Curated OER
Jazz Exploration: A Collage Project
Middle schoolers explore and experience jazz through collage. They listen to improvisational jazz, discuss the origins of jazz, then design and create a collage that shows jazz being played. This project will result in amazing works of...
Curated OER
Get Your Mojo Workin': Part 1 Writing Your Very Own Blues Tune!
Upper graders listen to the blues. They discuss blues scale, read a description of the blues, and work together to write an original piece. A instructional activity like this ties into American history and African-American musical...
eGFI
Marshmallow Design Challenge
How tall is your marshmallow structure? With limited supplies (including uncooked spaghetti noodles, masking tape, and one marshmallow), teams endeavor to support the marshmallow atop the tallest spaghetti structure they can build....
Curated OER
Lesson: Resolving Conflict Creatively
The wood sculpture Nkisi Nkondi is said to have been used to aid in conflict resolution. Learners pretend they are journalists reporting on a conflict in which the figure was used to resolve an issue. A creative and interesting use of...
Curated OER
Ticky Plans His Trip to Antarctica to See Tacky
First graders participate in a creative problem solving activity to help Ticky get to the Atlantic Ocean. They identify Ticky's problem, brainstorm ways to solve the problem, and develop a plan. They write the steps Ticky needs to take...
Curated OER
Ticky Plans His Trip to Antarctica to See Tacky
First graders participate in creative problem solving activity to get from Utah to the Atlantic Ocean.
Curated OER
Teaching Students There Isn't Only One Right Answer
By encouraging students to take risks in learning you can create a group of problem solvers and critical thinkers.
Curated OER
Places in Arkansas: A Tour of Our Unique State
A great lesson plan focuses on important cultural and historical places in the state of Arkansas. Learners are introduced to six important places in Arkansas, then create a report on a place in Arkansas. Some excellent photographs,...
US Institute of Peace
Responding to Conflict: Negotiation Role-Play
After a lesson like this one, your class won't hesitate to negotiate! Pupils pair up and negotiate opposing sides of a conflict during the ninth installment in a 15-part series. Once they determine their wants and needs, individuals...
US Institute of Peace
Identifying Elements of Conflict
What lies at the heart of a conflict? Help pupils peel back the layers during an in-depth study of the elements of conflict. A instructional activity addressing peacekeeping and conflict management examines the historical, emotional, and...
US Institute of Peace
Negotiation Role-Play
War-torn Kosovo is experiencing another crisis—thousands of broken-down cars clogging the damaged highways, making travel impossible. Which local auto shop owner will get the contract to clear the road for progress? After some research,...
Curated OER
Worth a Thousand Words-The Photography Essay
Learners act as a public relations firm representing the school district and use photography to develop positive attitudes toward all programs. They brainstormed alternative methods to use photography and selected the photographic essay.
Curated OER
Maskerade, My Self, And No Other
Students examine themselves, discover their strong, positive attributes, and recognize areas in need of improvement (since each individual possesses strengths but all people have some weaknesses). They develop self-acceptance, trust in...
Curated OER
Greek Gods Who Are They?
Sixth graders research a Greek God with a partner and prepare a presentation for the class. They use the computer and Internet, as a motivator for a Social Studies unit and explore the mythology, legends, values and beliefs of a people.
Curated OER
You Can, Too!
Students and their parents participate in a volunteer opportunity in their community in order to solve a problem. In this problem solving lesson plan, students reflect on historical problems and see how they can solve a current problem.
Curated OER
Mobility: A Green City, Past, Present, and Future
Learners explore transportation systems through history. In this transportation lesson, students determine how modes of transportation affect quality of life and design transportation plans for cities.
Curated OER
Take Action, Save the Past
Eighth graders use their creative and critical thinking skills to find useful solutions to current and future problems concerning the destruction of archaeological sites and artifacts.
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: Pre K 12 Resources for New School Routines: Creative Problem Solving Bingo: Pre K and K
These weekly activities are cross-curricular but emphasize Social-Emotional Learning, Math, and Literacy development. This week (January 4th), we are working on problem-solving.m
Other
Litemind: Creative Problem Solving With Scamper
SCAMPER is a technique you can use to spark your creativity and help you overcome any challenge you may be facing. In essence, SCAMPER is a general-purpose checklist with idea-spurring questions - which is both easy to use and...
Council for Economic Education
Econ Ed Link: One Hen: How One Small Loan Made a Big Difference
The picture book One Hen: How One Small Loan Made a Big Difference, written by Kate Smith Milway, takes place in Africa. Here in a Ghanan village, young Kojo cannot afford to go to school after the death of his father. His resourceful...