New York City Department of Education
Designing Euclid’s Playground
Create a geometric playground. Pupils work through a performance task to demonstrate their ability to use geometric concepts to solve everyday problems. The accompanying engineering design lessons show teachers how the assessment works...
Tech Museum of Innovation
Balloon Astronaut
Design protection from high-speed particles. The STEM lesson plan highlights why astronauts need protection from space debris. Pupils use the design process to design, build, and test a spacesuit that will protect a balloon from a...
Curated OER
"Intelligent Design" and Ohio's Science Curriculum
Students explore the debate between intelligent design and Darwinism. They research both topics by accessing primary sources. Students interview school administrators to determine what its science curriculum is and the timeline for any...
Curated OER
Artsy Insects
Students identify and describe the elements of art and principles of design by creating several different butterfly pictures that represent color, shape, texture, pattern or symmetry.
Hawaiʻi State Department of Education
Mixed Media Collage
Rhythm, repetition, positive, and negative space is used to create mixed media collages. Let your learners go wild with glue, magazine clippings, and the elements of design. They'll experiment with various types of media, color, and...
Curated OER
Interpreting Lao Design: Painting
Students examine Lao art techniques and practice replication and modification of Lao designs. Maintaining a symmetrical image, they embellish designs with imagery and background color. They discuss the students' works and note the...
Curated OER
Kwanzaa Symbol Strips
Research the African family holiday of Kwanzaa and find the symbols for the seven principles of Kwanzaa. Learners analyze the symbols and how they may relate to their own lives. They then create an original art following the designs...
New York City Department of Education
Grade 5 Literacy in English Language Arts: Should the School Day Be Longer?
Scholars read newspaper articles relating to a longer school day and complete note-taking organizers as they read. They then form opinions and complete outlines before writing essays supporting their point of view.
Curated OER
Graphs of the Heart
Students study Greek literature. In this Greek tragedies instructional activity, students explore the dance-dramas of Martha Graham. Students study the choreography that brings ancient Greek literature to life.
National Gallery of Canada
Build a Neighbourhood
What's special about your neighborhood? Build one with your class to find out. Individuals create their dream homes that, when completed, will be placed together around a green space in order to create a neighborhood. Learners also...
National Gallery of Canada
Self-Portrait, Mirrors and Metamorphosis!
Using M.C. Escher's Hand with Reflecting Sphere as inspiration, learners create their own set of self-portraits using various reflective surfaces. The lesson begins with a discussion about portraiture and ends with a presentation of work...
Curated OER
Sports Action Figure
Fourth graders identify art elements and design principles in art such as movement, unity, space and color planning.
Curated OER
Out and About-Creating Design
Students demonstrate the elements of design by creating a digital photography portfolio of photos taken in and arond the scool. The edit photos using Photoshope to emphasize the element of desing in each phot.
Curated OER
Creating Stage Designs that Reflect
Students identify and research cultural, historical, and symbolic clues in dramatic texts. They demonstrate knowledge of research sources.
Virginia Department of Education
Average Atomic Masses
Facilitate learning by using small objects to teach the principles of atomic mass in your science class. Pupils determine the average mass of varying beans as they perform a series of competitive experiments. They gather data and...
Curated OER
Cardboard Weaving
Fifth graders observe artworks of cardboard weaving for their art elements and principles of organization. In this cardboard weaving activity, student create their own and compare artworks of the past and present. Students...
Curated OER
Principles of Physics: A Real Scream!
Students apply their knowledge of the physics principles of force, energy and motion to researching the physics behind amusement park rides.
Curated OER
Expressing Emotions Through Art Lesson 1: Everybody Shows They Care
Learners examine how artists depict the idea of caring in works of art. They create drawings of themselves that use the principles of design to express their feelings of caring for something.
Curated OER
Class of Cards
Students create patterns using images of everyday objects, shapes, or colors and four logos for use in a House of Cards. In this design lesson plan, students examine the work of Charles and Ray Eames and become familiar with the elements...
Curated OER
Mixed Media Landscape Design
Seventh graders create mixed media representations of landscape designs in Africa and Asia. The lesson is great for cross-curricular projects with the Social Sciences and/or Literature, or can be used as a self-contained project. ...
Curated OER
Looking at French Decorative Arts: The Science of Good Design
High schoolers examine the style of an 18th-century compound microscope and its case. In this scientific design lesson plan, students look at Jacques Caffieri's, "Compound Microscope and Case" before comparing the design to a modern...
Curated OER
Art Careers: Interior Decorator
Learners redesign specific areas of their school using interior design techniques, magazine ideas, and cooperative learning groups in this middle and high school level lesson. Emphasis is on examining the career opportunities in interior...
Curated OER
Stop Signs, Musical Notes, Letters & Logos: Designing Symbols
Students develop an awareness of environmental print, such as signs, logos, brand names, and other print and non-print items that the children see and read in their neighborhood each day. They then engage in active problem solving as...
Curated OER
Elements of Art
Third graders discover elements in visual art. In this visual art instructional activity, 3rd graders explore the use of line, shape, and color in visual art. After reviewing works of art, students create unique art pieces. Technology...