Curated OER
May the Force be with You -- All about Force and Gravity
Here is a fabulous set of teacher's notes that will make your next hands-on gravity and force lab fun and interesting. These notes provide you with three activities that allow children to make and test hypothesis regarding force,...
Curated OER
The Riverboat
Get a boat across the river! Work on problem-solving with tumbling mats to represent the boat, and try to get a crew across the grass without any of the members touching the ground. This will take team work, cooperation, and...
Curated OER
Those Fabulous Fables
A video leads off this activity on fables, introducing the class to this important form of traditional storytelling. The group defines fable and hears an explanation of the origin of this type of folk tale. They summarize the story they...
Curated OER
The Economics of Information
Create an expert guide to local businesses in this instructional activity. Through research, young readers consider their local businesses and the services they provide, paying attention to any conflicting information they might find....
Curated OER
Taming of the Shrew: Act 4.4, Study/Discussion Questions
This 4-question handout addresses key elements of Act 4.4 of Taming of the Shrew. It is intended for small group discussion, followed by individual written reponses. The prompts require critical thinking and analysis.
Curated OER
Reintroduce an Irregular Word
Some words are tricky. Can your scholars quickly recognize irregularly spelled words? Write the word was on the board (or any irregular word you'd like to practice), touching each letter as scholars segment the phonemes. Explain that the...
Curated OER
Bud, Not Buddy: Directed Reading Thinking Activity
Here’s a reading strategy that can be used with any text. Class members examine portions of a novel, and make predictions about the theme or subject matter of the book. Although designed for Christopher Paul Curtis’s Newbery Medal...
Curated OER
Color Scheme Acrylic Painting Self-Assessment
Being a good artist means being able to critique your own work. Here young painters will take a short quiz on color schemes in acrylic painting and then reflect on their use of color in a recently completed piece. A great learning...
Novelinks
Treasure Island: Anticipation Guide
Captain Long John Silver himself would consider this anticipation guide a treasure. Full of rereading predictions for readers to consider, the anticipation guide makes the class excited to begin reading Robert Lois Stevenson's Treasure...
Curated OER
Modeling: Having Kittens
Cats can't add, but they do multiply! Determine the number of descendants of a single cat given specific facts about cats and kittens. The lesson focuses on developing strategies for problem solving using both individual and group work....
Dick Blick Art Materials
Painted Lockets
Painted, portable, pocket lockets encourage kids to display personal treasures and items they value. The activity, combining art with social and character studies, is perfect for any classroom.
NOAA
Prepare for the Storm!
Severe weather can occur with or without warning. Being prepared for any situation makes chances of survival that much greater. A brief activity suggests a list of items for an emergency book bag. The first page provides 12 suggested...
Cornell University
Field Day: Be an IPM Detective
Become a pest detective! Individually or in small groups, scholars scout the land to discover which pests—plant and animal—inhabit it, determine whether the pests are endangering the environment, and summarize their findings.
DiscoverE
Puff Mobiles
You've probably heard of solar-powered cars, but what about wind-powered cars? Scholars build cars that can travel at least six feet. They can only use their breath to move the car—so, obviously, a sail might be a good feature for the...
American Museum of Natural History
Gusty: The Gut Microbiome Card Game
Build up your gut. Groups up to four play a card game to learn more about the microbiome in the gut. Learners try to build a healthy gut with their cards. The player acquiring six microbes without any pathogens wins the game.
Curated OER
Exploring Magnets and Magnetism
Here is a very good lesson on magnets, magnetism, and magnitic fields that is chock full of great activities for you to implement with your young scientists. Learners discover the properties of magnets, look at the forces of attraction...
Curated OER
100th Day of School Collections
Celebrate the 100th day of school with a few great 100 themed stories and classroom activities. The books Benny's Pennies and 100th Day Worries are suggested for reading, making 10 piles of 10 objects is encouraged, and 5 extra lesson...
Curated OER
Plaster and Vermiculite Carving
Provide your class with the opportunity to experience the design process and subtractive sculpture. You mix vermiculite and plaster to create a soft variable material. Learners use this material to carve any abstract art form they...
Curated OER
Papier-Mache Masks
Read about, and then make culturally inspired masks. Learners watch the video, "Masks and Face Coverings," then design and make a mask with cultural significance out of papier mache. Tip: Have small groups research, write about, and make...
Curated OER
Sunset Pictures
Sunsets and shadows are lovely subjects for creative projects. Kids take a good look at images of sunsets, then use paint and construction paper to create a silhouetted sunset image. Tip: This project is a great way to illustrate a poem...
Curated OER
Developing Presentation Skills by Using Authentic Literature
Advanced level ESL young scholars engage in an increasing verbal communication skills through children's literature. The focus of these activities is for children to develope presentation skills. Each activity would compliment any class...
Curated OER
Function Graphing--ID: 8252
Those graphing calculators can be tricky; good thing Texas Instruments has devised a lesson on how to use their TI-Nspire calculator to graph functions. Kids investigate functional notation as they graph ordered pairs in the form (a,...
Curated OER
Tens! Hundreds! Thousands!!! of Tons
Fifth graders take a close look at the types of ships that travel through the Hudson River Valley on the Hudson River. They utilize worksheets embedded in the plan in order to answer questions about exactly what is being shipped, and how...
Curated OER
Calculator Tricks: The Golden Prediction
Excite the class with a mathematical trick, a calculator, and a good number sense. They use the directions provided on each slide to make a list of numbers, use their calculator to divide, and find the golden mean. A little history on...