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Where I Am From
Students study selected poetry to gain an understanding of influences on values and personal identity. They explore language terms such as personification, imagery metaphors and allusion. After reading a poem and discussing it,...
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Growing Pains of the Yearling
Fourth graders read The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings.
Dream of a Nation
Big6 Research Project
Do research projects at your school look like a class of eighth graders staring at a blank screen? Use the Big 6 research method to guide middle schoolers through the process of finding a topic, searching for and evaluating sources,...
MENSA Education & Research Foundation
Early American Novel: Exploring the Emergence of a Genre
Need an extra challenge for your best readers? Check out a unit that uses Hannah Webster Foster’s epistolary novel, The Coquette, published in 1797, as the anchor text. The resource is packed with project ideas; each with its...
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Tango Stories
Pupils listen to tango music and research the country it came from. In this music lesson, students find that tango music comes from Argentina. They listen and dance to the music and then write stories.
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Patterned Leaf Cloths
Students identify and reproduce simple patterns (e.g., red blocks alternating with blue blocks; clap-clap-stamp) and create and extend simple patterns using a variety of materials or actions (e.g., popsicle sticks, pebbles, stickers,...
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Dancing Pumpkin Man
Students listen carefully and put pieces together following the teacher's instructions. They point to the different shapes and sizes as they are being called out and count the number of items they have in front of them. They decorate...
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Brazilian Animals
Students research the animals of Brazil. In this animal science lesson plan, students locate Brazil on a map and discuss the types of animals that can live in its tropical climate. They research a Brazilian Carnaval and see the roll the...
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Escolas de Carnaval
Students create a carnival display displaying the different themes they have studied. In this carnival lesson plan, students display the work they have studied through the samba schools in Brazil. Students also incorporate music in their...
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Mariachi Mania
Students play the beats of mariachi music. In this mariachi lesson plan, students listen to mariachi music and discuss why music is important.
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Mariachi:Intermediate Lesson
Students research the history of mariachi music. In this music lesson plan, students identify mariachi music and investigate it from its origins to the present. They compare it to country music.
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Puerto Rico: The 51st State?
Students explore Puerto Rico. For this Puerto Rico current events lesson, students conduct a Webquest to answer questions about Puerto Rico's culture. Students discuss whether Puerto Rico is a country or a state, and defend...
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Latin American Film
Students critique, discuss, and identify characters in a film about Latin America. For this Latin America lesson plan, students watch the film and discuss the film and everyday life.
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Thematic Unit: Beginning Holocaust Studies
Fifth graders discuss concepts of diversity, culture, and prejudice, gain understanding of harm caused by prejudice, and demonstrate ability to think critically and a desire to act morally.
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"Taming the Bicycle"
Eighth graders discuss invention of bicycle and early obstacles to riding, listen to and discuss short story "Taming the Bicycle" by Mark Twain, define vocabulary words from story, and create and present humorous "how to" project to...
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Trail of the Cougar
Students examine cougar behavior, habitat, social organization, efforts to support their survival and the threats to it. They create posters to present information about cougars.
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"Journalism in Tennessee"
Students listen to headline from National Enquirer or other tabloid, listen to story "Journalism in Tennessee," compare and contrast connections between Twain's idea of journalism with present day journalism, define vocabulary, and...
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Identifying the Theme in a Story
Learners recognize Theme through the use of simple, short stories. Using Pro Quest, students begin by researching the literary element, theme, and how it can be identified. They then identify the themes in Aesop's Fables and...
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Made You Look
Students spend some time in the world of marketing and advertising by analyzing and creating slogans and campaigns geared toward adolescents. Students work with a partner to create their design and share with the class
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Language Arts: Take Me to the Hall of Fame
Students write persuasive letters supporting a trip to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Once they have written the letter, they respond to it from the coach's point of view. In addition, students compose various conclusions to their letters.
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Animalopedia Poetry
Students reseach animals while working in groups. They write poems to be included in a class Animalopedia book.