Curated OER
Three is a Toxic Number
Future public health advocates read a case study of a combination of water pollutants that may be linked to autism. The class is split into three groups, one to research each of the suspected chemicals. The look at how each one affects...
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Nothing But the Truth: Anticipation Guide
“What does it mean to be patriotic?” “Should grades factor in to a student’s eligibility for extracurricular activities?” Class members complete an anticipation guide that asks them to respond to a series of statements that highlight...
Curated OER
Judicial Review
Students are introduced to the concept of judicial review. They read an article about this topic and the Bill of Rights. They answer discussion questions and review as a class.
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Beacons of Light
Students research Internet sites for lighthouses. In this lighthouses lesson, students learn facts about lighthouses in the United States. Students complete a related worksheet and share their information with the class.
Hot Docs
Docs for School: Viewing and Teaching Guide
Teaching documentary in your class? Inform your instruction with a guide meant to support teachers as they begin with documentary. The resource includes information on what a documentary is as well as documentary modes, elements, and...
Curated OER
Edible and Medicinal Plants: Field Trip Guide
Though it's designed to guide a field trip to the New York Botanical Garden, you could take resource like this one to a local park, wilderness area, school garden, or even a weedy empty lot. Middle schoolers identify plant parts and...
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Figure Study: Lesson Six
This quick lesson outline is fun and useful in developing drawing skills. Learners complete figure studies of each other. A "runway" is set up at the back of the room, and peers take turns 'striking a pose' as they are considered as...
Curated OER
LESSON #2 SAFETY UNIT: Real-life reading selection
When studying pollution and the environment, you can use this activity as an enrichment. Safety-conscious learners read a 2005 article about an ammonia leak from a Kentucky fast-food product plant. They work in small groups to discuss...
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Writing Interesting Sentences
Help your class build their own 20-word sentences with this step-by-step guide designed to enhance sentence depth, interest, and variety in the work of young writers. They complete five basic SVO sentences using a given word bank....
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Reflection/Evaluation
Students practice the skills of reflection and evaluation. In this reflection lesson, students are grouped together and asked to brainstorm what they have learned during a particular unit. Students decide what they want to share with the...
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Waste Watchers
Energy-aware learners conduct an audit on their electricity usage by recording their electric meter reading and assessing the thermostat, light bulbs, windows, and water heaters in their homes. In class, they analyze results and discuss...
Achievement Strategies
CCSS Unit Design Template for Art
Art classes, like any lab class, require extensive preplanning and set-up time. Use this planning template in the quiet before the storm to identify the equipment and materials that will be needed, the procedures and processes...
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Mystery of the Megaplume
Read through the extensive background information and then lead your geology or physical oceanography class through an investigation of actual temperature anomaly data from the Juan de Fuca ridge. They translate the data onto a plot,...
Institute for Systems Biology
Introduction to Saline Environments & Microbial Halophiles
If you do not mind wading through unrelated headings (This is not for a physics or STEM course, as it states.) and content (The lesson opens with an article about neurology, not halophiles.), then you will find a valuable resource on...
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How A Bill Becomes Law
Young scholars gain an understanding of how a bill becomes law. They access websites imbedded in this plan. They create a bill of their own, and share it with the class. They compare their simulated bills with real legislation.
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Wind and Wildfire
Emerging scientists research weather-related vocabulary terms, and map out where wildfires are most likely to occur. To bring this lesson to life, you could demonstrate what happens to a fire when you cool or remove the fuel, or cut off...
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Integrating the Craft of Writing into Physical Education
Incorporate writing into your physical education class. In groups, learners unscramble a list of words related to exercise and use them in their journal writings. Using their name, they write one word related to physical activity that...
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Observations of a Mammal
Observations are a key step in the scientific method. In a fun activity, kids learn more about a mammal that they know, such as their own cat, a class hamster, or a friend's dog, through making detailed observations. In addition, they...
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Describing a Chemical Reaction: Playing with Copper
Three experiments involving pennies help young chemists see the chemical reactions between copper and other elements. The first experiment is rhetorical (it prompts students to leave a bright penny out for a year) but the second two...
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Storytelling: Writers' Workshop Learning Center
Evaluating a variety of narrative texts can help build strong writers. Pupils identify plot elements and their relation to personal experience, then apply what they gleaned from the class discussion to create their own narratives.
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Time Capsule: Oral Presentation
A great way to gain proficiency when learning a new language is to prepare an oral presentation. In this foreign language instructional activity, pairs collaborate to develop a Time Capsule which they present to their class using...
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My Daily Routine
Foreign language learners work in pairs to translate the daily routine of celebrities or everyday people, presented in daily planner format, into English. They then illustrate and record their own daily routines in storyboard (film...
Shmoop
ELA.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.11-12.3
Tired of simple sentences? Bored by brief sentences? Plagued by boring sentences? Enrich your life and the writing of your pupils by modeling how to combine sentences to create more varied syntax. Groups then find a number of ways to...
Curated OER
Create a Board Game
Middle schoolers research, design, and create a game board based on information learned in ancient civilizations' social studies units. They utilize computer technology to research the project, as well as, textbooks, in-class library...