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Activity
Constitutional Rights Foundation

How the First State Constitutions Helped Build the U.S. Constitution

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
Did you know that the United States Constitution was adopted after many state constitutions were already in place? Young scholars examine facts about the influence of states through an informative and interesting resource. Groups then...
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Activity
Constitutional Rights Foundation

Harriet Tubman and the End of Slavery

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
Harriet Tubman saved hundreds from slavery through what was called the Underground Railroad. Teach learners about her amazing accomplishments through the article that uses effective direct instruction. After reading, scholars break into...
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Activity
Constitutional Rights Foundation

The Lincoln-Douglas Debates — Springboard to the White House

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
The Lincoln-Douglas Debates saw two primary political candidates debating seven different times about one of the most important social movements in United States history. Middle and high schoolers read an article that describes the...
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Activity
Constitutional Rights Foundation

Sam Houston: A Study in Leadership

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
Learners read a short excerpt from a speech by Sam Houston and answer corresponding questions as well as engage in additional activities, including writing a persuasive essay and discussing topics in small groups. The resource helps lay...
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Lesson Plan
Street Law

The Challenge of Selecting an Ideal Supreme Court Nominee

For Students 10th - 12th Standards
Nearly every president has had the opportunity to name a nominee to the United States Supreme Court. But what makes someone an ideal candidate to become a Supreme Court justice? High schoolers test their prior knowledge about the Supreme...
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Lesson Plan
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Poetry Society

Simile and Metaphor

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Young poets use word cards to prompt a metaphor poem comparing to very dissimilar items.
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Lesson Plan
Poetry Society

Imaginary Words

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Oh, what fun! Young logophiles and neologists create a dictionary-sounding definition for imaginary words and try to fool their classmates.
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Writing
1
1
Teacher's Corner

Tanka

For Students 3rd - 7th
The Tanka, another fix from of Japanese poetry, is featured in the final exercise in a 10-part series of poetry writing activities.
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Writing
1
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Teacher's Corner

Diamonte (dee-a-MON-tay)

For Students 3rd - 7th
Did you say a diamonte? Ask your young poets to craft and polish this gem of a form poem. The fifth in a series of ten poetry writing exercises.
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Writing
1
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Teacher's Corner

Cinquain (sink-ain)

For Students 3rd - 7th
The cinquain, a five line, fixed-form poem that features one subject, is the focus of the third exercise in a series of ten poetry writing resources.
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Writing
1
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Teacher's Corner

Alliteration

For Students 3rd - 7th
Calliope calls kids to craft clever creations in this, the second in a series of ten poetry sessions.
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Organizer
2
2
Scholastic

Super Sentences & Perfect Paragraphs

For Students 3rd - 6th Standards
An extensive collection of lessons and activities includes many writing, grammar, and proofreading exercises. With templates and worksheets that cover several steps in the writing process, from sentence to paragraph to essay, this...
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Handout
2
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Learning Express

501 Writing Prompts

For Students 4th - 12th Standards
Never again will you need to worry about coming up with a writing prompt! This packet contains, as it says, 501 prompts that are suitable for fourth graders on up. The prompts are paired into four categories (persuasive, expository,...
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Activity
4
4
Everett Public Schools

High School Writing: Student Guide

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Here's an amazing writing guide that deserves a place in your curriculum library. The 136-page packet provides focus lessons on the writing process, expository, persuasive, and timed writing, the Cornell system of note taking, and more....
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Activity
2
2
Scholastic

Narrative Writing

For Teachers 5th - 9th Standards
If you're looking to start a unit based around narrative writing, make sure to consider this resource while you're planning. This book covers five topics: writing personal narratives, writing narratives about others, writing narratives...
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Activity
Scholastic

A Reading Guide to Sarah, Plain and Tall

For Teachers 1st - 5th Standards
Eliminate the hard work of creating an entire literature unit with this reading guide for the novel Sarah, Plain and Tall. From background information about the author and her motivation for writing the story to reading comprehension...
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Writing
PBS

Sharing Stories/Compartamos Cuentos

For Students 1st - 4th
Parents and grandparents have the best stories! Send kids home with this diversity worksheet, asking them to listen to a story from an older family member. Youngsters draw a picture of the story as they hear it, and then tell the class...
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Lesson Plan
Friends of Fort McHenry

Sensory “Star Spangled Banner”

For Teachers 4th - 8th Standards
Music can help us to access memories and events in a meaningful way, and Francis Scott Key used specific words to convey what he had seen and felt when writing what would become America's national anthem. Help your class connect to the...
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Lesson Plan
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Friends of Fort McHenry

Baltimore – Caught in the Middle

For Teachers 8th Standards
Choosing sides is no easy matter, and this was certainly true for the citizens of Baltimore in the beginning stages of the Civil War. Using video, group analysis of several primary sources, and discussion, this detailed and thorough...
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Writing
Curated OER

Guess Who Came to Dinner!

For Students 9th - Higher Ed
An exceptionally creative approach is taken to assessing your biologists' grasp of natural selection concepts. They are to imagine hosting Charles Darwin for dinner and having, to their surpise, a few other noted scientists crash the...
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Activity
Curated OER

Athenian Newspaper Report

For Teachers 5th - 6th
In this Athenian Newspaper Report worksheet, students read about the facts, events, and quotes that took place during a battle between Greece and Persia. Students write a newspaper report based on this information.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Examining Secondary Sources: The American Revolution

For Teachers 9th - 11th
Learners who have a grasp on the events of the Revolutionary war view clips from five different films as secondary sources. They take notes on each clip thinking about historic inaccuracies. They then view parts of the film The Patriot...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

China's Three Gorges Dam

For Teachers 8th - 10th
A very well-done resource includes an informational reading passage describing the controversy and impact of China's Three Gorges Dam. It also includes eight guided reading questions, a pros/cons arguments chart, and a creative writing...
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Writing
Curated OER

Protest Letter

For Students 3rd - 5th Standards
What a fantastic resource to guide youngsters in persuasive letter writing. They read a brief letter to the editor and answer question about the author's purpose, word choice, and structure. Next, scholars draft their own letter by...