Curated OER
CAN WE SWITCH GENDERS OF STORY CHARACTERS?
Analyze characters and stories to identify stereotyping. Learners will examine the concept of character gender to evaluate bias in classroom story books. They are asked to read a story or play and change the gender of the character to...
Curated OER
How Can Clear of Tress Destroy a Community?
Fifth graders brainstorm the relationship between trees and humans to determine how humans benefit from trees and how they benefit from us. They discuss oxygen/carbon dioxide exchange, soil stablization, animal habitat, shade, medicine...
Creative Educator
Dream Room Design
Junior designers brainstorm the elements that a bedroom might have, such as a bed, television, and dresser. They identify which items are needs and which are desires. They practice measurement skills in the classroom by determining its...
Curated OER
Episodic Writing Using Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff
Help your middle-schoolers expand their writing skills with this lesson on episodic writing, which focuses on story details, idea development, and organization. After reading "The Eighth Picture: End of Summer" from Patricia Reilly...
Curated OER
Cutting Expenses
Learners explore budgeting. In this finance and math instructional activity, students brainstorm ways in which households could save money. Learners view websites that give cost reducing ideas. Students complete an expense comparison...
Curated OER
Our Classroom Constitution
Develop a system of classroom rules created by the kids, for the kids with this three-part lesson series on the US Constitution. After learning about the structure of the Constitution and the government it established, young scholars...
Curated OER
Forces of Flight - Lift
Students design and test paper airplanes to understand the concept of lift and how it affects flight. This technology-based Science lesson is excellent for use with upper-elementary and middle-level learners and uses spreadsheet software...
Center for Learning in Action
Introduction to Matter
Begin your states of matter lessons with a demonstration designed to introduce the concept that all matter has properties. Reinforce this concept through vocabulary exploration, and the creation of atom models; salt, water, and carbon...
Curated OER
Social Class Stereotypes
Encourage your learners to think about how and why people and categorized in terms of social class. They decide what "class" they belong to, and then brainstorm about the indicators that society uses to define class and to categorize...
Curated OER
Water Uses and Children's Lives in East Africa
Students explore water usage around the world. In this "water" social studies lesson, students brainstorm ways in which water is used. Students visit the Water in Africa website to view pictures of water usage in Africa. Students...
TryEngineering
Exploring at the Nanoscale
Discover a world too small to see. In the lesson, young scientists learn about nanotechnology and brainstorm ideas for new applications of it. They perform an activity to determine how surface area changes when objects are made smaller...
US Mint
Symbols in My Eyes
Explore the hidden meanings behind the images on US currency with this elementary school lesson on symbolism. Starting with a class discussion about symbols, children go on to brainstorm different objects that represent the Unites States...
Growing Kids Ministry
Useless Junk? or Made with a Purpose?
Demonstrate that all items (and people) have a purpose in God's plan with a Sunday School assignment. After examining seemingly useless items, such as bolts, paper clips, or batteries, kids fill in the blanks to express the item's...
Polar Trec
Where is the World's Water?
Scholars discover the amount of the Earth's water in various locations such as the ocean, ice, the atmosphere, etc. They then make a model of the how much water those percentages represent. Finally, analysis questions bring the concepts...
Curated OER
LET'S GET ORGANIZED
Students use organizational skills and involve youth in the planning of their school and home recycling project. They brainstorm to find the most efficient way to set up a recycling collection system
Curated OER
How To Create A Mural
Students brainstorm ideas and come up with a concept to portray into a mural. In this painting lesson plan, students base their mural off of the work of Keith Haring.
Curated OER
Measurement and Estimation
Students gain an understanding of time. In this time lesson, students work together to recognize the difference between yesterday, today, and tomorrow, As well as months, hours, minutes, and seconds. Students brainstorm ideas of ways the...
Curated OER
Olympic Engineering
Students explore the concept of problem solving using the Olympics as the topic. In this problem solving lesson, students learn how engineers brainstorm, and come up with design ideas that are difficult to accomplish while trying to...
University of Texas
Scarcity
How can having too little of something impact your life? Scholars investigate the concept of scarcity in their own lives and in the overall picture of the economy. Brainstorming activities as well as student-parent work bring to light...
Curated OER
Introduce: Main Idea
Begin exploring main idea in a text by telling the class an interesting story. Can they recall the main idea after you finish? What clues told them this was it? Explain that you will apply this concept as you read a nonfiction book....
Curated OER
Food and Culture: Exploring the Flavors of Your Community
Students brainstorm the types of food they eat at home, discussing and comparing with the class. Students brainstorm and make a chart of questions that came out of the activity and their discussions. Students interview someone who...
Curated OER
Prop Box
What other uses can you brainstorm for a key? What about a pair of sunglasses? Bring a bag of props into your classroom and have learners create different uses for a selection of objects. Then, after everyone has shared, translate the...
Curated OER
Exploring the Effects of Weather
Fifth graders brainstorm different types of extreme weather and their effects on the environment and share lists with class. They research the effects on the environment through the use of the World Wide Web, Microsoft Encarta, and...
Curated OER
Definition Poems
“Hope is a tissue, wiping away your problems and fears.” Use a Definition Poem Web worksheet to model for your class how to craft a free verse poem based on an emotion. After brainstorming topics, groups use the sheet to make comparisons...