Students hike a local mountain and examine its life zones. They measure various components at each zone and collect leaf litter at the sites. At the mountain top, students make descriptive observations and complete a handout about the...

Pupils brainstorm lists of land uses, gather pictures of them, and create a collage. They research land uses in their communities by contacting local agencies. They make charts of the land use planning systems and their impact on private...

Prepare for the zombie apocalypse ... by studying quadrilaterals? Given a map of an imaginary town, scholars identify quadrilaterals created by streets. They then use Google Earth and Google Maps to find parallelograms, rectangles,...

Students research, create, and present a scale representation of the county in which they live.

Students examine factors affecting water quality. They test water in a local body of water to determine its quality. They collect data and continue monitoring the water monthly. They assess water quality in the home and on the farm.

Students create a model of an aquifer and describe how an aquifer works. They describe how running affects an aquifer and prepare a model presenting to local planners the important aspects of protecting recharge areas.

Students analyze the Greenhouse Effect and the science of greenhouses. In this global climate lesson, students read background information about the 'greenhouse effect' and define 'albedo.' Students examine pictures of clouds, read about...

Should identifying a tragic hero be based on a universal definition or a definition based on the morals and values of a specific culture? As part of a study of Things Fall Apart, class members read Sylvia Plath's "Colossus" and then...

John Knowles' A Separate Peace provides readers with an opportunity to develop their close reading and analytical skills as they look for what Knowles feels are the factors that shape our identity.

"How does our environment shape our identity?" After researching biographical information about John Knowles and considering how these experiences are reflected in A Separate Peace, class members consider the strengths and weaknesses of...

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs provides the lens class members use to analyze and evaluate the motivations of the characters in Sylvia Plath's "Initiation" and scenes from Mean Girls. Readers then select a character from A...

How does our moral reasoning shape our identity? After a study of Kohlberg's Levels of Moral Reasoning, readers use Kohlberg's theories to analyze the speech, thoughts, and decisions of a character in A Separate Peace. They then...

What are the effects of competition in an academic environment? The competition between the main characters in A Separate Peace motivates a series of activities that asks readers to take a stance on competition, and then to develop a...

Visual and print propaganda are featured in a instructional activity that asks readers of A Separate Peace to examine the techniques used in propaganda from World War I, World War II, presidential elections, and in the novel.

As class members continue their study of approaches to literary criticism, readers examine the symbolism and archetypal patterns in John Knowles' A Separate Peace, and how these parallels are used to develop a theme...

Readers apply Sigmund Freud's theories of the unconscious mind and the psychological approach to literary criticism to analyze and evaluate the relationship between two characters in A Separate Peace.

Is there such a thing as fate/luck? Can one fight destiny? As part of their study of Chinua Achebe's purpose in writing Things Fall Apart, class members answer these questions from Achebe's point of view and then from William...

Why did Chinua Achebe write "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness" in response to Conrad's novel? As part of a study of Things Fall Apart, class members conduct a socratic seminar focused on Achebe's purpose and...

How affected is Thinks Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe's personal biography? Using a four corners strategy, and evidence from their readings, class members debate the degree of biographical influence in Achebe's novel.

To gain an understanding of Imperialism, class members read Rudyard Kipling's poem, "The White Man's Burden" and Mark Twain's essay, "To the Person Sitting in Darkness." Groups compare these perceptions of non-white cultures with the...

As part of their study of Things Fall Apart, class groups develop a multimedia presentation in response to the question, "In what ways does Achebe use literature as a means to express and comment on culture and history?"

As part of their study of Things Fall Apart, class members conduct a close reading of a section of Chinua Achebe's essay, "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness." Jigsaw groups then compare the voice in the essay...

To launch a unit study of the concept of diversity in World Literature, class members compare Chinua Achebe's essay, "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness" and Richard Rodriguez's essay, "The Chinese in All of...

What cultural concepts must readers understand in order to connect to Things Fall Apart? As part of their study of Chinua Achebe’s novel, class members research Nigeria and the Igbo culture to create a collaborative, web-based,...