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Dream of a Nation

Creating Awareness through Action Oriented Writing and Research

For Teachers 8th Standards
Middle schoolers aren't too young to feel strongly about politics, social issues, consumer rights, or environmental problems. Demonstrate the first steps toward social change with a project about action-oriented writing. Eighth...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Artists Teach Us to See the World through Visual Symbols

For Teachers 10th
Tenth graders analyze a biographical piece of art by Raymond Saunders. They identify shapes, symbols, and lines that are used, and how the piece relates to the artist's life and modern society. They design and create an original piece of...
Unit Plan
J. Paul Getty Trust

Picturing a Story: Photo Essay about a Community, Event or Issue

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Picture this. Class members follow in the footsteps of W. Eugene Smith, Dorothea Lange, James Nachtwey, and Lewis Hine by creating their own photo essay about a local event or issue.
Lesson Plan
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PBS

Women's History: Glass Windows; Glass Ceilings

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Discover stories about women's history in beautiful stained glass windows. The second in a three-part series teaches scholars about a famous artistic style of stained glass windows and the influential women that used art to impact...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Art: Faith Ringgold Story Quilts

For Teachers 12th
Twelfth graders examine the impact of African American culture on the United States by inspecting Faith Ringgold's story quilts. Working in groups, they create a collective story quilt about current cultural issues. They research their...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Design for Social Justice

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students create a solution to a social justice problem within their community. In this urban planning lesson, students read To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest Gaines. Students then complete a research...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

When Art Conveys a Political Message

For Teachers 12th
Twelfth graders learn art is an effective way to convey a political message. They learn how political messages are created to convey a message. They analyze a piece of artwork and then write a short paragraph from the point of view of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

African Artist El Anatsui as a Reflection of African Culture: Human Rights Issues and Activism Through Art

For Teachers 12th - Higher Ed
Students explore global issues through visual art analysis. In this African art lesson, students examine works by El Anatsui and discussing their human rights themes. Students then design lesson plans based on their findings.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Affect of Music on Visual Images

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders consider cross-curricular connections between social studies, singing, and current events. They listen to the song, "I Can't Cry Hard Enough." view scenes from September 11, then create presentations using images, a...
Activity
Teaching Tolerance

Journalism for Justice

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Roll the presses! Or at least have your class members participate in the time-honored tradition of the student press by creating their own newspapers or journalist pieces on a social problem. After conducting research and collaborating...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Rainforest (Elementary, Social Studies)

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Explore the rainforest with your class. Learners study the meaning of the word endangered, choose an animal to study, gather data, and discuss why the animal is in danger of extinction. This is a motivating way to have your class discuss...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Art as Social Commentary

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students view artworks that make a statement about social conditions. They discuss the artworks, write about them and present their ideas to the class. They create socially conscious art pieces of their own.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Art and War

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Students analyze art and war and the Futurist movement. In this art analysis instructional activity, students define manifesto and its role with artistic movement. Students explore art as a response to political and social issues through...
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Curated OER

Plagiarism Workshop

For Teachers 8th - 12th Standards
What do George Harrison, Vanilla Ice, and Steven Ambrose all have in common? The Warner Brothers’ films Batman Forever and The Devil’s Advocate? All are guilty of plagiarism. And if you are considering a research project and want to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Poetry as Social Commentary

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Learners read poems with social commentaries. In this poetry analysis lesson plan, students read poems selected by their instructors and complete the provided social commentary chart to determine how the poems speak out against social...
Lesson Plan
Dream of a Nation

Read, Watch, Write for Pathos, Logos and Ethos

For Teachers 9th Standards
Encourage your young citizens to make a difference. Using Tyson Miller's Dream of a Nation: Inspiring Ideas for a Better America as a starting point, class members watch documentaries, investigate issues, and then write letters to...
Unit Plan
Water

Global Water Supply Middle School Curriculum

For Teachers 6th - 8th
We take a steady shower stream and clean drinking water for granted, but in many countries around the world, the lack of water or a clean water supply is responsible for higher sickness and death rates. Taking a closer look at the water...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Urban China: Contemporary China

For Teachers 9th - 12th
The urbanization and consumerism of modern China is the hot topic up for critical analysis. Kids view a series of photographs that specifically describe Chinese modernization, urbanization, consumerism, and waste. They discuss each...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Influential People Taking A Stand

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders explore how influential people have taken a stand on difficult issues and the consequences that followed. This lesson plan connect American studens with students in England who present their own person for exploration.
Unit Plan
Curated OER

T-shirts for Change

For Teachers 5th
Can school children change the world? With a social or environmental issue in mind, 5th graders use what they know about advertising media to make t-shirts that have something to say. They research the issue they'd like to focus on,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Civil Rights Movement

For Teachers 5th - 10th
Students compare and contrast African-American, Asian-American, Chicano and Native-American movements with the civil rights movement and are exposed to the sociopolitical and economic factors involved in the rise of social movements.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Literature: Satire in the American Dream

For Teachers 11th
Eleventh graders examine cartoons for examples of satire, irony, and sarcasm. They write essays about cartoons, art work, or literature analyzing it for satirical elements. Finally, they create their own piece in one of the three areas...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Portrait Sculptures

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders study Marisol's art work by comparing ad contrasting several sculptures. They create a 3-D portrait of a person they either know personally, or to portray a social issue. The sculpture be made of a cardboard structure they...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Picturing a Story: Photo Essay About a Community, Event, or Issue

For Teachers 7th - Higher Ed
Students research Dorothea Lange's documentary projects and create their own photo essay about a subject. In this photo essay lesson, students analyze examples of social-documentary photographs of Lange. Students define a social...