People communicate in all sorts of ways. As part of a study of nonverbal communication, teams of three must complete a puzzle without speaking to one another. After debriefing the activity and analyzing the messages nonverbal cues...

Use drama techniques to recreate the story, Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse by Leo Lionni. They engage in problem-solving as they identify the roles they will fufill in their groups for the performance. This is a motivating way to...

The Overcoming Obstacles course for middle schoolers continues with a unit module on communication. In the first lesson, participants engage in a series of activities that help them recognize nonverbal clues and the importance of making...

How are mood and tone similar? Different? Help your readers understand the difference between the two with this helpful guide. On the first page, they read the definition for both tone and mood and identify words that are describe each....

Learners study the Civil War. They conduct research in order to find out more information about the Battle of Corydon. Using this information, they create accurate props and sets for a play about this battle. They perform the play in...

Reader's Theater is a great way to build fluency, intonation, and dramatic flare. The class reads the theater piece, "The New Friends" paying attention to how they express emotion and feeling as they read. They discuss the use of plot,...

Introduce young actors to the key elements of performance with this handout that defines key staging terms and activities.

Learners of any age can learn to communicate using gestures and their bodies. They create a pantomime of a specific activity without using any words. This resource includes a link to an Off-Broadway Workshop for kids.

Examine two works of art and use these pieces as inspiration for dialogues. The whole class discusses Renoir's Lunch at the Restaurant Fournaise and Toulouse-Lautrec's At the Moulin Rouge. Then, in groups of either three or ten, pupils...

Even an outline can give you enough information to execute an awsome project. The tasks for each of the seven weeks of this project are defined, as well as the objective and specific content facilitated through the project. Learners will...

Helpful for an American literature or history unit, this activity prompts middle schoolers to examine slavery in the United States. They read slave narratives that were part of the Federal Writers' Project and then conduct their own...

Students create a realistic portrait using a live model and charcoal in this introductory art instructional activity on portrait drawing. A video and resource links are included to aid in instructional strategies.

Students paricipate in seven activities to investigate ancient stories about heroes, monsters, gods, and goddesses.

Students use their previous knowledge of the Pyramid Lake War to help them analyze different primary sources of Fort Churchill. In this source analysis instructional activity, students work in groups to study 4 different primary sources...

Here is an inventive, and educationally rich way to conduct a literature study of the book, The Midwife's Apprentice. After the book has been read, learners get into three groups. One group is assigned the task of being the writers....

Dramatic activities promote enjoyment of literature, increase reading comprehension, and help develop oral expression. It is important for children to engage in activities which help to develop their creative potential. Drama allows...

Students create poems based on the Haiku form and research about WWII. Class discussion and classroom readings of student work finish this lesson. Emphasis is placed on Standards in the Arts.

Young scholars analyze posture and pantomime in an analysis of total body movement. In this body movement lesson, students read a chart of movements and the mood or attitude they convey. Young scholars complete several space and...

Students use Lewis and Clark's journals to identify the forms of non-verbal communication they used. They discover the problems they faced on their journey and how they overcame them. They practice using the non-verbal language of the...

Don't be so emotional! Scholars take part in an activity where they consider how future robots will be able to show emotions. They place paper bags over their heads, act out emotions through body movements, and have others guess the...

Students explore the facets of verbal and nonverbal communication. In this conflict resolution lesson, students discover multicultural communication dynamics as they discuss the implications of gesture and tone. Students practice verbal...

Young scholars display themselves using a small box decorated inside and out. They describe themselves on the outside of the box and describe how others see them on the inside. They share the boxes in an oral presentations.

Pupils create multimedia speeches of introduction which focus on women and Hispanics. They introduce their famous person and, using a video camera, video tape their speeches.