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Debating for Land
Students discover about the varying attitudes and definitions of land ownership held by Native and European Americans. They study a variety of primary documents from the nineteenth century.
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Defending Great Literature
Students defend Mark Twain and the study of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn using persuasive techniques, appropriate word choice, and correct letter format, in response to a fictional letter by an upset parent.
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Working Together to Improve Our Community
Learners from the fourth grade research a solution to a community problem and converse with eighth graders via email. Eighth graders study the political process and work with the fourth graders to present information to the public to...
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Effective Literary Analyses
Twelfth graders discuss a fictional text that they are given, they identify passages, which highlight the author's style, language naances and textual ambiguities. Pupils brainstorm possible topics for an analytical essay, they are...
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Teens on Screens
Young scholars articulate the ways in which they use the Internet and envision and propose new uses for the Internet. They examine one teenager's vision and expression of teen culture and individual personality online by reading and...
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Write Away
Students examine the effect of computers and other word processing programs have had on traditional forms of communication and expression after reading and discussing the article "Where the Pen is Mightier Than the PC" from The New York...
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Total Physical Response Storytelling
Fifth graders are introduced to the strategy TPRS (Total Physical Response Storytelling) for studying world languages. They utilize this strategy as a vehicle to storytelling and expand their vocabulary by contextualizing it in high...
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Can We Switch Genders of Story Characters?
Students read and review the main elements of a story. In this language arts lesson, students predict what the story read to them would have been like if the genders of the characters had been different. Students write a new...
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Quilting
First graders investigate the color spectrum by painting their own pictures. In this artistic expression instructional activity, 1st graders discuss their own families and create ways to express their culture and family history on a...
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What is Drawing?
Students explore visual arts by participating in a drawing activity. In this artistic expression lesson, students discuss how our thoughts and emotions are conceptualized by illustrating or painting. Students utilize charcoal, pastels,...
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A Walk Through the Past: A Grave Undertaking
Learners explore how historians construct a story out of fragments of the past; a discussion of nineteenth century poetry and art leads students to connect art and literature to their place in time.
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The Rise of the City States in Greece
Sixth graders examine Ancient Greece and its development of democracy. In this Greek History lesson, 6th graders explore the rise of city-states in Greece and its overall effect on the development of democracy. The class continues with...
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Strangers
Students learn and discuss what to do when approached by a stranger. In this stranger lesson plan, students answer questions based on a book that the teacher reads. They then participate in a discussion about rules and guidelines to...
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High Crimes and Misdemeanors
Students analyze the Constitution's wording regarding impeachment and discuss the impeachment process. They then design a survey based on student-generated questions about the charges against President Clinton and write a letter to the...
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The Surreal World
Students explore the concept of Surrealism and how it can be expressed in various art forms. They next create a Surrealist collage, and engage in a Surrealist process to invent a title for their work. They critique a class exhibition of...
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Much Ado About Nothing?
Students explore their feelings regarding the celebration of various holidays. Using the New York Times article as a model, students write articles critiquing what they consider to be inappropriate expressions of holiday spirit.
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War Fair
Students gather a general understanding of terms related to international rules of warfare and human rights, then discuss hypothetical applications of those rules. They write letters expressing their opinion on the current application of...
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Details and Observations IQ or the Eyes Have it
Fourth graders study Chaucer as a master of details. Then, they create a short story linking unrelated details into a logical plot with a clear setting and established characters. This lesson plan has some excellent worksheets attached!
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Sam Cooke - Lesson 1
Students identify the impact of the social injustices and Civil Rights movement on Cooke's life and career. They create lyrics to a familiar song that express a personal struggle or concern.
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Edgar Allan Poe: an Author Unit
Eighth graders study the life and writing of Edgar Allan Poe in this unit of work.
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In Search of Afro-American Poets in Modern Times
Students develop an awareness of pride in the many contributions made by Afro-American poets. They gain an appreciation for poetry and express orally and in written form their feelings and emotions. They determine that poetry is age...
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Why Does It Matter? Teaching Tolerance in an Unforgiving Society
Students listen to the song "Scarecrow" by Melissa Etheridge and draw what they think the song is about. They discover the song is about a man who was attacked. They again express their feelings about the song through drawing. Finally...
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Plagued by Warfare
Students define "biological weapon" and explore why these types of weapons are so dangerous. They also explore the covert shift of American grant research money to an organization that once directed the Soviet Union's germ warfare...
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The Creative Process
Students conceive and create works of visual art that demonstrate comprehension of how the communication of their ideas relates to the media, techniques, and processes they use. They initiate, define, and solve challenging visual arts...