Discuss the lives of artists in the Lyme Art Colony in the 1900s with this resource. Young historians write and perform a short scene depicting individuals who lived in the Griswold boardinghouse, used by the colony artists. They use the...

Here is an authentic assessment task for Shakespeare's Macbeth. Young literature scholars prepare, perform, and record a news broadcast about the major events in the play. For example, groups may choose to report on the death of Lady...

Students use Shakespearean sonnets as part of a poetry analysis instructional activity. In this sonnet instructional activity, students perform a sonnet by Shakespeare but treat it as a script to be acted out. Students work in pairs to...

Read this twist on Goldilocks and the Three Bears: Dusty Locks and the Three Bears by Susan Lowell. Kindergartners listen, predict, and discuss the story. They then participate in a dramatization of the story and draw a picture...

Comparing the more modern film Ten Things I Hate About You to The Taming of the Shrew leads to an understanding of how Shakespearean plots can be applied to modern-day situations and characters. As a culminating activity, groups select a...

Pupils read the novel, Across Five Aprils and investigate the theme of the individual vs, community loyalties. They keep a daily journal, role-play situations, hold a mock debate, and write a research paper on "coming of age."

Students explore three major dramatic concepts using Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand. In this dramatic concepts lesson, students research the concepts of universal theme, characterization, and dialogue using the given text. Students...

Students explore and evaluate poetry. In small groups, they read and summarize poems, complete a handout, create and perform a dramatization of a poem, and write a journal entry in response to their performance.

Students determine if Lincoln and Whitman ever met and write a dialogue between the two men. In this Whitman and Lincoln lesson, students read Whitman's poem "Beat! Beat! Drums!" and connect it to the events of Lincoln's presidency....

Eighth graders create an original scene or short one-act play within specified guidelines. Assessment is based upon the performance of student-created scenes during class time. Rubrics for assessment and connection to state standards...

Students read a play and create their own play using Thornton Wilder's Our Townas a resource. In this play instructional activity, students analyze how theatrical elements contribute to a play's meanings and effects. Students recognize...

Students investigate visual arts by reading a children's book in class. In this collage lesson, students read the book by Keith Haring titled Big and discuss the themes and settings. Students discuss how adjectives are used to describe...

Read Clap Your Hands to explore new vocabulary with your class. In this three-tiered vocabulary lesson, youngsters read the book and identify the plot, setting, and characters. They also define vocabulary terms from the book and...

Students differentiate the employer/employee relationship before and after the introduction of new technology through not-taking research using the Industrial Revolution as a point of reference. They explore how industry is made up of in...

Students research the decision to end World War II by dropping the atomic bomb.  In this world history instructional activity, students explore information on the atomic bomb and the decision of the tactics to use it.  They...

Students take a medical issue and explore it, debate it, and convince others of their point of view. They improve research skills and writing skills. Students are able to define a problem, debate it, and identify which is the best...

Students read, act, and write about an act from the play Twelfth Night. In this play analysis lesson, students read a summary of the act and discuss various segments of the play. Students identify literary and vocabulary points and...

High schoolers analyze pop culture songs to identify cold war themes and chart. They comprehend and explain why the Cold War took place and ended and assess its significance as a 20th century event. Students conduct a song analysis of...

Honing reading and communication skills through the theme of farm animals is the focus of this lesson. Students read a book about Scandinavian farm animals and complete prediction journal activities. They complete a worksheet about the...

Students analyze racial issues related to the Human Genome Project. They participate in a mock symposium and write a reflection/position paper based on specific ethical principals.

Learners are exposed to literature and create an Academy award for their piece of literature. They play an author or a character and present themselves, a category, and each of the nominees in that category to gain awareness of...

Time for a story! Learners of all ages enjoy listening to stories, so read them some common fables and have them work cooperatively to create a fable.  Differentiate for varying ability levels by providing sentence frames, graphic...

Tenth graders explore mathematics by participating in hands-on daily activities. Learners identify a list of different shapes and classify them by shape, size, sides and vertices. They utilize tangrams and geometric pieces to gain...

Second graders identify story elements in familiar stories from their lives. In this story elements instructional activity, 2nd graders act out familiar activities  by following directions. Students read a story and discuss the...