Curated OER
Welcome To Middle School Video
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...
Curated OER
Social Studies: Biographical Guide
Fifth graders create a class Powerpoint presentation of historical figures. They each research six names for their assigned alphabet letter and include a thumbnail sketch for the persons. Students present the finished project to other...
Florida Center for Instructional Technology
Communicating with Mentors
Nothing says 21st century learning skills like an Internet-based collaborative learning lesson plan focused on using technology to compile and synthesize information. An embedded video shows you what collaborative learning in high school...
Orlando Shakes
Arms and the Man: Study Guide
Few aspects of life make better fodder for a comedic play than politics. A study guide introduces George Bernard's Shaw comedy Arms and the Man. Along with summaries of each scene and brief biographies of the main characters, two lesson...
Curated OER
Puppet Show
Students create a puppet show for a play. They choose the puppet characters they wish to enact the play and develop scenarios.
Curated OER
Cinderella Folk Tales: Variations in Character
Young scholars read a variety of Cinderella tales from different cultures. They discuss the differences in character, plot, and conflict resolution in the stories from different countries.
Curated OER
Basic Needs
Students examine the unique and diverse historical artifacts that people have designed to fulfill their everyday needs in extraordinary ways. They identify ways humans have used design throughout history to enhance the ways they meet...
Curated OER
Lesson: Allison Smith: What Are You Fighting For?
Trench art is a nontraditional art form created by soldiers in trenches during wartime. Artist Allison Smith connects her art to the American Revolution and the question: "What are you fighting for?" Kids examine her art, how it connects...
Curated OER
Make a Memory with Movie Maker
There is nothing more exciting than allowing learners to express themselves through a creative medium. In groups, they write narrative stories, focusing on building a strong storyline and dialogue. Next, they transform their stories into...
Curated OER
The View From Here
Study the beauty of the landscape around you with an innovative art lesson. After discussing the foreground, background, and middle ground of landscape art, kids work on making their own piece of landscape art. The lesson provides...
Curated OER
Writing in First and Third Person
Explore narrative writing by participating in a role-playing activity. In this perspective lesson, learners define first and third person in writing and discuss how it changes the mood of the reader. The first activity has pupils write...
Curated OER
Casting Doubt: "Color-blind" and Nontraditional Casting Decisions
In his article about color-blind casting entitled, "Willy Loman Is Lost, Still Looking for Stimulus Plan and Some Dignity," Charles Isherwood quotes August Wilson as saying, "To mount an all-black production of a 'Death of a Salesman'...
New York Public Library
What's for Lunch?: New York City Restaurant Menus
Do you remember the days when a cup of coffee cost five cents? At A.W. Dennett restaurant in 1894, you could buy a five-cent cup of coffee and as well as a five-cent slice of pie to accompany it. The menu from that year is a primary...
San Francisco Symphony
Mr. Lincoln Through the Eyes of Aaron Copland
Use Aaron Copland's symphonic piece, "Lincoln Portrait" to engage learners in a cross-curricular experience. They'll listen to the piece, watch a video, read the Gettysburg Address, and write a series of fact or opinion sentences. An...
Curated OER
Create Your Own Country Project
Young scholars demonstrate their knowledge of geography with this fun, collaborative social studies project. Working in small groups, students develop their very own countries, writing descriptions of their physical location, social...
Dream of a Nation
Big6 Research Project
Do research projects at your school look like a class of eighth graders staring at a blank screen? Use the Big 6 research method to guide middle schoolers through the process of finding a topic, searching for and evaluating sources,...
Curated OER
"Hello's" Heard Around the World
Students say hello in five different languages (Spanish, Swahili, French, Portuguese, and Japanese). They are introduced to the countries of these languages (Mexico, Tanzania Africa, France, Brazil, and Japan).
Curated OER
Arkansas Geographical Facts
Students participate in class research and discussion to discover 10 geographical facts about the state of Arkansas. After finding these facts, students complete a book of Arkansas Geographical Records.
Curated OER
Home Sweet Home Activity Plan
Students examine the uniqueness of their family. In this early childhood lesson plan, students develop social awareness, creative thinking, and fine-motor skills as they complete an activity regarding their families.
Curated OER
ELA High-Frequency Sight Words
Read high frequency words and rearrange scrambled sentences in order to make proper sentences with pupils. They will also practice oral fluency by reading a word assigned to them. These activities reinforce reading fluency and vocabulary...
Curated OER
I Am Special and You Are Special Too #5
The student create a drawing of themselves through the use of multicultural people color crayons. They explain to a teacher what makes them special. Students investigate family types, skin color, eye color, hair color, and favorites.
Curated OER
Earth Day: a Look Into the World Around Us
Students develop an artwork made entirely out of recycled materials to exhibit during an Earth Day celebration. They participate in a lecture discussion on the history of Earth Day and environmental issues, do internet research on a...
Curated OER
Earth Day...Comin Atcha!!!
Students explore the idea of consequence that every individual leaves a daily environmental footprint. They read articles about creative solutions to solid waste issues and then create an artwork from household trash.
Curated OER
Writing Limericks
Eighth graders compose or create works of communication for specific audiences and purposes. They locate, access, and select relevant information from a variety of sources. They revise and edit their work to improve content, organization...