A brief introduction to Penelope Barker sets the stage for a discussion about political cartoons and the persuasive technique used to create them. A graphic organizer aids scholars in the analysis of a piece of work using a 2-point...

Gradually build understanding of author's point of view through a scaffolded set of exercises. Moving from direct instruction, to collaborative work, and eventually to independent practice, these steps will assist your class in...

Kids consider revolution as a basis for creativity, art, and storytelling. After reading an excerpt from the book, Persepolis, learners choose one event from any world revolution to write about. They storyboard the event focusing on...

Experience how a story can drastically change when the point of view is altered. Young scholars first read a review of Disney's film Tarzan, focusing on how the point of view in the classic story is important. They then select...

Young scholars discuss the factors that can lead to war, and the motivations of countries going into war. They research two viewpoints on Texas during the Mexican War and participate in a debate with their classmates.

Film analysis takes critical thinking, connections, and context. Upper graders look at the film installation, Crystal Palace in terms of the film makers choices, presentation, and perspective of truth. After an analytical discussion...

Learners review the facts of the court case Brown v. Board of Education. Next, they research recent court cases that uphold contrasting views on the landmark decision. They write opinions about these recent court cases from a 1954...

Now these are learning activities full of fun, art, and cultural exploration. Kids consider the art of storytelling through comic book images. They then look at the Tale of Genji as it was written in the 11th century. They discuss...

Five important tenets of any social studies class are available for young historians with a poster that defines history as an account of the past. It encourages learners to question reliability of an author's perspective, as well as...

Explore point of view and more with a Common Core-designed instructional activity. Learners experience different points of view by representing one of two characters from Esperanza Rising during a partner discussion. They must use...

Learners draw, and then paint three-dimensional bottles to practice shading which shows shape and perspective. The step-by-step process for creating dimensional still life art is outlined, which makes teaching art an attainable task. Oil...

Open-ended and intriguing, a writing prompt about two people from history is sure to get your young scholars thinking. Have them choose two historical figures, and after brainstorming their similarities and differences, successes and...

Gist get to the point! Pupils read another excerpt from The Lost Garden, author Laurence Yep's autobiography. Working with partners, scholars annotate the text to look for the gist and record unfamiliar vocabulary in their word...

Share some tips. Scholars read Five Creative Tips from Carl Hiaasen to determine the gist. They think-pair-share their ideas about the text with a partner and then focus on challenging words and answer text-dependent questions.

Can art play tricks on your eyes, and can a still painting really appear to vibrate? The second activity in a four-part series discusses the way our beautiful brains translate visual images. It highlights the style of optical art and...

Discover stories about women's history in beautiful stained glass windows. The second in a three-part series teaches scholars about a famous artistic style of stained glass windows and the influential women that used art to impact...

Third graders read The Hundred Penny Box and complete comprehension activities. In these perspectives and letter writing lessons, 3rd graders read and discuss the story then complete a Venn Diagram to explore the different viewpoints in...

Fox Games is an Installation piece that allows observers to walk through a clay environment. Kids analyze the piece, considering storytelling and perspectives of light. They imagine how different the piece would look at various times of...

Expression, current events, and art can go hand-in-hand. After analyzing a multi-media piece entitled, Trade Canoe for Don Quixote, the class explores their own expressive process. They create collages that show a current event or issue...

In the Enemy's Country is a painting that depicts several Native Americans dressed and ready for war. Youngsters analyze the artistic and storytelling elements the artist used to convey his idea. They then write a creative piece from the...

Eighth graders examine how to create a 3-D effect on a flat surface and draw in two-point perspective. They view and discuss elements of design, analyze artwork by M.C. Escher and Roy Lichtenstein, and design and create an art folder.

Seventh graders will learn to create the illusion of depth on a two dimensional surface using the technique of perspective.Analyze famous works of art and photographs of local architecture and identify how each is using perspective....

Why do people write books? Pupils discover how to identify the author's viewpoint. They read non-fiction passages their instructor selects (the plan has the class look at nonfiction children's picture books), and then identify the...