What sunk the Sultana? Scholars become investigators to uncover the facts behind the 1865 sinking just after the end of the Civil War. Through group work, videos, and primary documents, they research and analyze why 1,800 men died....

Seventh graders create a classroom timeline of important world events. This lesson is meant to be used during the entire school year. As the school year goes along, events are added to the timeline as chosen by the class. The events are...

Tap into the wisdom and knowledge of older members of the community with this New York Times plan. To warm up, learners write about and discuss advice they have been given. After reading "The Life Report," an op-ed column that asks older...

The sun is shining and the birds are singing, what better time to teach young learners about the fun season of summer. In this week-long science series, children learn how the rotation and orbit of the earth influence...

A baseball trajectory and a parabola seem to make the best pair in real-world quadratic applications. Here is a current baseball resource with questions, discussions, and explorations regarding a quadratic function and home run...

Guide your learners step by step through the process of designing an original, independent student project. This resource includes a wealth of worksheets and materials, including student project checklists, timelines, primary and...

What is oral tradition, and what unique tool did the Native Americans of the Northern Great Plains use to help them remember their complex histories? Through pictograph analysis, discussion, research, and an engaging hands-on activity,...

With many factors leading to a great athlete, does height make Usain Bolt unfairly fast? Middle schoolers conduct analysis to change the running distance of the Olympic races to be proportional to the height of the participants. They...

You're safe, when calculating the odds of stealing second base! Learners compare the rate of a runner to the distance the ball travels, in a lesson that explores right triangles and measurement. Full of discussion questions and fun...

Students build a friendly environment for future students by creating a PowerPoint presentation.  In this middle school introduction instructional activity, students utilize a camera to record important moments throughout the school...

Create trigonometric functions from circles. The first lesson of the module begins by finding coordinates along a circular path created by a Ferris Wheel. As the lessons progress, pupils graph trigonometric functions and relate them to...

The weather is cooling down and the leaves are starting to change color; fall is right around the corner. Celebrate this special time of year with this earth and life science lesson series that teaches children about the...

While cities had only a small fraction of the population in colonial America, they played a significant role in pre-revolutionary years, and this was certainly true for the largest city in the North American colonies: Philadelphia. Your...

Why did Vietnam POWs and their families receive more media attention than POWs in previous wars?  To answer this question, class members view artifacts, read articles, and engage in class discussion. Individuals then assume the...

Students will construct models to demonstrate their understanding of shadows. Many questions and suggestions for variants on the activities are presented to allow you to tailor this lesson plan to your particular needs. It is best to...

Learners analyze the factors that affect exploration such as religion, trade, territorial expansion, and science. In this Great Explorations lesson, students determine the names of famous explorers as well as their routes and...

Students who live in the inner city are introduced to the four corners region of the United States. In groups, they examine how the region differs compared to where they live and their culture. They develop maps of the area and locate...

Touchdown! This is an exponentially insightful lesson that explores the growth of football games with different video game consoles. Class members discuss whether the increase of mergahertz can be described as linear or exponential....

Burning off a Big Mac® doesn't seem like a big feat until you calculate the minutes of exercise necessary to break even. Young mathematicians look at different menu items in relation to different body weights and exercises to calculate...

There's a lot content packed into the four lessons of this physical science unit on density. From salad dressing to the water cycle and hot air balloons, these lessons engage students in hands-on activities that explore real-world...

Investigate the fascinating, yet terrifying phenomenon of hurricanes from the safety of your classroom using this earth science unit. Focusing on developing young scientists' spacial thinking skills, these lessons engage...

Students discover ways to surf the Internet while being kept safe from other web dangers.  In this web surfing lesson, students utilize several different web programs such as imbee.com, Disney's Surfswell, and Netsmartz, which allow...

students will explore making shadows and tracking the movement of an object over the course of a day to look for patterns. It is best to couple this shadow activity with reading the book, Bear Shadow, and making a map of Bear's...

Fifth graders record any earthquake activity throughout the school year on various maps. In groups, they identify a map locating the points given to them by their teacher. To end the lesson, they add the date, strength and damage to each...