As if surviving a journey to America wasn't enough of a feat for early 20th century immigrants, they then needed to settle into American life. Learn about the ways New York public education attempted to meet the needs of its students,...

Not only do extracurricular activities look good on a college application, they can foster important life skills. From sports to volunteering to employment, extracurricular activities can inform your learners' experiences...

A project-based lesson has pupils create a bulletin board to share artwork, nonfiction articles, and messages based on social justice themes. The finished board is displayed in the community to create a place for discussion. 

Young writers examine the writings of Raymond Carver to investigate editing skills. They will develop original sentences. Then read the work of Raymond Carver to edit and analyze the ending. They revise and ending of their original...

Celebrate 100 years of women's suffrage by planning a re-enactment of famous women discussing their fight. After learners view a series of interviews with famous women played by actors, including Susan B. Anthony, Sojourner Truth, and...

Learners discuss the effects of isolating areas in a park to make "islands" for nature. In this nature lesson, students role play park rangers who are developing a new section of the park. Learners work in groups to plan a park, after...

Students discuss cliques, intimidators, support systems and how it feels to be victimized, and discuss ways to deal with hurtful people.

Pupils discuss books they read via web 2.0. and create a wiki and podcast that will present the audience with their select a book by a popular teen author and write a short script about the book. Students and type the critic of the...

Youngsters identify and interpret the importance of having rules in order to maintain order at home, at school, in their community, and in the United States. They create a working Classroom Constitution that governs the classroom and...

What is a community? Explore the idea of community by investigating countries that have experienced severe damage. Learners discuss the horrible aftermath the 2011 earthquake had on Japan's infrastructure after the tsunami it caused....

The New York Times article “Online Diary,” launches this study of websites and how to assess them. Richly detailed, the lesson includes warm-up activities, procedures, journal prompts, discussion questions, and links to valuable...

First graders make landform maps of the United States. In this landform lessons, 1st graders participate in a discussion of local landforms and make a landform map of the United States. They follow the teacher's directions to add plains,...

Is, as Walt Whitman contends, America’s “almost maniacal appetite for wealth,” the heart of the American dream? Class members grapple with this question as they read David Brooks’ article “The Commercial Republic,” and quotes that...

Students first participate in an in-depth discussion about capitalism, monopolies, trusts, mergers, and the Sherman Antitrust Act. They work in groups to investigate past examples of corporations tried for antitrust act violations.

Creative projects are a great way to engage your class and can be a fun way to assess mastery! Learners create brochures and postcards that might have been created by and for travelers to ancient Mayan cities. They read and discuss the...

We are all immigrants to this country and the study of immigration can help students connect to history in a personal way. Students will listen to audio clips from the Ellis Island web site, discuss the treatment of immigrants in the...

Food takes a trip to the table. Class members choose a meal from a menu and calculate the total cost of the meal including tax and tip. Using a food origin card, pupils determine how far each of the ingredients of a meal traveled to end...

Students discuss ways in which the story "Dracula" can be viewed in terms of a board game. After discussion, groups create and illustrated game board, pieces, and written rules for their own version of The Dracula Game. Groups provide...

Reading with expression excites listeners of any age. They will discuss different ways to change their reading expression as they listen to the teacher read Froggy Goes to the Doctor. Then in small groups, they'll practice reading...

Involve your readers in finding works of literary genius. Have each individual write down compelling sentences that they read or hear, whether in a newspaper, advertisement, book, movie, song, or any other place! Once each person has a...

Study word choice and connotation in advertising. Readers examine campaign ads, both negative and positive, from the 2006 mid-term election before discussing an article and analyze a campaign of any candidate they choose. Finally,...

Middle and high schoolers remember their most memorable experiences, and then connect their own narrative with an exposition about the topic associated with their experience. This New York Times lesson plan would be a great addition...

Engage critical and social thinking by exploring the value of language and word choice. The class considers the article "The Silence of the Historic Present" and analyzes several presidential speeches. They engage in class...

Here you will find two good activities designed for young learners. In the first one, pupils explore the fact that all birds have feathers, and they discover what two uses those feathers have. After the discussion, the kids color in a...