Learners participate in a project to map their school. They measure and graph various areas around the school. Students find the longitude and latitude of the school and research the school's history, and highlight special important areas.

Looking for an interactive back to school activity? Start by reading the book The Kissing Hand, and having your class discuss their feelings about the first day of school. They trace their hand onto paper, cut out the paper hand,...

Here is an engaging and creative project to do with your ESL learners in preparation for back to school night. A digital camera is used to photograph each pupil, and everyone completes a short writing assignment that goes along with...

Identify the unique personal attributes of your class members. Begin by viewing the Visual Thesaurus and discussing displayed attributes associated with famous American leaders. Using these identity maps as models, pupils generate nouns...

This detailed lesson plan from New York Times' The Learning Network centers around Carroll Academy and its girl's basketball team. Learners compare their school to Carroll Academy, read anywhere from 1 to 5 engaging articles about the...

Classmates participate in a variety of getting-to-know-you activities for the first day of school. They make resolutions, become detectives about their fellow classmates, learn about each other by playing switch, and make...

Students create questions to pose to adults working in Middle School. In groups, students create a video interviewing the Middle School staff. They edit the video and format present it as an introduction to Middle School for perspective...

Primary learners complete pre reading, writing, during reading, and interdisciplinary activities for the book First Day of School. They will  complete journal entries, answer short answer questions, have discussions, and much...

Youngsters analyze a book discussing a child's fear on the first day of school. They discuss the characters in the book, The Teacher from the Black Lagoon. Then they discuss their own fears and uncertainties about starting a class with...

Plan the way to school. Given a map of a school district, class members portray a transportation consultant hired to develop a bus transportation plan that will pick up the eligible riders and get them to school. The plan must contain...

Students examine what school buses look like, their uses, and school bus safety issues. They discuss their experiences with school buses and identify the safety rules for riding on a school bus. Students then create a mini-school bus...

Middle schoolers redesign their school to make it more energy efficient, and create a model of their design. Learners get together in groups of 5, and they take on the task of making their school more energy efficient. To do this, they...

School budgets don't have a lot of extra money, so when high schoolers propose saving the district money, everyone jumps on board. The first lesson in the series of 21 introduces the concept of an energy audit. Scholars form an...

After discussing the artistic elements and design process needed to construct the modern sculpture, Lao Tzu, kids get logical. They consider the purposeful use of space in the sculpture, design a modern piece for a specific space at...

Students recognize the importance of loyalty to their school by identifying their school colors, mascot, logo, song, initials, and/or slogan. They then demonstrate school spirit by creating colorful "spirit wear" with articles of...

Students anticipate the school year, or reflect back on it, to compile a memory book. They bind a book with a hand-decorated cover. Afterward, they record their memories, write autographs in each other's books, exchange photos, and...

Students gather and read articles about school closures in Ohio or other nearby town or city, make list of criteria to use when deciding which schools should close, develop list into essay that argues for these criteria to apply in...

Help your class participate in hands-on activities to get them back into the swing of going to school everyday. This list is designed for all grade levels with unique ideas for each (note that many ideas are geared for elementary, but...

Students discuss ways to get involved in activities at school. In groups, they brainstorm a list of qualities of a person who is engaged in civics and how they can become involved in activities at school related to government. They...

One much-needed skill for young learners is direction giving. Have your class plan and draw a safe route for them to travel from home to school. They will also draw places and items that are in between home and school in order to build a...

After reading Pat Hutchins’ Rosie’s Walk, have your young cartographers create a map of Rosie’s walk. Then lead them on a walk around the school. When you return class members sequence the walk by making a list of how the class got from...

Celebrate the 100th day of school with a few great 100 themed stories and classroom activities. The books Benny's Pennies and 100th Day Worries are suggested for reading, making 10 piles of 10 objects is encouraged, and 5 extra lesson...

Students identify and research various suitable school carnival activities. Then they work together to plan, design, and run all aspects of a school carnival. Students also add up their costs for the event and the amount of money it...

High schoolers examine how school segregation is affected by funding gaps. In this equity lesson,students read the article, "Crossing the Gap." High schoolers analyze funding gaps between schools. Students understand that every high...