Curated OER
Independent Studies Movies
History comes alive as groups work cooperatively to create short iMovies about a specific historical period of their choice. Ideal for late elementary grades, the lesson plan includes a video demonstration and a short materials list.
Curated OER
Voting Simulation
Students explore the process of voting. They study the lawmaking branch of the state government.
Curated OER
U.S. Imperialism PowerPoint Project
Eighth graders explore U.S. Imperialism. They explain why stronger countries take control of weaker countries. Students research Imperialism in other parts of the world. In groups, 8th graders create a PowerPoint presentation discussing...
Curated OER
Externalities, Property Rights and Pollution
Students discuss the positive and negative externalities of various situations. They use the concept of property rights in discussing specific problems.
Curated OER
Pass It Down
Students in varying grades work cooperatively to create a living museum of items that have been "passed down" through generations. They give a brief oral presentation showing their object (or a picture of it) and describing its history...
Curated OER
Rain
Learners are introduced to the Native American game called "Rain" and develop cooperative learning skills. In this Native American game lesson, students sit in a circle and discuss how games reflect the environment the children...
Curated OER
I Feel Angry or Sad When...
Students identify inclusive procedures for activities. For this social skills lesson, students perform skits that illustrate inappropriate as well as appropriate classroom behavior.
Smithsonian Institution
Conflicting Voices of the Mexican War
Americans wanted to fulfill Manifest Destiny, and this pattern continued with the Mexican War. The resource specifically teaches about the Mexican War through a variety of exercises including a research project, group work, brainstorming...
Curated OER
Reaching English Language Learners Through Cooperative Learning
Students in ESL, ELL take part in small groups according to their language proficiency skills and to determine how to problem solve with a language barrier.
Curated OER
Journey to Understanding Vocabulary
Students examine word parts. In this word study activity, students practice breaking words into parts and using their knowledge of Greek roots, prefixes, and suffixes determine the words' meanings.
Curated OER
What's The Story?
Teams of learners integrate reading, writing, math, social studies, and science in this simple, yet effective lesson. They work in groups in order to solve a ten-step problem which requires internet research, the use of a calculator, and...
City University of New York
Jim Crow and Voting Rights
Class groups examine primary source documents to determine how the voting rights of African Americans were restricted after the failure of Reconstruction, and how African American participation in World War II lead to change.
Museum of Tolerance
Disenfranchised People of the New Nation
Why are some immigrant groups in the United States embraced while others become disenfranchised? To answer this question, teams investigate why groups emigrated to the US, why some of these these peoples were...
Missouri Department of Elementary
Survivors
Developing a positive self-concept can sometimes be a challenge. Seventh graders engage in an activity that helps them identify their individual strengths and helps them recognize how these strengths can contribute to being a successful...
Indian Land Tenure Foundation
Sharing Resources: The Nuts Game
The land has always provided its inhabitants with resources that allow them to survive. However, sometimes resources run scarce and sharing becomes an important task. Help little ones understand why and how people have shared resources...
School Improvement in Maryland
Are These Human Right Violations?
Using the Declaration of Human Rights and the United States Constitution as reference tools, class members examine 14 scenarios to decide if the situation represents a violation of human rights, and if these same rights...
Curated OER
The Seven Continents Scavenger Hunt
Who doesn't enjoy an engaging scavenger hunt? Here, scholars listen to, and discuss, the informative text, Where is my Continent? by Robin Nelson. They then explore the seven continents and four major oceans using...
Curated OER
Rolling in Dough
Students make play dough. In this cooperation lesson, students practice working together in a group. Students work in small groups to make play dough. They discuss how they cooperated and how it was beneficial to completing the project.
Curated OER
Time, Talent, Treasure and Economics
Students work cooperatively to create a quilt. They choose a pattern and determine the specific skills and steps needed to produce that quilt. Labor is divided equally between group members and a quilt is created assembly line style....
Curated OER
Memory Easter Egg Hunt
Students practice locomotor skills, space awareness and cooperation. They are encouraged to cheer on their teammates, showing social responsibility. Students are assign an Easter basket that a specific color egg to retrieve. They...
Curated OER
Survivors
Students practice locomotor skills. In this physical education lesson, students practice eight different skills - walk, run, leap, jump, hop, gallop, slide, and skip. They answer a social studies question and then complete the skill.
Curated OER
Class and Health: You Are What You Eat
Students determine a working definition of class in order to determine how social class can affect personal health. They research their own nutritional needs and work to encourage healthy change in their communities.
Curated OER
An Art-To-Art Discussion
Students analyze a work of art from a variety of cultural perspectives, and give their own personal evaluation of the work.
Teacher Vision
The First Thanksgiving - Pilgrim Study Unit
Students explain the origins of Thanksgiving. As a class, they list all the meanings, stories, and images that come into their minds when they hear the word "Thanksgiving." After reading about Thanksgiving, pairs of students create 4...