Curated OER
Biomes: Coastlines and Seas
Students study the different types of coastlines and their territories. In this marine coasts lesson students identify life forms that are in the coastal regions.
Curated OER
Trustworthy Reputation
Seventh graders explore the character trait of reputation. In this character education instructional activity, 7th graders focus on their personal reputation as they discuss positive character traits and reflect on character quotations...
Curated OER
Design Your Perfect Career
Students incorporate the design process to create their own perfect job or career. In this career design lesson, students develop questions to research for a future career choice. Students brainstorm about their personal skills to use in...
Curated OER
Trust Leans
Students define trust and what it means to be trustworthy. For this good character lesson, students think of a person they trust and discuss what makes them trustworthy. Students pair up and complete trust leans. Students discuss the...
Curated OER
The Friendship Bridge
Students brainstorm example of big problems and small problems. They watch a Powerpoint presentation, were the students role played everyday social problems that they had encountered. Students demonstreate using the Friendship Bridge...
Channel Islands Film
Eminent Domain
After viewing the documentary The Last Roundup, a documentary about the transitioning of Santa Rosa from a privately own island to a National Park, class members debate the takings clause of the Fifth Amendment that permits the...
Shakespeare Uncovered
Suits of Woe: Grief and Loss in Hamlet
“Thou know’st ‘tis common; all that lives must die/Passing through nature to eternity.” Grief, and the response to grief and loss, is the focus of a series of activities that uses Hamlet as a launchpad. Groups examine Act I, scene ii to...
Schools Linking Network & Lifeworlds Learning
How Do We All Live Together?
Explore the concepts of community and point of view with these activities complementing the children's book Voices in the Park by Anthony Browne. Following a class reading of the story, ask students to either draw a map of the...
Curated OER
Nonfiction Genre Mini-Unit: Persuasive Writing
Should primary graders have their own computers? Should animals be kept in captivity? Young writers learn how to develop and support a claim in this short unit on persuasive writing.
Reed Novel Studies
Fourth Grade Rats: Novel Study
Things sure change in year's time. Suds, from Fourth Grade Rats, went from a third grade angel to a fourth grade rat! Although he is not necessarily happy with his new self, he worries he will lose his popularity. Learners complete...
Reed Novel Studies
Jacob Have I Loved: Novel Study
Twins always have double the fun, right? Sara, in Jacob Have I Loved, always is in the shadows of her twin sister. Scholars identify synonyms, answer comprehension questions, foreshadow, and create alliterations as they read about how...
Reed Novel Studies
The Library Card: Novel Study
Books open up the world. Four main characters in The Library Card discover the amazing things that happen at a library. Scholars complete sentences with 10 new vocabulary words, create similes and alliterations, and give a prediction for...
Reed Novel Studies
The Year of Billy Miller: Novel Study
Can you really knock the sense into someone? It seems that the bump on Billy's head changed his perspective on things in The Year of Billy Miller. Readers discover that after his injury, Billy appreciates his parents more and is nicer to...
Penguin Books
Addressing Text Complexity - Making Independent Reading Meaningful
Many English teachers dream of a classroom full of readers silently enjoying their books. A useful guide helps make that dream become a reality by providing book recommendations for a range of readers. Each suggestion includes the...
Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary
The Junto Meets Again
Out of the classroom and into the streets! With Ben Franklin’s Junto society as inspiration, learners develop their ideas for improving their communities and put them into action. After analyzing meeting notes to discover what the Junto...
Film Space
Whale Rider
Ready for an educational movie day? Use a resource based on the movie Whale Rider to learn more about the Maori culture. Class members answer a variety of questions and listen to music from the soundtrack to further analyze and...
Reed Novel Studies
Of Mice and Men: Novel Study
Why is personification such a popular literary device for many authors? Learners answer the question as they engage in activities from the novel study for the classic Of Mice and Men. They also scan the novel to find examples of the...
Curated OER
Called to be just
Young scholars write journal entries reflecting on how to impact the common good of the world. For this common good lesson plan, students learn about Mother Theresa, good character, and how to make the world better.
Curated OER
Courage
Students review the definition and the need for courage. As a class, they brainstorm a list of ways one can be couragous at different ages. In groups, they apply courage to the four facets of life and share their responses with the...
Curated OER
Self-Control Starts With You
Students develop a definition for self-control and explore how practicing self-control can lead to other positive character traits. They read and discuss examples of student behaviors that exhibit self-control and those that don't.
Curated OER
Meet Danitra Brown Lesson on Friendship
Students discover the qualities of friends. In this character education instructional activity, students read the poem "Coke-bottle Brown" by Nikki Grimes. Students then discuss the Golden Rule and how it applies to friendships.
Smithsonian Institution
Who's in Camp?
Pupils complete readings, a group activity using cards, and a writing activity to better understand people's lives during the American Revolution. The resource emphasizes people such as the militiamen, women, officers, and children,...
Curated OER
Literature-based Skill Building: Holes by Louis Sachar
In this reading comprehension activity, students answer several chapter based questions after reading the novel 'Holes' by Louis Sachar.
