Every political system has advantages and disadvantages. To gain an understanding of these differences, groups investigate the political system of another country—oligarchy, monarchy, dictatorship, parliamentary—and prepare a...

Talk about intrinsic motivation! Begin where your students' natural interests lie  -- with themselves -- and launch a variety of projects with this activity. Class members research important events that took place on their...

Students differentiate between fact and opinion. They define fact and opinion, then listen to and identify examples of each. Students identify different books where facts and opinions can be found, and cut out newspaper and magazine...

Students love the opportunity of going to the library to jump into that one comfy chair in the whole room with a book, or be a lucky one to get to the computers before anyone else. But knowing how to locate books and other reference...

Students explore an assigned state. In this United States geography lesson, students identify facts and figures related to a particular state. Students use the Internet for research and create a PowerPoint presentation displaying these...

Students explore social studies by completing a U.S. history research project. In this Texas lesson, students utilize almanacs, encyclopedias and the Internet to research the history of Texas and create a presentation based on a specific...

Students explore a variety of reference resources while seeking information. atlases, almanacs, dictionaries, encyclopedias, thesauri, and online search engines as well as library card catalogs are utilized in this lesson.

Students use maps and other geographic resources to learn about their world while problem solving. They read clues each day and use classroom resources to narrow down where the prize is located.

Students research and analyze the interactions of American Indian tribes with Meriwether Lewis and iam Clark. Then they stage displays to inform the public about their findings.

Students examine the dynamics of change and compare and contrast it with other cultures. They cite examples of how people change over time and explain why it is necessary. Students organize a skit, Webpage, or Powerpoint presentation...

Fourth graders analyze how Kentucky's past is different from the present. They research why Kentucky was even explored and settles. What social issues face Kentucky now. Discussion lies on how Kentucky can be improved for the 21st century.

What a cool way to incorporate art and use reference materials. Learners use classroom reference materials such as almanacs, encyclopedias, and dictionaries to answer one of four questions, and then they use the information to create a...

High schoolers examine the fall of the Roman Empire and the Armenian tragedy. In this world history lesson, students read handouts about both world history events and create presentations that feature the events.

Young scholars discuss reasons to use reference materials, identify correct reference material to use for specific information, find answers to specific questions by locating information in encyclopedia, dictionary, atlas, almanac,...

Students examine and identify the characteristics of the biomes of the world. Using the Internet, they compare and contrast the similarities and differences and discover how living things are supported in the biomes. They discuss how the...

Young scholars utilize their map skills to explore the regions of North America. They explore the physical characteristics and climates of the regions. Students label their map and prepare a presentation of their findings.

Learners become familiar with the concepts of conflict and change and the relationship between them. They then analyze medieval social groupings to understand relationships among people and people groups.

Eighth graders create scenes that might have existed if the American Revolution had not taken place. They use information they have gathered to plan, produce, and present a variety of products from the perspective of a British citizen in...

Eighth graders examine, brainstorm, cluster, and skim how to use a variety of information resources to assist them in projects or reports. In addition, places to find those information resources as well as the parts of a book is covered...

Students explore the five themes of geography while they conduct Internet research to compare and contrast their city, region, or country with the city and region of Nagano, Japan.

Fourth graders use two separate sources to learn about index, glossary, and table of contents usage. In this library instructional activity, 4th graders use two books, Learning About Weather with Graphic Organizers, and The World Almanac...

Learners demonstrate the ability to comprehend and calculate currency exchange rates.

Fifth graders participate in a scavenger hunt on the internet trying to develop a general overview of content and how to locate specific information. They also explore how to receive, store and send electronic information.

Students use a globe or map to locate the equator, oceans and continents. Using the internet, they spend time surfing through predetermined websites on continents and oceans. They write facts on different parts of the globe on index...