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School News
Students create a video of school news to improve writing skills, speaking skills, questioning skills, and to help build self esteem.
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Media Literacy Skills
Third graders watch a news story from three different networks in order to determine how the same story can be presented in three different ways. Next, working in small groups they create a newscast of a current event to share with the...
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The Lost Property Office
Students participate in a role-play activity to practice literacy skills. They work in pairs to describe an item they have lost, and the partner asks description questions to help locate the lost item.
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Skinny Models
Students read a newspaper article about a fashion show in Madrid which banned the use of models under a certain weight. They define vocabulary, complete comprehension worksheets, practice the use of the words 'enough' and 'too many' and...
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Major Holocaust Themes in Elie Wiesel's Memoir, Night
Students read accounts of children during the Holocaust and read Elie Wiesel's "Night". Using the internet, they share ideas and discuss topics with peers across the nation. They examine the role of the individual in the Holocaust and...
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Create a City: An Urban Planning Exercise
Students explore the effects of population growth in Arizona. In this history instructional activity, students work in small groups to create a "perfect" city. Activities include examining the Arizona census results then discussing...
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Natural Disasters
Students read the book "Tsunami!" and discuss natural disasters and how they can prepare. This lesson is much more than a study of tsunamis. The lesson is chock-full of ways to study the Japanese culture across the curriculum. There are...
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Mapping My Pathway
Eighth graders create career portfolios, speak with the school counselor, and develop and educational plan. Individually, 8th graders discuss career options and how an educational plan can assist them in future goals. They explore...
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Making Your Own Master Calendar
Ninth graders discuss time demands such as homework, family, and chores that occupy their free time. They discuss how to effectively manage their time. They write important information and activities on a calendar. They develop and...
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Present Perfect Simple or Continuous
Students discuss and analyze the differences between the present perfect simple and present perfect continuous forms from a clear context and develop the skill of noticing word stress, weak forms of auxiliaries.
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Organizing Your Ideas Into an Effective Outline
Students explain the components of a speech outline and write an interesting speech.
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Speak Up, Speak Out
Fourth graders examine, compare, and summarize the speeches of Sojourner Truth and Patrick Henry. They review the parts of a good speech and design and give their own speech that expresses an opinion and persuades the listener..
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Pronunciation: Practicing Stress and Intonation
Students practice pronunciation of their words and when to stress certain words when speaking. They practice with sentences given to them by the teacher.
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Language and Literacy Support through Photography
Students experience creating realia with digital photos to increase their vocabularies. They practice creating meaningful digital photo books that the students can take home and read with their families. Each student interacts with a...
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River Study
Students explore a stream in their area and show the class the topographic map of the stream. They locate the topographic map and name the streams, lakes and ponds in their watershed. They write a paragraph about their stream and...
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Screening Coleridge’s Fantasies: Using Popular Music as a Bridge to Literacy
Twelfth graders use music to aid them in interpreting poetry. In this poetry lesson, 12th graders analyze the lyrics, figurative language, and literary devices of selected music. Students compare the music to the poetry of Samuel...
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Case Study - An Ecotour
Students plan an ecotour of the Australian rainforest. They prepare fact sheets about animals, create a mural, prepare a advertising brochure and a guided tour of the rainforest.
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36 Public Policy Questions to Energize Your Government/History Classroom Debates
Need topics that are sure to engage your debaters? This list of public policy questions includes such topics as school mascots, regulation of major league baseball, physician-assisted suicide, and violence in video games. A great...
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E-mailing the Chamber of Commerce
Encourage effective internet research and e-mail correspondence as scholars investigate a US capital city they've never visited to find pertinent and relevant information. They begin by picking a city, then visit that city's chamber of...
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The Animals Kingdom
Students are introduced to the classification system of animals. In groups, they set up an aquarium in which they must maintain throughout the year. They also observe earthworms and how they react to various stimuli and research the...
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Totally Awesome Answers to Wacky Wonders
Middle schoolers work with a partner to gather information on a question from two sources using a computer program and the Internet. They also write a report with visuals to air on closed-circuit TV for the school. Use this lesson to...
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Promises, Promises
If someone breaks a promise, is that person no longer trustworthy? Present your 6th and 7th graders with a series of statements and have them debate their opinions with supporting evidence. As an extension, have your students write a...
American English
Welcome to the Color Vowel Chart
Focus English language learners' attention on word stress and phrase stress with a pronunciation chart that breaks the sounds into moving and non-moving vowel sounds. The chart tool uses colors and key words to indicate...
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Speech! Speech!
Critical thinkers consider how word choice in speeches impacts the meaning and effectiveness of the message being presented. They examine and respond to some of the speeches made at the 2004 Republican and Democratic National...