Curated OER
Dear Abby: A Direct and Indirect Characterization Lesson Plan
Students practice identifying and creating examples of characterization based on comprehension. They assess direct and indirect characterization and use conflict in a plot to generate a piece of writing. Each student selects accurate...
Curated OER
Art Mystery
Students explore famous artists in order to write mystery stories incorporating their life and works. They write their own based on their research of a particular artist.
Curated OER
Calder's Balancing Acts
Students learn the vocabulary of contemporary sculpture and distinguish between abstract and realistic sculpture, mobile and stabile, biomorphic and geometric. They write equations using Calder's mobiles
Curated OER
Opening Eyes, Changing Minds. Talking About Personal Transformation And the Development of World Views
Students read one teen's story of personal growth through learning about racism and the criminal justice system to explore how individuals' world views are shaped and changed through experiences and education.
Prestwick House
Touching Spirit Bear: Individual Learning Packet
Whether using Touching Spirit Bear in the classroom, as an outside reading assignment, or in a homeschool situation, your readers will benefit from this eight-page packet of essay and discussion questions, vocabulary lists, and reading...
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Animal Fact or Fiction?
Read and discuss the article "Welcome to Cicadaville (Enter at Your Own Risk)" to gain a better understanding around the confusion regarding cicadas and locust swarms. In groups your young analysts research statements about animals to...
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Bears and Panthers Aplenty: Early Settlers Make a Home in Arkansas
Young historians research the Southwest Trail, which ran through Arkansas back in the 19th century. Pupils are divided into four groups. Each group researches a pioneer who blazed the Southwest Trail. Then, the group presents an oral or...
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To the North: A Black Family Leaves Arkansas to Find Work in Michigan
Upper elementary and middle school scholars study the economic factors that caused so many Arkansans to migrate to different parts of the country looking for work. Use this history lesson plan to help your charges gain a better...
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Edgar Allan Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado"
After reading "The Cask of Amontillado" by Edgar Allan Poe, use the SMART board file to learn about Poe's background and use of irony. The activity includes resource links to additional websites, as well as the SMART board file (you need...
Curated OER
Why Does the Cocoa Tree Need a Tropical Rainforest to Grow?
Fourth graders explore the requirements a cocoa plant needs to survive. They research where chocolate comes from and how humans can affect the growth of cocoa trees. Students create a 3-D model of a cocoa tree and compare and contrast...
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The 1927 Flood
Upper elementary and middle schoolers examine the Great Flood of 1927 in the state of Arkansas. They each prepare an oral report about this flood and the huge impact it had on the economics of that time. Additionally, learners research...
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Sunburns and Sore Muscles: Working to Save the Farm During the Great Depression
Fifth through eighth graders engage in a lesson in which they study working class people during the Great Depression. They work to develop an understanding of the economic developments in Arkansas during the 1930's. Learners access...
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The Village and the Stars
Eighth graders discuss early school memories. They assess hopes and aspirations in greater detail and discover the importance of education as one of the shapes of our 'selves'. They observe parents' reactions to children growing up...
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"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
Flashbacks
Learners create a piece of original fiction utilizing flashbacks. Students define and identify the use of flashbacks in the novel Holes. Definitions and examples are recorded in student journals. They use their examples as springboard...
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Brainstorm This!
Students discuss the advantages and types of brainstorming as a prewriting tool. They experiment with different styles of brainstorming and produce prewriting samples for assessment.
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Improvisational Setting - "Where are You?"
Second graders explore setting through improvisations. In this theatre instructional activity, 2nd graders perform a variety of improvisations in different settings and chart how they established the setting in the different environments.
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Walking on Thin Ice
Students examine scientific evidence of changes in the Arctic ice cover. They participate in a simulation of an international conference and debate the relationship between global warming and changes in the arctic ice cover.
Curated OER
Video Biographies
Who was Alexander The Great? How did Abraham Lincoln’s early life influence his political life? Learners select a historical figure to use for video biography. After developing research questions and collecting information, pupils search...
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Animal Signs
Students discuss the many different types of animal signs that can be used to identify and track animals. They participate in an hands-on activity in which they examine tracks, trails, homes, territory markings, and even "scat" left by...
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Kindergarten Phonics
Students are introduced to the letters and phonemes for C, L, N, P, T, and A. They identify each letter in its upper and lowercase forms. Students differentiate the letters from each other and practice identifying objects and pictures...
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Esperanza Rising- Metacognition
Sixth graders develop metacognitive skills while reading Esperanza Rising. In this comprehension strategies lesson, 6th graders read a chapter from the book and discuss questions with a small group. Students share with their peers.
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Alexander The Great
Students investigate the historical person of Alexander The Great. They view a video in order to create the context for the lesson. They read some biographies and conduct research using a variety of resources. Then students create their...
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Living to Tell Their Tales
Students explore ways in which the elderly can be valuable resources in learning about history. By conducting their own historical research through interviews with the elderly, students come to appreciate this resource first-hand.