Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media
Fred Seibel, the Times-Dispatch, and Massive Resistance
A lesson challenges scholars to analyze editorial cartoons created by Fred Seibel, illustrator for the Times-Dispatch, during the Massive Resistance. A class discussion looking at today's editorial pages and Jim Crow Laws leads the...
PBS
Facts vs. Opinions vs. Informed Opinions and their Role in Journalism
Do reporters write about what they see, or what they think? Examine the differences between investigative writing and opinion writing with a activity from PBS. Learners look over different examples of each kind of reporting, and convince...
Curated OER
Non-Fiction Texts
Third graders examine different types of non-fiction texts. In this non fiction lesson, 3rd graders use different types of texts to gather information. Students work in groups to analyze the texts for author's purpose, common...
Curated OER
The Art of Jewelry
Learners discover Native American culture through jewelry. In this Native American culture lesson plan, students investigate several different Native American tribes and complete a word search activity. Learners create their...
Curated OER
Fashion Sense and Dollar Wise
Middle schoolers work in groups to show understanding of the relationship between fractions, decimals, percentages, and the application of ratios and proportions. In this decimals, fractions, and percents lesson, students use real life...
Curated OER
Kindness Graffiti Wall
Students discuss acts of kindness. In this character education lesson, students use a large sheet of poster paper, tempera paint, and markers to create a graffiti wall. Students write down their ideas of kindness and share their wall...
Curated OER
Inventions Change the World: The Enigma Machine
Third graders explore WWII by analyzing technological advances. In this invention instructional activity, 3rd graders discuss the use of the Enigma machine which decoded private German messages that communicated with U-boats. Students...
Curated OER
Painting Techniques- Impressionism
Students investigate impressionist painting techniques. In this visual arts lesson, students view paintings by Monet and practice the dot and stroke technique. Students use shades of green and gentle brush strokes to create grass in...
Curated OER
Second Sun
Explore the elements of newspaper from the view of the front page. Young analysts create a front page of a newspaper geared toward teen readers. They use their inference skills to determine why some front pages are more eye-catching than...
Curated OER
Don't Lose Your Way in the News
Young scholars explore language arts by participating in a newspaper analysis activity. In this journalism lesson, students identify how newspapers present stories, who is writing them and how they can obtain information from...
Curated OER
Word Up!
Study the importance of word choice in informational text. Middle and high schoolers locate unfamiliar words and phrases in newspaper articles of their choosing, and use online word sites to explore the definitions and histories of each....
Curated OER
Loose Lips
Have your middle and high schoolers analyze instances of celebrities using racial slurs or making prejudiced comments in public. After reading an article, they consider the roots and effects of prejudice and bias. As a class, they...
Curated OER
Stars and Stripes Forever: Flag Facts for Flag Day
Students are introduced to the symbolism of the flag of the United States of American. They identify flag components, history, etiquette and lore. They also use constrution paper to make a flag and discuss the Pledge of Allegiance.
Curated OER
New York City Delights: The Taxi Cab
You set the rate! Step into the shoes of a taxi driver in New York City, and also pretend to be a person who uses taxis to get around town. The class will conduct collaborative research to learn about the history of taxis. Then, they...
Curated OER
Campaign Trailblazers
Explore the backgrounds, qualifications, and platforms of the presidential candidates for the 2000 election. Though the lesson is outdated, the activities within the informational text could be good practice for your young learners as...
Curated OER
Navajo Code Talkers
An engaging lesson focuses on the contributions of the Navajo people during World War II. Learners read the book Navajo Code Talkers by Andrew Santella, answer a series of comprehension questions about the text, and write a letter...
Curated OER
Lesson Plan: A Miniature Game
Art inspires art, as children work to understand artistic forms that come from the imagination. They analyze the installation piece, Fox Games and then discuss the design process. They then use clay to create imaginative dioramas,...
Curated OER
Following the Leaders
Examine the historic election of Pope Benedict XVI and reflect on the challenges he faces as the new leader of the Catholic Church. This New York Times instructional activity investigates how other world leaders are chosen in different...
Curated OER
Media Literacy in Presentations
Middle schoolers study the three types of mass media messages: visual media, written media, and audio media. After a class discussion which has them list examples of each, learners get into pairs and work on analyzing the "Four A's" in...
Curated OER
Cooperative Group Spelling Game
Partners or groups work together to practice the correct spelling of words. They speed-cut letters from print sources and arrange them into correctly spelled words from their lists. Newspapers are suggested, but magazines might result in...
Virginia Department of Education
Graphs
Examine different types of graphs as a means for analyzing data. Math scholars identify the type of graph from a series of data displays and then develop questions to match each one. Then, given a scatter plot of height versus age...
Newseum
Media Ethics: Fairness Formula Starts With Accuracy
As part of a study of media ethics, young journalists apply a fairness formula to news reports. They look at accuracy, balance, completeness, detachment, and ethics to determine if the reporting is fair.
Museum of the Moving Image
Evaluating Information: Focus on the 2008 Election
Just how true is the information contained in political ads? Determining the veracity of campaign ads from the 2008 presidential race is the focus of a lesson that introduces class members to several fact-checking resources.
Curated OER
Treasure Hunt
Learners create a comprehension treasure hunt. In this asking questions and comprehending writing instructional activity, students make a treasure hunt for their peers. Learners use newspapers provided by the teacher to complete the task.