Curated OER
Writing a Character Sketch
Combining descriptive and expository writing skills, middle schoolers create a character sketch about someone they know well. They use a graphic organizer to help them discuss a model character sketch and organize/write one of their own....
EngageNY
Writing an Analysis Essay: Introducing the Writing Prompt and the Model Essay
A model analysis essay provides writers with an opportunity to examine a response to the end-of-unit assessment writing prompt. Scholars define key words in the prompt and discuss how the model essay meets the demands in the prompt....
Curated OER
"Data Dabble"
Students engage in a lesson which facilitates their use of web sites to find data, graph it, and interpret it, thus scaffolding graphing skills to prepare students for their 8th grade I-search exit project.
Literacy Design Collaborative
Rhetorical Analysis: A Modest Proposal
Scholars read Jonathan Swift's A Modest Proposal before writing essays to analyze the use of rhetorical devices in the text. Essay writing begins by underlining key words in the writing prompt and discussing the prompt with partners....
Curated OER
Stir Up a Character Analysis Recipe
What ingredients make up a character? A cup of honesty, a dash of humor, a pinch of cynicism? Based on real cookbooks they review in class, learners at any grade level three and up write recipes to describe characters familiar to your...
Curated OER
GCSE Notes 2000: Classical Music
Classical period music is defined by its characteristics and distinctive sound. A set of notes assists upper graders in recalling and analyzing music from the classical period based on musical terminology. An example analysis of Eine...
Curated OER
Liberty Rhetoric
What is liberty rhetoric? Examine how people have used it in four different time periods and situations. High schoolers investigate original source documents and compare them with the Declaration of Independence to decide how liberty...
Curated OER
Exploring War Themes in Art and Poetry
What is war? Young scholars discuss the ethical dilemma of war by viewing Picasso's painting entitled "Guernica" and write down everything they see in the painting. Then they choose one emotion that best summarizes their emotional...
Curated OER
What Did It Cost 100 Years Ago?
Students compare prices of good across the century in order to introduce the topic of inflation. They undertand the concepts of inflation and Consumer Price Index (CPI), use online calculators to figure the approximate cost of goods...
Curated OER
Folktale Writing
Review literary analysis techniques with this reading lesson about folktale writing. Middle schoolers read different folktales from many authors, and write their own folktales to share with the class. They identify the plot, morals and...
Curated OER
The News Behind the Story
What a fun way to analyze plot, setting, and character. Learners review story elements, read a short fictional story, then turn the events of that story into a headlining news paper article. Not only does this lesson engage critical...
Curated OER
Working on the Slant
Compare and contrast a major news story from various newspapers. How does the perspective change? Are certain things included in some of the stories and left out of others? Have pupils complete a graphic organizer to compare how...
Curated OER
Filling the Holes, 20 Years Later
Students learn to analyze traits of the main character after reading Holes by Louis Sachar. In this character analysis lesson, students illustrate one of the characters at their workplace 20 years in the future.
NOAA
Climate, Corals and Change
Global warming isn't just an issue on land; deep ocean waters are also showing troubling signs. Young scientists learn more about deep water corals and the many recent discoveries researchers have made. Then they examine data related to...
Curated OER
Communities in Crisis Lesson 1: Primary Source? What is That?
Distinguish between primary and secondary source documents using the theme of philanthropy. Middle schoolers discuss Anne Frank: The Diary of Young Girl as a way to study the past using a primary source. Then they investigate how to...
Curated OER
Surname Survey
Learners use data from the U.S. Census Bureau to determine whether last names in a local phone directory reflect the Census Bureau's list of the most common surnames in the country. In this surnames lesson plan, students use the Internet...
Curated OER
Apple Adjectives
Study different apple varieties and use appropriate adjectives to describe them. Learners alphabetize both the apple names and the adjectives before creating spreadsheet, bar, and pie graphs. A mix of language arts, technology, and math!
Curated OER
Comparing-Contrasting With Cookies
Students compare and contrast cookies. In this compare and contrast lesson, students complete a graphic organizer and identify the similarities and differences in Girl Scout Cookies. Students write an analysis.
Curated OER
Candy Colors: Figuring the Mean, Median, and Mode
Students count candy by color and then calculate mean, median, and mode. They count candy and use the data to calculate mean, median, and mode (by color) and apply their learning to another collection of data.
Curated OER
A Picture is Worth...
Students use their photo analysis skills to gain an understanding of what pioneer life in Canada may have been like by examining historical photos. Students are then given an opportunity to present their findings to the class in a...
Curated OER
Retelling Information
This scripted instructional activity suggests using the journalist’s five W’s (who, what, when, where, why) to teach readers how to summarize a story and to how to distinguish between significant and supporting details. A template and...
Curated OER
Using Primary Sources: Letters from the Presidents
Young scholars find out about the minds and thoughts of presidents through reading their actual letters. They explore the personal lives of presidents. They answer questions about a primary source. They write essays.
Curated OER
Through the Looking Glass
Learners explore issues of self and identity. They create artworks through the observation and analysis of self-portraiture. They reflect about themselves and on fostering personal expression. They create a time-line that makes...
Curated OER
Shipwreck Mystery
Students draw inferences about a shipwreck. In this marine archaeologist instructional activity, students examine historical and archaeological data to draw inferences about the age and identity of shipwrecks.