Students assess the elements of J.K. Rowling's 'Harry Potter' series that have made it such a success. They incorporate these elements into a short film, incorporating such concepts as pop culture mythology, urban legend and archetypes.

Students examine how freedoms of expression and religion are shaped within democracies. They consider reactions to controversial art exhibit in Moscow. They compose reaction papers supporting or refuting a quotation from the article read...

Make your scholars more aware of stereotypical portrayals in film and television. Discuss the definition of "stereotypes" and how they are used to present a story. High schoolers look at specific television shows and complete a chart...

Use this economic activity to focus on writing summaries of informational text. First, middle schoolers define common economic terms used to describe news about the economy. They closely read news about the federal budget deficit and...

Connect earth science to science occupations and real-life events with this worksheet and activity. After listing the 4 branches of earth science, learners spend some time brainstorming two activities each type of earth scientist might...

How can the rhetorical structure of an editorial help to develop its argument? Use this New York Times editorial to emphasize the importance of structure in a piece of informational text. Adolescent writers then use the editorial as a...

Learners understand how holidays revolve all around light. In this winter holidays lesson, students find the similarities and differences between the winter holidays. Learners discuss the winter solstice and how it relates to the holiday...

Use the Schoolhouse Rock episode, "Rufus Xavier Sarsaparilla," to introduce a study of pronouns. Learners consider antecedents, cases (nominative, objective and possessive), as well as types of pronouns, and then craft sentences using...

Employ this resource to expand efficient ideas on how to present and organize activities that describe how researchers can implement their research by using direct quotes, paraphrasing, and summarizing—without plagiarizing. Activities...

Having a strong searching skill set can make a research project much easier and much for successful for pupils. Tackle finding evidence with the ideas included here. The ultimate goal is for class members to learn the stepping stones...

Use drawings as inspiration. Have learners doodle for 10 minutes before beginning the lesson. Then, have them use their doodles to inspire a story. Several writing activities are included here to play with writing. One of my favorites...

What is the difference between MLA and APA format? This presentation is geared towards a college audience, but it could definitely be useful with an eleventh and twelfth grade audience in high school. Differences are highlighted, but not...

What are the causes and effects of pollutants on the quality of the air we breathe? Groups research emission standards, emission controls, career opportunities in the area of air quality control, and things government and individuals can...

“Should same-sex marriage be allowed?” As part of a study of recognizing logical fallacies learners read John Stemberger’s April 12, 2012 argument against same-sex marriage published on the opinion page of the Orlando Sentinel. They then...

Is bigger really better? By the end of this lesson, learners will be able to apply formulas for computing the diameter of tires and wheel assemblies. Begin by showing a slide presentation that will review definitions for radius and...

Food insecurity, whether as a result of food scarcity or a lack of nutritious food, is a growing and serious problem in the world today. After discussing the concept of food insecurity, learners listen to an NPR radio broadcast on the...

Students discuss the role of religion throughout the world. Using documents from the United Nations, they read through Article 18 and describe it in detail. In groups, they identify religions based on how much freedom or persecution is...

Students examine what a basic unit of currency means and how it affects world finances.

Students complete a unit on musical harmony. They listen to examples of three part harmonies, watch a video, complete a data sheet, prepare a report on the history of harmony, and complete a multimedia report on music for the movies.

In this English worksheet, students read "Podcast is 2005 Word of the Year," and then respond to 47 fill in the blank, 7 short answer, 20 matching, and 8 true or false questions about the selection.

Students read an article about Saint Patrick's Day and answer short answer questions about what they read. In this Saint Patrick's Day lesson plan, students answer 17 questions total.

Fourth graders explore the three branches of government.

Students research wetlands in the United States and create visual aids for use in oral presentations that make recommendations on preserving or restoring wetland welfare.

Students compare Watergate and the Clinton/Lewinsky scandal. In this U.S. Constitution lesson, students define vocabulary terms and read articles regarding the impeachment process. Students respond to questions that require them to...