Explore the world of fairy tales using this instructional activity focusing on higher- order thinking skills. Learners compare and contrast an Asian Cinderella story to other versions. It is a great way to review the characteristics of...

What skills do employers look for in potential employees? Introduce scholars to the skills that pay the bills during the second of six career and college readiness lesson plans. Once they have defined critical 21st-century skills, groups...

Build a class community, allow time for in-depth reflection and research, and facilitate the learning and writing process with online discussion boards! A resource delves into the benefits and purposes of discussion boards, as well as...

What skills are necessary to interact with different types of text? Twenty-first century learners live in a digital world and must develop a whole new set of skills to develop media literacy. Class members engage in a series of...

Family is a wonderful subject for little learners to get excited about. Family is also the theme for a social studies unit that uses literacy standards throughout. The guide outlines approximately three weeks of instruction and breaks...

Good endings are hard to find. And write. This, the final lesson plan in a six-part series devoted to study of the ingredients of a good story, focuses on crafting endings. Class members draft ideas about what should happen to each of...

Learners work collaboratively to take and download digital images, use iMovie software, and create an iMovie to show at a Back To School Night event. They discuss how to organize the information into a clear and cohesive movie. Then,...

Christopher Columbus: hero or villain? Prepare class members for the debate with activities that asks them to think critically about how history is reported.

Introduce cradle-to-cradle design thinking. Scholars first discuss the importance of natural laws and rights. They then use a variety of online and print resources to research eco-efficiency and cradle-to-cradle design.

Want to explore the process of writing a persuasive essay and tie it in with the upcoming elections? Class members use Venn diagrams and the hamburger model of persuasive writing to write a five-paragraph essay on elections and...

A very timely instructional activity looks at the social and political factors that affect the spread of disease. Using the 1918 Influenza Pandemic as a case study, pupils research factors that influenced the spread of the disease,...

Following the reading of the book Bullfrog at Magnolia Circle, the ninth lesson in this unit involves emerging experts in a science talk about how bullfrogs survive. Looking back through the text, young scholars prepare for the...

What is considered news vs. propaganda? Learners will discuss objectivity and press responsibility while exploring these two concepts. They work in small groups to explore the article in-depth, guided by reading comprehension and...

There is no more useful life skill to learn than budgeting and setting financial goals. It's math that is used by every person, everyday. Learners examine the responsibilities and costs involved in family economics. Through a series of...

Upper graders compare their cell phones to a lacquer box from the Japanese Edo Period. They consider how each is a form of communication and how the very nature of each object communicates social norms, ideology, and beliefs. A...

Energy conservation is a hot topic these days; introduce your kids to the Smart Grid solution through a video clip and several interactive online tools. They discuss areas of household energy consumption, examining a pie chart...

Here is an excellent set of five short lessons and activities intended to help learners not only gain an understand of current issues in Africa, but build critical thinking, synthesis, analysis, expository writing, research, and...

One must first learn how to analyze art before they can properly respond to it. Here, young analysts examine six abstract pieces in a systematic and formal way. They then respond to one of the pieces in either a poem or an essay. 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...

Older learners analyze a controversial painting entitled The Cutting Scene, Mandan O-kee-pa Ceremony 1832. They use the issues raised in the image to construct debate arguments questioning if the artist's painting exploits Native...

Art acts as inspiration for a conversation about human impact on the environment and creative writing. The class examines three pieces, looking for evidence of human impact on the landscape. They then write a first-person narrative, from...

While this focuses on Ancient Rome, the objectives are improved research and information evaluation skills. In one class period, class members narrow their topic, research it, select the best information, log useful sources, and discuss...

The reading of a contextual essay launches a study of Black Americans who served in Congress from 1870 through 1887. Young historians identify the African Americans who served during this period, investigate the ways they won national...

As a part of a study of the First Amendment, high schoolers research a current news story that seems to involve one of the freedoms granted by the First Amendment. Investigators decide whether they think the action presented in the story...