Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library & Museum
Service Learning Projects
Service learning projects provide pupils an opportunity to put the theories they are learning about civics into practice. Scholars investigate the needs of their community and then adopt a project for them to become involved in.
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100 Questions
Students practice problem solving skills by asking questions and participating in a design challenge. In this asking questions lesson, students work in pairs to ask questions to design a solution for a difficult personal problem....
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Geography/Current Events Project
Using the Balkan region as an example, fourth graders review the five themes of geography as a class. They identify the physical and human characteristics of a region before labeling the countries and landforms on a map. They then...
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Lesson: Skin Fruit: Ideas of Empathy in Janine Antoni's Work
Kids get artistic as they explore the impact of art materials, sculpture, and performance. They discuss the work of Janine Antoni and then create a performance piece that reflects social or global issues they feel strongly about. The end...
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Empathy and Art
Students watch an episode of the PBS show "Maya and Miguel" and examine how to express empathy with someone who has a disability. They discuss the episode, and create an art project using one hand only, or paint an object blindfolded...
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Emergency Shelter Project: Empathy Unit
Students design emergency shelters. In this designing emergency shelters lesson, students discuss living conditions of people after a natural disaster. Students discuss the tsunami that struck East Asia. Students design collapsible...
Skills USA
Personal Growth and the Personal Leadership Inventory
What are employers looking for in prospective employees? Career-minded high schoolers examine their strongest technical skills as well as important 21st century skills, including leadership, empathy, clear communication, working well...
Amnesty International
Respect My Rights, Respect My Dignity: Module Two – Housing is A Human Right
Take learners on a journey throughout the world to discover how other people live. Scholars experience a taste of what life feels like for those in poverty and without housing. Activities include discussions, building a cardboard house,...
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The "Be Kind Kids" Project
Students create a visual display that highlights friendship and kindness. They read and discuss a poem, and design and create a large poster or banner that emphasizes kindness, anti-bullying, and friendship.
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The Cyrano Project
Pupils participate in a variety of activities in a thorough study of the play, Cyrano De Bergerac. They discuss the themes of the play and how they relate to their own lives. They produce and perform their own interpretation of the play.
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Rostislav & Julianna: A Modern-Day Interpretation of Romeo and Juliet
Students author and film their own adaptations of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. In this multimedia skills lesson plan, students script a play that pits an Orthodox Christian family against a Muslim family. Students use...
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Compassion
Students discuss respect, responsibility, and honesty, and participate in a project that reaches beyond the classroom.
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Making a Difference in World Health
Students discover environmental awareness by conducting a collection project in class. In this global food lesson, students identify the importance of feeding all of the humans on Earth and discuss why some aren't properly nourished....
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Elmer the Elephant
Learners read "Elmer" by David McKee. They answer comprehension questions and discuss how Elmer looks and how he is different from the elephants they see in the zoo. They complete a project in which they celebrate their individual...
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Back to the Future
Students imagine what it would be like to travel back in time. In this creative writing lesson, students watch parts of the film Back to the Future and examine artifacts from the past. Students write a short story in which they travel...
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No Place Like Homelessness
Pupils complete a unit of activities that help them understand homelessness, its causes, and ways to better the situation. In this homelessness lesson, students complete five activities that help them to define homelessness and its...
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Candles in the Dark
Young scholars read about and research the Holocaust using the Internet. They write poetry about an image of their choice and create a digital movie of their poetry readings.
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I Served in the American Civil War
Middle schoolers research soldier's lives in the American Civil War. They create a video about a soldier's life
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Mexican Culture “La Raspa”
Here are three lessons that work together to engage learners in a cultural and musical exploration. In activity one the listen to the Mexican folk song, "La Raspa" and discuss cultural context. In activity two they dance along to both...
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Candles in the Dark
Students analyze and apply their personal responses through poetry and film to a challenging and disturbing event-the Holocaust. They use a digital video camera to film each student reading their poem.
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Developing Relationships with Older People
Students read books and view movies about older people. They write a questionnaire to interview older people at a retirement center, interview the people, record their information on graphs, and write follow-up letters.
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Hold That Pose
Young scholars discuss the painting The Radcliffe Family and discuss what it was like for them to hold poses for portraits. In this portrait lesson plan, students then pose stuffed animals and make their own portraits.
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Life During the Civil War for Women and Civilians
Students follow an overview of the American Civil War from a film, the text and/or teacher direct instruction. They create a timeline with a large map of the U.S. in the 1860's available for student reference as they do the spider activity.
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Promoting Tolerance
Students create multimedia presentations on stereotyping. In this stereotyping lesson plan, students have discussions on different kinds of stereotyping, how it makes people feel, and create a multimedia presentation on it.