Walt Whitman was a composter? Certainly the cycle of life and death he describes in "Leaves of Grass" parallels the processes going on in a compose pile. The interdisciplinary approach detailed here could be used to foster a deeper...

Looking for a good lesson on dictionary and word definition skills? The lesson presented here is for you! In it, learners utilize a worksheet, embedded in the plan, to record a word's definition(s), etymology, multiple meanings,...

Explore Mexican culture and art history through active participation in research and painting. The class discusses and researches the life and art of Diego Rivera, then they paint wonderful murals inspired by his representations of...

Study allusions with a research and presentation project. Pupils are assigned a specific allusion, the phoenix for example. They research the origins, compose a summary, explain the concept, and explore this allusion within various...

Effective researchers use a variety of techniques to find what they need online. Pupils who complete the activities listed here should already have an arsenal of strategies for searching. They will learn about and practice two new...

Collecting and understanding data is a big part of understanding the world and how it changes. To better grasp what temperatures are changing and how they affect global populations, learners create a graph based on the date provided....

There are so many wonderful parts to an animal: fur, antlers, tails, and legs, to name a few. A large diagram of an antelope is used to start a matching game, where the class matches body parts made of the same material. They discuss...

As you work through Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time, try out some or all of the 20 questions and activities included here. Useful for discussion questions, group assignments, or individual projects, this resource covers plot as...

It's time to roll up those sleeves and get a little dirty in the second lesson plan of this series on the science of food. Investigate where plants and animals get the minerals they need to live in this two-part exploration of soil....

What can maps tell us about the past? Find out with a Spanish activity that incorporates geography. After examining maps individually, comparing two old maps of Spanish Florida and writing notes in the provided Venn diagram, pupils pair...

Get those pencils ready because we are going to write a letter to our dear mother, Earth that is. Allow your youngsters to explore and express all the ways that they plan to protect Mother Earth. The worksheet is perfect for Earth Day,...

Support vocabulary instruction for any unit with this quick exercise. Class members write down the word, part of speech, and definition. They compose an original sentence using the word, and draw a picture of the word. Four words fit on...

What do the theme song from Gilligan's Island, the nursery rhyme "The Owl and the Pussy-Cat," and the poem "The Shooting of Dan McGrew" all have in common? Why, they're ballads of course! Challenge your young balladeers to compose their...

Spanish learners peek back into history by reading a copy of an original letter written in the sixteenth century by Pedro Menéndez de Avilés. To show their comprehension, they respond to a series of provided questions. For writing...

What is it that makes people keep going when they face challenges in life? Ask your class to consider this question in relation to their own experiences and as they read material from The New York Times. Using personal experiences...

Compare two positions on the same topic and assess the positions for logical argument with a basic instructional activity. Pupils fill in information about each position, note down which position is more logical, and compose a few...

Get your writers ready to compose a constructed response essay in response to either an informational or fictional text. Pupils note down the big idea they wish to address as well as up to nine examples from the text that they wish to...

After reading a text, one way to find out how much your class comprehended is to ask your pupils to summarize. This worksheet helps class members prepare for writing a summary of a nonfiction text. They note down the topic, up to eight...

Should voting in the United States be compulsory? In 2004, fewer than 60 percent of eligible voters cast ballots in the American national elections. After reviewing arguments for and against compulsory voting, your young citizens will...

Here is a good interdisciplinary project that combines creative and narrative writing with studies of the Holocaust. Your young historians will compose a diary of experiences from the perspective of an individual living during the time...

Make sure your class spends some time paying attention to the news by asking individuals to report on a current event. Using this sheet, pupils write down the title, source, and date before composing a brief summary and a personal...

To conclude their study of World War II, world history students are charged with creating a children's book, comic book, or graphic novel that depicts the causes of the war. Using images from the Internet or their own illustrations,...

Close a unit or the year with a five-step research project. Class members choose a US landmark, research the landmark, compose a report about it, build a model of it, and present their model and findings to the class. Each step is...

Take time to remind your young learners of the valuable understanding that each branch of the United States government is really composed of other citizens. The reading material and worksheets of this resource cover the importance of...