As the saying goes, art often imitates life ... and literature! A series of activities designed to accompany a visit to the Ogden Museum of Southern Art encourage writers to find inspiration in various landscapes. The lesson includes a...

You walk each day over 20 blocks to school as a 9-year old because the color of your skin does not allow you to attend a school in your own neighborhood. Scholars use the 1954 Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education to investigate...

Imagine a lesson that models for learners how to separate facts from opinions. How to detect bias. How to evaluate a source of information. How to identify propaganda. Although designed for middle schoolers, the activities in this packet...

Eighth graders discover what makes an event newsworthy. They research topics by using the five W questions. They examine the difference between facts and opinions and practice interviewing people for stories.

Learners view a slide show featuring famous athletes and educational institutions that have played a part in the history of basketball. They participate in a game in which a basketball is tossed from person to person as facts and...

Here is an engaging and thought-provoking presentation on newspapers. Learners identify different types of text, study layouts, look at common features, and differentiate between fact and opinion in newspapers. Photos are included, and a...

Eschew obfuscation!! High schoolers learn techniques that permit them to listen critically, sort through verbiage used to hide meaning or mislead listeners, and determine the message's validity.

Learners review the facts of the court case Brown v. Board of Education. Next, they research recent court cases that uphold contrasting views on the landmark decision. They write opinions about these recent court cases from a 1954...

Just because we have the ability to determine an organism's traits through genetic testing, should we do it? Middle-school medical experts examine the ethical dilemmas in biotechnology in the 18th and final installment in a series of...

Double click that mouse because you just found an amazing lesson! This cross-curricular Ornithology lesson incorporates literature, writing, reading informational text, data collection, scientific inquiry, Internet research, art, and...

In this cloze exercise interactive worksheet, learners read about Bill Gates and fill in the correct words to complete each sentence from the paragraph. There are 20 fill-in's to complete.

Stress the importance of authenticating online resources and understanding the sources of websites' information with this activity. Using a Web-based activity, the instructional activity prompts young learners to think critically about...

An entomologist named Geroge Vernon Hudson is credited with proposing Daylight Saving Time (DST) so he could better study his insects. Using the informative website, scholars read a brief introduction to the topic and then explore the...

First graders see how to determine whether a text is fact or fiction by completing a whole-group activity with the teacher. They use this knowledge in a small-group station activity game where they determine if sentences are fact or...

High schoolers focus on the 14th Amendment of the Bill of Rights to decide whether or not racism denies citizens of their rights under the amendment. They watch a movie, Every Two Seconds and complete a worksheet (included in the plan)...

Students investigate writing a school newspaper. In this writing a school newspaper lesson, students choose topics that will be included in the school newspaper. Students view online sites about writing articles and break into groups to...

High schoolers form opinions about children and television censorship after analyzing literature. They complete a journal writing activity to identify the topic and make a list of inappropriate television shows for children. Next, they...

Does propaganda—like that used during the first World War—exist today? The 11th lesson in a series of 12 highlights the role of media when it comes to influencing attitudes. Scholars learn about sensational headlines, misrepresentation...

Can the federal government override the state government to protect the citizens of the United States? The 1962 Supreme Court case Baker v. Carr outlines the issue of equal protection under the law. Scholars investigate with a short...

Impress upon your young learners the importance of formulating counter arguments based on facts and not opinions. This resource is meant to strengthen arguments designed in a previous instructional activity, but could also be used as a...

Wait, you mean researchers don't all use Wikipedia? Teach your class about intelligent research with a instructional activity about evaluating digital sources. The instructional activity starts with a quickwrite and includes...

To protect young people from questionable content, many schools limit access. This resource suggests that because learners can so readily avail themselves to unrestricted Internet access, it is vital for 21st century...

Distinguishing among different types of content when conducting online searches can be a challenge. An informative resource helps researchers identify different types of content, from fact-based reports to ads, from propaganda to satire....

Does a ban on vending machines infringe on student rights, or do school officials have an obligation to monitor foods sold on school grounds? Your class members will explore the educational, health, and financial issues related to...