode format. After examining the descriptive words Soto uses, class members study a poster of Ludwig van Beethoven, suggest words that describe...
Curated OER
Alexander And The Wind-Up Mouse
Use drama techniques to recreate the story, Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse by Leo Lionni. They engage in problem-solving as they identify the roles they will fufill in their groups for the performance. This is a motivating way to...
University of Minnesota
Beautiful Brain: Do You See What I See?
Can art play tricks on your eyes, and can a still painting really appear to vibrate? The second lesson in a four-part series discusses the way our beautiful brains translate visual images. It highlights the style of optical art and...
University of Minnesota
Beautiful Brain: Step Inside the Brain
Before digital microscopes, scientists hired artists to draw the things visible in the microscope. Through training in neuroscience and art, Cajal revolutionized the way we view the beautiful brain. The third lesson in a series of four...
University of Minnesota
Beautiful Brain: Brain Inspiration
"Neuroscientists consider Cajal as important to their discipline as Einstein is to physics." The first of four lessons has scholars view Santiago Ramon y Cajal's drawings of neurons. They reflect and respond to the art through writing...