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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Wild Habitats

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students research and Illustrate the natural habitats of giraffes and other animals imported into ancient Rome. They draw a map of Europe, North Africa, and West Asia and draw the animals that come from each region in their proper places.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Communications: To the Rescue!

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Young scholars role-play as soldiers rescuing lost mountain climbers. Working in teams, they interpret maps to locate the climbers and use flashlights to send and receive coded messages about the rescue. Their goal is to complete the...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Volcanoes:How Safe Are They?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Young scholars explore volcanoes, locate them on maps, record general information about volcanoes, and organize information on a fact sheet.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Reservoir Activity

For Teachers 6th - 9th
Students research the economic importance of the major reservoirs in Illinois. In groups, they manage a budget for one of the lakes to promote tourism in the area. They also work together to create advertisements.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Water: The Liquid of Life

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders complete a activity on the properties, types and amounts of water on Earth. In groups, they travel between stations to identify water resources in Illinois and pollution sources. They complete the activity with a field...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

U.S. Place Names Show Our Diversity

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students study place names for different area in the US and determine why they were named in such a way. They examine maps to look at the religious names, "new" beginning names, and copy cat names. They complete a word search to find...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lincoln Home National Historic Site: A Place of Growth and Memory

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders study the history of Lincoln's home.  In this American History lesson, 8th graders examine artifacts from his home to learn about his beliefs.  Students participate in a webquest on Lincoln's home. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Go West My Class

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students find data that can be mapped on the Factfinder Web page. They analyze the data from the web site and state recommendations on whether a person should live in Illinois or not based on their preferences.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Possible Locations

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers create maps with cutout pieces of paper that represent caverns. They develop a scale for their map and decide where the best location is to live. They discover the importance of map reading skills.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Interpreting Aerial Photographs

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Pupils interpret aerial photographs. They view aerial photographs or satellite-produced images to locate and identify physical and human features. They study satellite images and label their images for bodies of water, clouds,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Heartland

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students note how personal perceptions influence the understanding of what a region. They look at an agricultural map of what is considered to be the Heartland of the US. They read the words to George Strait's, America's Heartland to see...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Building Texas: the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Lesson Plan

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders study the engineering projects that the US Army Corps of Engineers initiated during the development of Texas. They examine primary source documents that are in digital and print form, and identify US Army Corp of Engineer...
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Lesson Plan
Illinois Department of Natural Resources

Section One: What is Biodiversity?

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
Four intriguing and scientific activities invite learners to explore the natural resources of their town. The activities cover concepts such as genetic traits, organizing species in a taxonomy, the differences between different species...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Clinometer

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders build their own Clinometer and using the tangent of angles, estimate the height of trees. Then these students develop and activity to show whole class and determine the tallest tree on school property.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Careers With an Aquatic Emphasis

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students are introduced to careers with an aquatic emphasis. They take a self-evaluation test on what they enjoy in school to determine which career is right for them. They listen to people in the field discuss what their job is like.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

We Really Dig Archeology and Palentology

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders examine the differences between archeology and paleontology. Using the internet, they explore the tools and techniques used in each field. They must use the correct tools to uncover and record the objects they find. They...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Leaf, Tree and Prairie Study

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Students are introduced to the topic of Botany and the process of photosynthesis. Using various habitats, they research the amount of destruction it is facing and how to solve the problem. They make a leaf booklet with leaves they find...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson Plan on Important Citizens in the American Civil War

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students, in groups, half representing the Confederacy, half the Union, conduct research to find out about important Civil War era citizens from each side. They explore the effect these people had on the war and what effect the war had...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson Plan on Military Leaders in the American Civil War

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students, in groups, half representing the Confederacy, half the Union, conduct research to find out about important Civil War military leaders from each side. They find the answers to a variety of questions regarding their military...
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Go West With Lewis and Clark! Scavenger Hunt

For Students 7th - 9th
In this Lewis and Clark scavenger hunt worksheet, students participate in an Internet scavenger hunt to answer five questions regarding the Lewis and Clark expedition.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson 24: The Great Chicago Fire Survivors

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students, in groups, explore the Great Chicago Fire. They decide which moment from the fire is significant and create a story corner.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson 22: The Great Chicago Fire Survivors

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Young scholars, in groups, create a historical fiction story of a Great Chicago Fire survivor by writing a survival narrative.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

CAPITALIZATION

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students write a class A,B,C book based on people and events important to the class. They use capital letters at the beginning of sentences and for proper names. They use periods at the end of sentences.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Comparing the Impact of Multiple Uses

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Learners study multiple land uses and their effects on one another. They assess multiple land uses in National Forests and Grasslands and evaluate the effects of each use on all other uses. They develop a comprehensive list of human...