Students make a list of human accomplishments and how those accomplishments are honored. Next, they determine people in their families, school and community who display qualities that deserve to be recognized such as bravery and...

The Gold Medal Attitudes Running Club was created to promote healthy living for your elementary school pupils. Use a pedometer and a computer program to keep track of progress. A few other suggestions are available, but it's really up to...

Students investigate positive female role models. In this Women's History Month lesson plan, students read the book Mama Went to Jail for the Vote and think about how the character was a role model for other women. Students brainstorm a...

During an Olympics year, the world joins together to celebrate athleticism, patriotism, and history. Learn about the Olympiads of the 20th century with a research project in which groups research one year's Olympic Games. They note the...

Students explore types of awards for children's books. They design a new award. Students review books and select one to receive the newly designed award. Students create a "medal" for the book jacket. They write an explanation of the award.

Students examine the accomplishments of Nobel Prize winners and create a replica of the Nobel Prize medallion. They conduct research on people who have received the Nobel Prize and an individual they think might qualify for one in the...

Students study the criteria used to select notable book awards, including the Caldecott Medal and the Newbery Medal. Then they develop their own Class Book Awards to bestow upon favorite books in the classroom library. They decide on...

Help readers understand the roles of authors and illustrators and why they have been recognized by medals of excellence. Your class will discuss and then create illustrations for a book. When they have finished, you can hold your own...

Students identify the basic freedoms of citizens in the United States.  In 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.

Students listen as the teacher reads a book about an Olympic Gold Medal runner who made her big dream come true despite her hardships with polio.  In this Wilma Rudolph instructional activity, students think about and discuss what...

Students work on cracking coin codes in honor of the Navajo Code Talkers Medal. Students review the handout on Crack the Code. Students race to see who can crack the code the fastest.

Learners discover the United States began to recognize the wounded as deserving of commendation toward the end of the American Revolution. They research the Purple Heart on two specific websites then design their own awards for other...

Learners identify and interpret the author's writing process and how he came up with his idea for Holes. They experience a moderated chat with the author by participating or reading the transcript. Students also reflect on their own...

Young scholars find ways to share their favorite books. In this reading strategies lesson, students advertise books, create a top ten countdown, give a video book talk, simmer story stew, make book medals, play name that book, design a...

Middle schoolers gain understanding about where some of today's words originated by reviewing a list of Latin words and their meanings. They work in small groups to create dictionary pages which will then be compiled into a large...

Students meet Veterans. In this veteran lesson plan, students interview groups of Veterans from WWII, The Vietnam War, the Gulf War, The Korean War, and our current war.  Students collect audio and visual media to create a website...

Students listen to Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale, by Mo Willems. In this listening and writing lesson, students listen to the story and create a poster for their favorite toy if it were to go missing. They work independently to...

Students create a book of biographies in order to profile famous Olympic athletes through history. In this biography writing lesson, students research information about historic Olympians, first by listening to a short biography on Jesse...

Young scholars make connections with the book Because of Winn-Dixie through writing.  In this writing lesson, students pretend to be the main character and write a letter to her mother, using very descriptive language.  Young...

Students design and create a poster, advertising for recruitment of African American volunteers for the Tuskegee Airmen. Students Create a historical newspaper front page, from 1996, which details the awarding of the Medal of Honor to...

Second graders examine the designs on nickels before 2004 and after when the new Peace Medal nickel was minted. They research the events that preceded the new design and explore the symbols of friendship on the new coin. They work in...

Students read 'Marty and Me' by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. They compare their lives with Marty's life, which in most cases, is very different. They find similarities and differences and create a montage. They include information about...

Students acquaint themselves with little-used library resources/reference materials and create shadow boxes to be displayed in the Media Center based on the research they've done regarding the Winter Olympics.

High schoolers, in groups, use library reference materials to research an Olympic sport and create a visual display/shadow box to represent it.