Chicago Botanic Garden
Faces of Climate Change
How does climate change affect you? First in a three-part series, the activity focuses on how individuals living around the world are affected by climate change. Individuals take on the role of a given character and share their...
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Lesson Plan for Cricket's Supper
Interested in a special folktale to read with your class? Then this lesson might be for you. Readers will build an understanding of the food chain while creating a storyboard that includes the characters, setting, and plot of the story....
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What is the Population Distribution of Cartoon Characters Living On the Pages of Your Newspaper?
Students read various cartoons in their local newspaper and calculate the population demographics, spatial distribution and grouping of the characters. Using this information, they create a population distribution map and share them with...
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Mary, Queen of Scots: Heroine or Harlot?
Students explain how international politics, religion, and cultural beliefs influenced the life of Mary Queen of Scots. They watch a film about Mary, Queen of Scots and participate in a discussion and variety of extension activities.
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Plant Life of the Rainforest
Students study pictures of tropical rainforests and discuss its stratified character. Students then work with a partner to make a scale drawing of the rainforest strata.
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China: How to Put Some "Tang" in Your Medieval Dynasties
Fourth graders label the countries that border China and the physical features of Asia. They discuss the physical features of Asia and label them on the other map.
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"The Drum"
Second graders read and discuss the folktale "The Drum" from India. They also answer story comprehension questions, complete an adjectives and verb worksheet, and label a map of India. Students sequence events from the story and make...
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Geo-Magazine
Divide your geography class into groups and have each research an assigned region. The result of this project is a regional magazine that addresses the five themes of geography. Many valuable resource links are embedded into the page...
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Land Use Over Time
Students view aerial photos and topographic maps of their local area. They compare and contrast major land use patterns over time by comparing these images to maps that are at least 50 years old. They analyze them using the four land use...
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Discovering Your Community
Students focus on the origins of the families that make up their community by exploring their family's origins through themselves, parents, and grandparents. Students create a map marked with family origins for the class.
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The Lorax and Forest Park
Students read The Lorax by Dr. Seuss and identify situations where there is a risk to the community. During a class discussion, students predict types of liter they will find in a park. Students take a field trip to the park to collect...
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Literature And Human Rights: Questions to Apply to Literature, Other Texts, and Media
Students answer a variety of discussion questions about human rights and how they may apply to and influence formal literature, the media, educational textbooks, advertising, and commercial publications.
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Memorial Day
As a way to understand Memorial Day, build citizenship, practice vocabulary, and discuss current international conflicts, learners create their own Memorial Day. They design their own memorial after learning about the various types of...
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Message in a Bottle
Sixth graders write a short story about being stranded on a deserted island. After a brief geography review of locations at various latitudes and longitudes, 6th graders draft their story about being stranded. They use sensory and...
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Literature Study Contracts
Young scholars complete activities with a leveled chapter book. In this literature lesson, students read a novel and complete several graphic organizers and activities as they read. They focus on characters, settings, vocabulary, and plot.
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Hero Within
Young scholars interview a hero. For this heroes lesson, students read Number the Stars to begin a discussion about heroes and then create mind maps on each character. Young scholars pick a local hero and interview them and then write a...
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Sharing Our Surplus Stash: A Trick-Or-Treat Twist
Students give the gift of candy to community members. In this citizenship and giving lesson, students read Franklin's Halloween and discuss why the main characters give away part of their Halloween candy. Students brainstorm who in their...
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Respect for Non-Native Students
Students develop and understanding that people born in other countries deserve respect and appreciation. In this ethnic background appreciation lesson, students discuss the different countries that classmates are born in. Students then...
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Once Upon a Castle
Learners complete a variety of activities surrounding castle communities and fairy tales. They write a letter to a fairy tale character, write a fairy tale, create a model of a castle, and draw a map of a castle community.
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Where Do People Move To Or From?
Students identify countries of origin of their ancestors, graph patterns of migration to the U.S. and Hawaii, then utilize oral history as a primary document by interviewing their ancestors or parents to explain why they moved to their...
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"Let's Make Some Money"
Students complete a project about economics, supply, and advertising. In this advertising lesson, students discuss how money is made, entrepreneurs, and advertising. They make their own business with toys to sell to Kindergartners.
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Generations: An Exploration of our Families Through Literature
Students complete a unit of lessons on families. They read and analyze various stories, label a map, assemble sentences, write letters to grandparents, analyze character traits, and write and illustrate a sheet for a class book.
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Simple Cycles
Students use Inspiration to map cyclical events. They recognize links between separate events and structural patterns. They explore the Internet Connection section to browse additional resources on teaching about cycles used in...
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Preparing for Disaster
Students examine the effects of earthquakes. In this earthquake lesson plan, students investigate survival strategies and disaster preparedness in the wake of an earthquake.