Young mathematicians join the ancient order of the Pythagoreans by completing an assessment task that asks them to find the area of tilted squares on dot paper. They then look at patterns in the squares to develop the...

Present the class with a question on whether the water level of a pond will rise they take a large rock out of a boat and drop it into the pond. Groups come down on all sides of the question and try to justify their answers. The activity...

There are places in the US where a road cannot be found for miles! The lesson asks learners to use random longitude and latitude coordinates within the US to collect data. They then determine the sample proportion and confidence interval...

Earth's systems respond to changes in environments in all types of ways including migration, extinction, adaptation, immigration, and emigration to name a few. Part one in a series of seven is a pre-test consisting of 14 questions. Some...

After watching West of the West's documentary on Catalina Island, The Magic Isle, class members research how Walt Disney's and William Wrigley's different visions impacted the island.

Mr. Wormwood, one of the characters in Roald Dahl's Matilda, is not the most trustworthy of characters. Have student groups take on the roles of car salespeople and play a game to see who can make the most profit by selling...

How do Poe's choices of imagery, rhythm and rhyme scheme, and structure help build the desired single effect of "The Raven"? After listening to a dramatic reading of the poem, class members consider whether Poe's choices do...

How can your journalism class ensure they use social media responsibly and legally? The sixth lesson in a 16-part Social Media Toolbox series asks pupils to dig deep into the legal aspects of social media use by school publications....

It's gameplan time! Journalism scholars create a social media plan based upon work completed in previous lessons. The activity, fifth in a 16-part Social Media Toolbox series, focuses on using data and consensus to create an effective...

What advantages do political cartoons have over written editorials? Scholars discuss the topic by exploring editorial cartoons. Working in small groups, pupils analyze an Uncle Sam cartoon and complete a worksheet. As a fun extension,...

Parades are a great way to celebrate. Get young historians into the festivities by asking them to create an informational float for a Freedom Parade. Picking a topic from the provided list or suggesting one of their own, class members...

Looking for a resource that models how to read and analyze a poem? Check out this packet that uses sections of Walt Whitman's "Song of Myself" to demonstrate how to paraphrase, note literary elements, and identify the poet's inferences.

Malala Yousafzai has become the face of social activism. After watching He Named Me Malala and short student-made films about what young people can do to become instruments of change, class members reflect on what it means to be an...

Here's a clever way to introduce language learners to noun clauses. After a brief exercise that provides examples of different types of noun clauses, class members listen to the Association's "Never, My Love" and identify the clauses in...

That tricky Anansi! Join him and Turtle in the story Anansi and Turtle Go to Dinner by Bobby and Sherry Norfolk, based on the African folktale. Kids answer comprehension questions and sing songs about spiders before creating spider...

How does an individual take a stand for a principle or belief? what skills are required to do so? What are the challenges and risks in doing so? Class members study examples of individuals engaging in such activities and then identify...

Let your class voice their opinions with a group debate activity. Before reading John Milton's Paradise Lost, they work in small groups in assigned roles to form a position about authority and rebellion, comparing a...

Help your pupils take charge of their inferring abilities with an exercise designed for direct practice with making and supporting inferences. Learners read four short passages and answer two to three questions for each passage that...

Learn about how the seeing eye dog program began with a reading instructional activity about Eva Moore's chapter book, Buddy, The First Seeing Eye Dog. With vocabulary words, discussion questions, and extension resources, the...

To introduce the idea of different theoretical views about the nature of society, class members engage in a sociology activity that asks them to create an analogy between society and another concept, and then to explain the parallels.

Amaze your classes with the ability to find side lengths of triangles immediately — they'll all want to know your trick! Learners use the Pythagorean Theorem and special right triangle relationships to find missing side lengths.

As an introduction to a series of related resources that examine political advertising and commercials from 1952-2012, class members use the provided rubric to analyze and rate the effectiveness of the emotion, persuasion, factual...

Every president of the United States must be a natural-born citizen, but the definition of natural-born is not as straightforward as it seems. Secondary scholars examine two points of view surrounding the constitutional requirement...

Camille Seaman's photoessay, "Witnessing Icebergs" documents just a tip of the problem of climate change through images of icebergs in both the Arctic and Antarctic polar regions. After viewing the haunting images, viewers respond...