Core Knowledge Foundation
Marching into Civil War Times: Little Women, Past and Present
Here is a fine unit of lessons which compare and contrast the culture during the time period of the classic book, Little Women to present day. Topics covered are the family, politics, morality, fashion, transportation, cities, historical...
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Where'd You Get Those Genes?
Really a unit, this resource exposes middle schoolers to genetics at their level. They read interviews and biographies, trace a family tree, play games that simulate inheritance concepts, and more! Teacher's procedures, student...
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Lesson: Looking Closer: The Artwork of Wangechi Mutu
Social issues of gender and media stereotypes, begins with a multi-sensory experience. Learners view the painting Backlash Blues and make critical comments based on what they see. They then read the Langston Hughes poem and listen to the...
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Atomic Musical Chairs
An engaging activity enlightens young chemists in this activity on atomic structure. They play musical chairs through a series of concentric circles that represent electon orbitals. A laundry basket in the middle holds the protons and...
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Pig Products
How do you feel about cloning? This issue is highly debated, so educate your class before they participate in a similar debate! Read a New York Times article related to the use of cloned pig organs for human transplants. Groups develop...
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Understanding the Body: Day 2, Puberty
Everyone needs to know what to expect when going through puberty. Intended for a special education class, this well developed and developmentaly appropriate resource provides a full days instruction on teaching teens with special needs...
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Weathering Rocks
Here is a geology lesson that is sure to get your charges excited. It's all about the process of weathering of rocks. Learners study natural events that can cause rocks to break apart. Some of these events are: ice wedging, plant...
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Brief Encounters: Building Bridges
Students engage in a roleplaying game n order to experience what it is like to encounter people of a different culture. In this instructional activity on building cultural connections, students will participate in a cultural simulation...
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Erosion
Young scientists identify erosion, explain the causes of erosion, and name some techniques that can slow the process of erosion. Learners are divided up into groups of four and perform a simulation of soil erosion in class. The...
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Lesson Plan: Becoming an Animal
The Kwakwaka'wakw are indigenous people from Vancouver Island and British Columbia. The class analyzes a Kwakwak'wakw ceremonial mask, how it was used, and its cultural significance. They then create animal masks representing their...
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The Roots of Prohibition: Examining the Effort to Prohibit Alcohol in America
Five segements from Ken Burns' documentary series Prohibition, easily accessed on the PBS website, are at the center of a terrific short unit on the roots of America's ambivalent relationship with alcohol. Engage your secondary...
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Lesson: Skin Fruit: Ideas of Empathy in Janine Antoni's Work
Kids get artistic as they explore the impact of art materials, sculpture, and performance. They discuss the work of Janine Antoni and then create a performance piece that reflects social or global issues they feel strongly about. The end...
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Brief Encounters (Building Bridges)
Students participate in a simulation that explores how groups of two radically different cultures might interact. They, in groups, represent the different cultures and, after interacting, describe the opposite group's cultural norms and...
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The Water Cycle
Fifth graders explore the major components of the water cycle. They pay close attention to evaporation, condensation, and precipitation. A water cycle kit is set up in the classroom, which learners observe for a couple of days before the...
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Changing Planet: Adaptation of Species (Birds and Butterflies)
A video about the impact of climate change on butterfly populations and a PowerPoint about butterfly and bird adaptations warm science learners up for the activity to follow. Using a variety of tools that reprsent unique styles of bird...
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Buying New Stuff
Young spenders take a look at the best ways to save and spend money. This type of financial education is lacking in schools, so implementing this lesson would be of great value to your learners. Things like bank checking account fees,...
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Tootsie Roll, Tootsie Roll, Who Art Thou?
Students discuss gender role stereotyping and males and females in non-traditional work roles. They debate and discuss opinions as a group, and then as a class, concerning "men only" and "women only" jobs
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Band of Brothers
What is a community? Explore the idea of community by investigating countries that have experienced severe damage. Learners discuss the horrible aftermath the 2011 earthquake had on Japan's infrastructure after the tsunami it caused....
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A Hidden Beauty
Expose the beautiful mystery of bulbs as young botanists learn all about these fascinating plants. They glean information from a short text before observing actual bulbs (consider an onion), and comparing their findings with predictions....
The Kennedy Center
Fairy Tale Variations
Here are two great lessons that work together and are inspired by the Stephen Sondheim musical Into the Woods. Young writers and actors will retell the story of "The Frog Prince" through games, improvisational script writing, and...
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Sustainability
Here is an in-depth, and incredibly thorough lesson plan on sustainable agricultural practices; specifically, regarding the growth of coffee. After completing and discussing a worksheet called "Thinking About Tomorrow," groups of...
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da Vinci: Body Proportion Theories
Middle schoolers investigate the validity of da Vinci's proportion theory by recording human measurements on scatter plots. In groups of three, they record each other's height and wingspan to create a Powerpoint presentation, chart, or...
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Shakespearean Comedy on Film
This activity will focus on the aspects of Shakespeare's comedy that become more evident in performance. By viewing clips of the same Shakespeare scene in different film versions, high schoolers have the opportunity to engage in a close...
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West Nile Virus-What is the Risk?
Begin with an online pre-quiz about West Nile Virus. Using a fictional scenario, young epidemiologists read how it is transmitted and examine the stages of the life cycle of a mosquito. They imagine that they are members of the Centers...