Nathaniel Hawthorne as a humorist? Really? The three lessons in this series focus on the the storytelling style, conventions, and literary techniques employed by Hawthorne, George Washington Harris, and Mark Twain. 

Middle schoolers receive instruction to punctuation marks in the appropriate places using provided examples. They then place the correct punctuation in the sentences on the worksheet noting that there are some punctuation marks in the...

Although the article that launches this instructional activity is about the history of the Periodic Table, the objective is reading comprehension. Using the eight-page informational text, learners answer five comprehension questions and...

Students examine the time period of the Harlem Renaissance. In groups, they compare and contrast the type of art before and after the movement along with the state of society at the time. After reading a book on the topic of their...

Oral history has brought a multitude of lessons, stories, and factoids to our current knowledge of the past. Let us continue to use oral history traditions through a lesson that encourages pupils to discover and appreciate...

What features mark a building as belonging to a particular culture, time, and place? Class members investigate the architectural movements represented in structures built in Forsyth County, North Carolina from 1880-1980 by examining...

Stress the importance of the different types of pressure our mind and body experience in a lesson about how certain types of stress are actually necessary and good for our bodies. As astronauts and people with injuries can attest, not...

Students compare and analyze the relationship between Mark Twain's background and what they believe to be true about the book Tom Sawyer. They apply correct sentence and paragraph construction in their writing.

Students read the Emancipation Proclamation and investigate steps that led to its signing. They read and discuss period news articles from both sides of the argument and create portfolios of documentation supporting both sides.

Ninth graders publish a magazine during a ten week marking period. They make individual contributions to the group project that is based on career choices. They write and publish articles, poems, entertainment pieces, and a play that...

High schoolers explore economic security at the local and national level during the time period preceding the 2008 presidential election. They fill out surveys on their thoughts and concerns regarding the US economy, and watch...

Students are introduced to various time periods in history in which African Americans wrote songs and poetry to cope. In groups, they travel between different stations to listen or read poems and music from the Civil War period, Civil...

Students collect a variety of drawings of dinosaurs and maps of a zoo. Students observe an animal in motion during a field trip to a zoo from reproducible worksheets. Students study about the process by which scientists and film...

Students stop their sentences with the correct punctuation marks. They choose which punctuation mark is needed to write sentences in their journals.

Tenth graders participate in a lesson guided by an essential question: in what ways does choreographer, Mark Morris' work, "The Office," reflect Eastern-European traditional folk dance? During the lesson's first sessions, students...

Students discuss the U.S. foreign policy and the components they consider important. They read and discuss President George W. Bush's speech of November 10, 2001. Students locate and mark countries President Bush identified in his speech...

Sixth graders compare and contrast ancient civilizations. In this research skills instructional activity, 6th graders use SMART Board programs to compare and contrast the economies, cultures, and geography of Mesopotamia, Egypt, and India.

Eleventh graders explore how the native peoples had lived in the Connecticut Valley for nearly 10,000 years, prior to the English settlement and how their culture and life ways were markedly different from that of the English settlers.

Students describe two different houses in use at the time the first European settlements were founded. Students list ways in which our lives differ from the lives of the Native Americans and Europeans during that period of history.

Students observe and record the behavior of a San Diego wetland animal and the characteristics of its environment. The amount of time that each animal spends resting, grooming, eating, flying, and social or individual play becomes the...

Students explore performing arts by reading a children's book in class. In this body movement lesson, students read the book Dance and create their own artistic impressions based on dancing images from the book. Students share their...

Students research and describe the contributions of African-American men and women. They write their notes in a Microsoft Word document. They present their information to the class.

Students research basic information about owls. They complete a class KWL chart, and conduct research on owls using the Internet and a variety of resource books. Next, they write an owl acrostic poem and a report using their research...

Students read orally two versions of Little Red Riding Hood (Classic and Cajun) They compare and contrast the two Little Red Riding Hood versions. Students create a concept map to demonstrate the comparisons/contrasts. They could also...