Write with the senses! Try using art to inspire writers to consider all of the senses. Here, the class is divided in half. Each group looks at one of two images, imagines the senses that would be engaged, and records answers to five...

Free speech, privacy, and cyberbullying are the focus of a series of activities that prompt class members to engage in discussions about these interrelated topics. They view a segment from PBS’s series on bullying, read...

Stress the importance of the different types of pressure our mind and body experience in a lesson about how certain types of stress are actually necessary and good for our bodies. As astronauts and people with injuries can attest, not...

How many days will it take Louis to save enough money for school supplies and new pair of shoes? Focus on Common Core math standards with a two-part task that involves a word problem and counting manipulatives.

A PBS clip focused on collecting sports memorabilia launches this research project instructional activity. Class members then read Dan Gutman’s Honus and Me in which Wagner’s baseball card is used to time travel. The instructional...

Over several days, learners communicate and defend an argument regarding environmental justice issues in Chester, PA. After discussing the issue and viewing a video about the location of several toxic waste facilities in Chester, they...

Explore the basic PowerPoint commands and options. They research information (including the WWW) related to an approved topic for presentation development. They create a presentation defined by specific criteria. They document research...

Use the platforms of the 2004 presidential candidates to bring persuasive writing to your class. Young voters identify the three issues most important to them in the election and research the issues and candidates' positions. They write...

How does word choice affect the reading of a text? Compare two headlines that were written about the same event. Is one biased? Discuss how word choice often reveals the author's feelings about a topic. Then look at different techniques...

Eleventh graders examine the political demands put on one of four groups living in America during WWII. Each class member is asked to research and write a paper describing the homefront experience for women, Hispanics, African-Americans,...

Investigate articles from the daily news and share opinions with classmates. Using current events, learners view a news program without sound and predict what news is being discussed by analyzing the visuals. Then they read news articles...

Explore New England's economic and cultural past and possible issues New Englanders will face in the future. Middle and high schoolers research the fishing industry and the need for regulation. They analyze the topography of New England...

So many people fought for Civil Rights in the United States. Read about the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and discuss what the act guarantees. Then pass out a slew of magazines and encourage them to observe how often minorities appear in...

Determining a theme is one of the most difficult and most important standards in the Common Core. Use this plan to help your learners identify the message that an author is sending to the reader. The lesson is based around the book Dogs...

This PowerPoint highlights the steps one should follow to craft an organized essay. It addresses the purpose, audience, and format, and briefly touches on prewriting and organizing. This presentation is designed to review the very basic...

Though this presentation is designed for the Texas Academic Skills Program's (TASP) writing assessment, it could work for any class that is preparing to write a five-paragraph persuasive essay. Slides take intermediate writers through...

Being able to distinguish between a complete sentence and an incomplete sentence is an important skill, one set as a standard by the Common Core initiative. This presentation does a shows viewers what it takes to make a complete...

Here is an activity that you can use to help upper elementary or middle schoolers to meet Common Core literacy standards for science and technology. Youngsters read the article on extreme weather patterns, "Weather Runs Hot and Cold, So...

It was a bittersweet event when the space shuttle Atlantis touched down for the last time on July 21, 2011. Space science learners read an article about this event in The New York Times and then write answers to who, what, where, when,...

This assignment has young scientists read four different news articles about the 2011 Nobel Prize winners. Six questions are posed for children to write the answers. It is a relevant activity for getting middle schoolers to meet the...

With the Common Core State Standards' growing focus on informational text, it's the perfect time to showcase this PowerPoint to your team of teachers. It's 59 slides focus on seven best practice structures: reading-as-thinking,...

Take advantage of Banned Book Week to pique students' interest and get them reading! Create a classroom display of previously banned books and allow each member of your class to choose one to read. After they have read their book, get...

Aligned with the Common Core State Standards for writing, this resource has Spanish language learners take on the role of an astronomer. After they use the graphic organizer to list names, verbs, and adjectives related to astronomy, they...

Geometers prove that triangle PQR is congruent to triangle ABC by describing any combination of rotations, reflections, and translations that would prove it so. There is only this single task on the handout, but a detailed explanation of...