Readers learn how to summarize scientific text and evaluate the advantages, disadvantages, and challenges in writing summaries. They select science-related articles you've pulled and collected from the New York Times and, with a partner,...

Explore connections within and between informational texts with this lesson plan about encyclopedia articles. Middle schoolers write encyclopedia articles focusing on topics in American history. They discuss how to determine credibility...

How are disasters addressed by the Federal Government? This New York Times instructional activity, based on the article "Disaster Aid: The Mix of Mercy and Politics," prompts middle schoolers to discuss the idea of using a disaster...

Introduce your middle and high schoolers to a different perspective on war: that of  soldier's. Read Guisseppi Ungaretti's poem "Vigil" to kick-start this lesson. After discussing his perspective, read "The Screaming Eagles Fly to...

African-American history is an integral part of what America is. Learners examine important events, read informational texts, and create quilts depicting specific eras in African-American history. Each image created for the quilt will be...

Discover the environmental and economic impact of global warming. After reading an article, emerging environmentalists identify how different countries are responding to the Kyoto Protocol. They research emission laws and write a news...

Examine the historic election of Pope Benedict XVI and reflect on the challenges he faces as the new leader of the Catholic Church. This New York Times lesson investigates how other world leaders are chosen in different forms of...

Can word choice affect a candidate's likeability? Use a New York Times lesson to explore how a presidential candidate's likeability factor can fluctuate in public opinion polls. Young readers choose a presidential election from...

Research the necessary components of a planet that supports life after reading the article "All of a Sudden, The Neighborhood Looks a Lot Friendlier" from The New York Times. After finding their information, middle and high schoolers...

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...

Known as the day that will live in infamy, the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 was a shock to all. But why was the United States unprepared on that December morning? Study a series of primary sources in a document-based question that...

What does your class want to know about William Shakespeare's The Tempest? Host a discussion about the questions high schoolers have about the play with a KWHL activity in which they write down their inquiries, what they...

Discover the ways America has opened its borders to international refugees, and the ways other countries have been more or less welcoming, with an informational passage about United States and international policies on refugees....

Six diverse activities make up a substantial unit on the women's rights movement in the United States, past and present. A few of the topics at hand: the fourteenth and nineteenth amendments, the Equal Pay Act, the Lily Ledbetter Act,...

Have you ever watched a political speech and felt your heart beat a little faster, and your opinion either solidify or begin to slightly change? Rhetorical devices can be a strong tool in an effective and powerful speech. A short lesson...

The 20th century saw many new possibilities open up to women in America, thanks to many well-known female historical figures — and some women who are not as famous but who are equally accomplished. Learn about the women who contributed...

Fundamental differences between the North and South led to the South adopting a system of enslaved labor. These abstract ideas become concrete when class members create a standing cube using information provided in the resource. Young...

Here's a new take on a new year. After watching and discussing the video of Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman performing her "New Day's Lyric," young poets craft poems that reflect their feelings about the past year and their resolutions...

Suggestions for interview topics with question prompts, scavenger hunts, oral presentations, and reading and writing prompts abound in this 11-page packet of activities for English language learners. ESL worksheets are also included...

Are history textbooks plagiarized? The New York Times article, “Schoolbooks Are Given F’s in Originality,” looks at this question and forms the basis for a lesson on textbooks and plagiarism. The very detailed plan includes resource...

As part of their study of Elie Wiesel's Night, individuals assume the voice of an Auschwitz survivor and craft a letter to a former SS officer who worked at the camp and claims he is not guilty of any crime. 

Focusing on Doppo's "Unforgettable People" and late nineteenth century Japanese literature, this resource also leads to discussions of form being dictated by content. Explore the development of new literary styles first-hand by...

Bring U.S. history to your language arts class with this lesson. Middle schoolers complete an interview for an oral history project, and discuss the importance of oral histories - and how they embellish written accounts. They write...

Examine how the media informs the way your class thinks about racial and ethnic differences. Additionally, middle and high schoolers discuss whether "objectionable material" in mass media from the past should be preserved.