Curated OER
Postcards For Your Ears
Here is a great way to have your learners make audio postcards to share by recording a message on the computer. They write and revise an appropriate message about an object from home, choose a background, and font colors for the...
Curated OER
Requiem "The Song of the Murdered Jewish People"
Music and poetry are vehicles that can tell many stories. Learners read the poem "The Song of the Murdered Jewish People" by Itzhak Katzenelson, then listen to the requiem it inspired; composed by Zlata Razdolina. Excellent...
Curated OER
American Flag History
Young historians explore US culture by investigating the US flag. They will use their textbooks, prior knowledge, and sources provided by the teacher to research the history of the American flag. They will design and create a trading...
Curated OER
Insects and Bugs
Students recognize the difference between insects and bugs while making connections to personal experiences. In this insect and bug lesson, students complete a pre-assessment to demonstrate prior knowledge, then gather information...
Curated OER
Accordion Book
Students make an accordion book to show information that is associated with a particular learning event. For this accordion book lesson, students follow paper-folding directions to make the book. They fill the book with key facts and...
Curated OER
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas: Vocabulary Strategy
In order to truly understand The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, you'll need to provide middle schoolers with background information about the Holocaust. After contributing as many words as they can associate with the Holocaust, such as...
San Francisco Symphony
Going West
Now this sounds like a fun lesson! Youngsters learn about pioneer life and the Westward Movement. First, they listen to the Copland's "Appalachian Spring," and then they discuss the elements of music found in the piece. They...
Australian Centre For the Moving Image
Dreamworks Animation Character Design
Dive into animation creation using Dreamworks® animated films. Compare and contrast characters, wonder and ponder why the plot is so important, and think of background and themes as your creativity unrolls onto paper.
Beyond Benign
Catalysts and Oxygen
Here is an engaging and hands-on lesson plan that allows high school chemists to demonstrate the effects of a catalyst on various chemicals. They garner knowledge of how reactants and products differ from one another, while...
Novelinks
The Tempest: Concept Analysis
Use a handy concept analysis guide as you begin your unit on William Shakespeare's The Tempest. With character descriptions, literary themes, and anticipated affective issues, the guide can help those new to using The Tempest craft...
Kenan Fellows
The Effects of Environmental Conditions on Aquatic Organisms
What kind of experiment can your class do to how observe the environment effects on organisms? Groups design and conduct lab experiments to learn about the effects of the environment on aquatic organisms. Based upon knowledge gained...
Teach Engineering
Design Step 2: Research the Problem
How do you get started designing a product to meet your engineering design goals? Here, learners gain understanding of an important aspect of the engineering design process: background research. Through brainstorming and worksheets,...
National Academy of Sciences
Genetic Disease: Putting DNA to Work
Scientific knowledge of genetic information has grown quickly over the last decade. An interactive lesson has learners research the role of science and medicine in diagnosing and treating genetic disorders. They consider the job of the...
EngageNY
End of Unit Assessment, Part II: Storyboard Draft, Sections 2 and 3
It's time to demonstrate knowledge. With the instructive resource, pupils complete the second part of the end of unit assessment. They develop sections two and three of their storyboards about an invention, add visual elements, and then...
Curated OER
Stone Tools of Texas Indians
Provide background information regarding the use of stone tools from the paleoindian through the late prehistoric periods. Learners can read this informational passage to gain insight on how and why we study these amazing artifacts from...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Factory vs. Plantation in the North and South
North is to factory as South is to plantation—the perfect analogy for the economy that set up the Civil War! The first lesson in a series of five helps teach beginners why the economy creates a driving force for conflict. Analysis of...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Victory and the New Order in Europe
A New Order in Europe calls for a new lesson plan! This third plan in a series of four sequential lessons encourages high schoolers to read primary sources about the development of the New Order and follow up their knowledge with a...
Curated OER
Interactive Biogeochemical Cycle
Students gain understanding of several of the biogeochemical processes in microbial mats. They acquire knowledge of the different roles of organisms in a microbial mat ecosystem. They understand how microbial mat ecosystems contributed...
National Endowment for the Humanities
The Rise and Fall of Joseph McCarthy
"I have here in my hand . . ." The war against Communism and Joseph McCarthy’s place in it are the focus of a series of lessons examining postwar America from 1945-1954. Joseph McCarthy takes center stage in this, the final lesson...
Curated OER
Look Out My Window. What Do You See?
Students explore William D. Huff's experience during Civil War as portrayed in his drawings, express empathy and demonstrate historical knowledge through creating their own artwork, and craft drawings and captions from perspectives of...
Curated OER
Post-Colonial Writers Unit
How do cultural and historical background impact thought? To explore this essential question, class members view of portion of the film, The Passage to India, read an excerpt from The Magician’s Nephew, and Nissim Ezekiel’s...
Curated OER
PE Word Wall
Increase your middle schoolers' physical education vocabulary and knowledge of the rules of different sports by posting on the word wall. You will have to do all the work and remember to laminate things, so you only have to do it once. A...
Curated OER
Water Quality and Watersheds: A GIS Investigation
Requiring more than one class period, this resource takes earth science learners on a journey through a watershed. Using ArcGIS Explorer, an online geographic information system, they view maps of watersheds and surrounding landscapes....
Teach Engineering
Energy Basics
Power up your lessons with an energetic resource. Scholars learn about work, force, energy, and power. They consider the relationships between these quantities through hockey puck scenarios and make calculations using formulas.