What a neat test! The class is asked to draw and color to create examples of eight elements of art. They focus on each element (line, value, shape, form, space, texture, primary and secondary color) by creating an original piece in each...

To gain insight into the many different types of habitats, individuals must first get to know their own. Here, scholars explore their school environment, draw a map, compare and contrast their surroundings to larger ones. They then...

Students explore the attributes of fables. In this literature lesson, students read several fables and identify the moral lesson, characterization, and figurative language in each. Students then retell their favorite fables in their own...

Students research the planets and create a "travel brochure." In this space science lesson, students read the book Magic School Bus: Lost in Space and identify various properties of each planet. Students create a brochure for a specific...

Introduce your class to drama! You cast each pupil as a different character from a story you have read. They are given a general outline of the scene, act out the scene multiple times, then discuss the weak and strong aspects of each...

Young scholars create 3 dimensional art. In this sculpture lesson, students collect objects that represent their community's values to include in a 3 dimensional sculpture. Young scholars write a paragraph explaining the chosen theme of...

First graders compare their local area with the Belize landscape. They construct maps of the school area, adding descriptive information. They write haiku poems about their favorite outside places.

Students analyze the needs for outdoor sculpture and create their own example. In this sculpture lesson, students discuss the sculptural and architectural elements of site-specific sculpture. Students work in teams to select a space...

Visualize a plot rollercoaster using this graphic organizer for budding authors. Don't think you're getting the typical five-part plot structure here, though; there are nine spaces for writers to fill in plot elements, assuring they...

Students identify the basic structural and decorative designs, create examples of line (horizontal/vertical/curved/diagonal), as well as identify and explain the difference between shape and form. Then, they identify and explain the use...

Seventh graders study events leading to, during and resulting from the American Revolution. They review elements of a political cartoon. They create and dramatize a scene from a Revolutionary War novel.

Sometimes words aren't the best way to get information across to the reader. The eighth handout in the 24-part Writing the Paper series describes different type of figures and charts to display complex information in a paper....

Budding artists discover what color value means with regard to art. They read the definition of color value at the top of the page, choose three different colored pencils, then use the provided spaces to create color values with each. By...

Students identify the elements of an informative essay. Through a teacher led discussion, students explore the basic parts of a five paragraph essay and , using a hamburger as an analogy, students label the pieces. They discuss the...

Students identify the major folk regions of Louisiana and the relationship between folklife, geography, and ecology. They give deeper thought to what makes their own community unique, what their sense of place actually is. Students...

The teacher reads and retells Californian tribal origin or creation stories that come from the traditions of a variety of California Indian tribes. Then, pupils get together in groups and retell the stories they just heard; just as...

Culture and art are two things that change with time and context. Learners compare and contrast two landscape prints from different time periods. They work through art terminology to help them describe what they see in each piece. The...

How would Jean-Etiénne Liotard paint the characters from "The Little Mermaid?" What would the main character from "The Little Match Girl" look like from Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes' point of view? After examining various paintings...

Help your class tackle chunks of text with a simple graphic organizer. Pupils read three paragraphs and, as they read, draw pictures in the provided boxes that demonstrate what each paragraph says. There are three boxes on the page and...

Stories contain very specific elements; plot, characters, and key events. Learners use pantomime to retell a key event from the beginning, middle, and end of a story. They discuss setting and character as each group discusses and then...

Students investigate the dramatic elements of a Streetcar Named Desire. In this drama lesson, students explore the theme of the Tennessee Williams play as they read the play and watch performances of some of the acts. Students then write...

Students analyze the elements of poetry and jazz. In this critical thinking skills lesson, students take a closer look at the rhyme, rhythm, alliteration, form, free verse, lyricism, and imagery that exist is jazz as well as poetry. 

Students compare two paintings, depicting urban life in America in the 1940's, answering a series of questions, then create a short story about the paintings' characters. They compare 'Nighthawks' and 'Nightlife.'

Students explore different types of doors from an artistic point of view. In this creative thinking lesson, students look at different types of architectural doors and doorways and analyze them. They create a project of a door as a...