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Basket Making
Learners create a basket. In this basket making activity, students explore the Ojibway culture and discover the history of basket making. Learners design and construct a basket.
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Lesson Plan 13: Character Interviews on NaNoTV
Kids love to pretend. Use this imaginative energy to develop their understanding of characterization. Class members dress up as a character from their novel-writing project and sit for a filmed interview. In responding to questions about...
Media Smarts
Truth or Money
Two compelling texts about tobacco companies' influence over editorial content in print media introduce readers to the concept of advertising censorship. After study and discussion, class members compose a mock "final column" by a...
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Lesson: Creating a Superhero Sculpture
Indian art depicts an amazing pantheon of gods and goddesses, each having interesting powers and purposes. Young art historians use the provided images to analyze a carved sculpture of a monkey-god. They then brainstorm the attributes...
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Lesson: Extra! Extra! Read All About It!
A great idea for a fun homework assignment! The class fully and critically analyzes Daniel Sprick's painting, Your Plans. They then generate questions to ask the artist as they attend a mock press conference. They pretend to ask the...
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lesson: Facing a Stone Situation
Can you imagine what it's like to be able to carve an animal out of stone? Kids do, as they analyze the techniques used to create the South Indian sculpture, Sacred Bull of Shiva. After a critical look at the piece, they write a...
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Lesson: Creative Containers
Even functional everyday objects can be highly ornate and thoughtfully designed. Art analysts look at the form and function of an Inca jug used to transport liquid. They consider this jug in relation to other jugs fashioned throughout...
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Musical Resources
Students complete a simulation similar to musical chairs where the chairs represent natural resources and when one is taken away, the people still stay in the game. In this natural resources lesson plan, students learn about supply,...
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MATERIALS, Using What’s Local: Native Materials, Local Sources
Middle schoolers consider the development of different societies. In this environmental building lesson, students consider local resources and how societies choose to use them. Middle schoolers use their findings to design a 'green'...
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Underground Railroad/Quilts
Students explore the Underground Railroad communication system. In this cross curriculum fine arts and United States history Civil War lesson, students view several websites that feature quilts constructed by slaves during the...
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Picture Books and the Bill of Rights
Students identify the basic freedoms of citizens in the United States. For this Bill of Rights lesson, students act out scenarios about the Bill of Rights. Students create a picture book describing the rights they've acted out.
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Chanukah Cards With Quilling
Students research the story of Chanukah and learn the traditional art of paper curling. In this Chanukah card-making lesson, students examine Jewish customs in order to create one-of-a-kind quilling on personalized holiday cards.
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St. Lucia Day Star Hat
Students celebrate Saint Lucia Day. In this Saint Lucia Day lesson, students research information about St. Lucia Day, a tradition celebrated in Sweden to honor the Queen of Light and construct a cone hat similar to those that are worn...
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Curled-Paper Winter Holiday Cards
Pupils research a winter holiday and create unique holiday greeting cards. After learning about their chosen holiday, they use the paper-folding technique called quilling to make one-of-a-kind cards.
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Weave a Wreath
Students follow directions to complete a multi-step process that results in an attractive holiday decoration. In this Christmas art activity lesson, students employ simple measuring and weaving techniques and experiment with the negative...
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Surfin' Santa Card
Students explore December climates in Southern and Northern Hemispheres, including areas close to the equator. In this surfin' Santa card lesson, students research how Christmas is celebrated in warm climates and create greeting cards to...
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X-Ray Eyes
Students observe Australian X-ray paintings for information and to understand the art techniques used. Then they imagine and draw the inner organs of an animal. Students also research the anatomy of the animal to analyze the accuracy of...
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Winter Snow Globe
Students create a miniature sculpture snow globe with a winter scene inside of it. As a class they discuss winter weather and the changes in nature they might observe during the winter season. Students then create a mini snow globe using...
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Wild Constellations
Students examine the various constellations they can see at night. After listening to an expert speak, they discover how the Earth rotates and how that affects the constellations. To end the lesson, they make a representation of their...
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White-Water Rapids
Students examine the sport of white-water kayaking, the equipment needed to participate in the sport, and conduct research on international rivers popular to kayakers. They create a kayak and white-water course using a variety of craft...
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What Causes Big Waves?
Students use the internet to research how waves are formed. Using construction paper, they create a diorama in which they can see how waves are formed and end. To end the lesson, they also discuss the causes and effects of earthquakes...
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What's Along the Coast?
Students research an area with at least one dominant geographical feature. Then they display their findings in a realistic 3-dimensional presentation. Students also prepare ancillary material to support their project. Finally, they chart...
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Westward With the Vikings!
Students identify Norse explorers, considered by many historians to be the earliest Europeans to sail to Newfoundland. Then they recognize the superior craftsmanship of a Viking sailing ship that would have been needed to withstand the...
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Welcome Immigrants!
Students research immigration to find out why people from Europe, Asia, and elsewhere left their homelands during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Then they determine what living conditions were like when immigrants first settled...