Curated OER
Dandelion Wine: Questioning Strategy
Readers of Dandelion Wine work in groups to develop questions on four levels (right there, think and search, the author and you, and on my own) about Chapter 34 of Ray Bradbury's reflection on the joys of summer. Groups jigsaw and...
Curated OER
What Are the Advantages and Disadvantages of Conforming?
Dive into Arthur Miller’s The Crucible and determine what it means to conform in society, and discuss as a group with the thoughts and plans available in these documents. Included are multiple activities and brain targets that form the...
James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words
This exercise on the Constitution requires small groups to design a visual metaphor that expresses the concept behind one of seven principles: popular sovereignty, federalism, republicanism, separation of powers, checks and balances,...
Virginia Department of Education
Growing Patterns and Sequences
Learners explore, discover, compare, and contrast arithmetic and geometric sequences in this collaborative, hands-on activity. They build and analyze growing patterns to distinguish which kind of sequence is represented by a set of data...
University of the Desert
Why Is Cultural Diversity a Positive Thing?
From more empathetic individuals to greater tolerance in government, learners explore the benefits of a culturally diverse world through a series of collaborative, discussion-based activities.
Social Skills Central
Don't Get Mad...
Pupils discover important alternatives to expressing anger and how to better manage their emotions through a collaborative discussion activity with their classmates. This resource includes nearly 100 (99, to be exact!)...
Lemos and Crane
Homophobic Bullying
Discuss homophobia and bullying with a collaborative and supportive lesson. Class members engage in a series of activities focused on the ways bullies use physical, verbal, mental and emotional, sexual, and cyber tactics to spread...
Heritage Foundation
The Powers of the Executive
Are executives as powerful as they sound? High schoolers find out about the US president and executive branch. A variety of activities include scaffolded reading sections, research assignments, and collaborative group work.
National History Day
Poetry from the Trenches of World War I
Often, the real-life experiences of soldiers gets lost back home when the war seems so far away. Scholars investigate the personal side of World War I in the trenches of Europe to complete a collaborative social studies activity. When...
Spreading Gratitude Rocks
Values Survey
What are the most important values a person possesses? Teens and parents take a collaborative survey and discuss what values are important to them. They return the signed form to the teacher to confirm they completed the activity.
EngageNY
Grade 10 ELA Module 4: Unit 2, Lesson 17
Madness, violence, despair—the titular character of Shakespeare's Macbeth is spiraling out of control. Pupils first explore the topic with a collaborative jigsaw discussion. At the end of the instructional activity, they write about how...
Literacy Design Collaborative
Growing up Is Hard to Do
Looking for a fountain of youth? Scholars analyze a group of texts by Gary Soto that pertain to the difficulties of growing up. Activities pertaining to vocabulary, close reading, and shared writing prepare learners for the final task of...
EngageNY
Pairing Texts: Understanding Brown v. Board of Education’s Impact on Carlotta’s Journey
Scholars work in groups to compare Brown v. Board of Education excerpts and A Mighty Long Way. They use the Paired Text note catcher to organize their thoughts and divide the work using a jigsaw activity to track Carlotta's journey.
EngageNY
Launching the Module: Quotes about the Middle Ages
Pick a corner. Scholars receive a quote about the Middle Ages and then participate in a four corners activity by choosing a corner pertaining to their quotes. They then work in groups of three to discuss the bold words in their quotes....
EngageNY
The Painted Essay: The Introductory Paragraph
Mimic the model for the perfect essay. Scholars work in groups to analyze a model painted essay The Electric Motor. They compare the structure of the model essay to the painted essay template they created in the previous activity. The...
Texas Education Agency (TEA)
It Takes Teamwork!
Using the collaborative resource, learners view a PowerPoint about teamwork, taking notes and discussing what makes an effective leader. They then engage in a fun activity to see which group can build the tallest structure using...
Curated OER
Design a Reef!
Using a miniature coral reef aquarium kit, young ecologists model this unique ecosystem. They research various coral reef organisms and their niches, and they culminate the project by working together to write a report. Use this activity...
Pennsylvania Department of Education
Using Polygons to Represent Fractions
Explore the world of fractions by using pattern blocks to show how different shapes can divide a hexagon. Elementary schoolers work in groups to complete these problems and to answer questions. Later, they work complete an independent...
Curated OER
Immigration
This 3-day immigration study draws on historical trends and current events. A worksheet accompanies initial research on one group's U.S. immigration history, giving opportunity for collaborative learning through sharing findings. Groups...
Curated OER
Silly Spoonerisms!
Looking for a fun activity for your vocabulary lesson? Bring a learning exercise on "spoonerisms" to your fifth grade class. Kids decipher seven phrases that have mixed up the first letter sounds of each word. They then think of their...
Alabama Learning Exchange
Bloodstain Pattern Doesn't Lie......
An interesting instructional activity on hypothesizing about the diameter of a drop of blood that is splattered. To test their theories, learners work in groups to make blood droplets splatter from different heights. They use graphed...
Indiana University
Asian Literature: “The View in Spring” by Du Fu
Over the course of the lesson, your pupils read and analyze a translated eight-line poem from the Tang Dynasty written by Du Fu, a poet caught behind enemy lines during the An Lu-Shan rebellion (755-763). Literary/historical context is...
Curated OER
Do These Add Up?
Common Core mathematical practices require that young mathematicians not only know how to add fractions with unlike denominators, but also to recognize when adding fractions are appropriate for the word problem. Fifth graders are given...
Lehigh University
Glory (1989) - Should it be Shown in Class?
This is a fantastic activity that prompts learners to think like educators and consider the value of a historically based film beyond just the accuracy of information. Your young historians will work in groups to do a close reading and...