Curated OER
Our Town
With the songs "My Hometown" by Bruce Springsteen and "Allentown" by Billy Joel, learners examine external versus internal conflict. When they have finished the first part of the lesson, they create their own poem (or song) about the...
Curated OER
Melba Pattillo and Ruby Bridges: Two Heroes of School Integration
Learners put themselves in the shoes of young scholars who integrated Little Rock High School in 1957-58. Note: The primary resources in this activity provide powerful and poignant descriptions of what those students faced.
National Wildlife Federation
Green Green Revolution
School budgets don't have a lot of extra money, so when students propose saving the district money, everyone jumps on board. The first instructional activity in the series of 21 introduces the concept of an energy audit. Scholars form an...
Curated OER
Back To School Ideas_Compiled
Help your class participate in hands-on activities to get them back into the swing of going to school everyday. This list is designed for all grade levels with unique ideas for each (note that many ideas are geared for elementary, but...
Curated OER
Reviewing Names, Greetings, Numbers
¡Hola! Young learners need to review basic greetings and numbers the first week of school. To introduce learners to each other, have the kids form two circles, one inside the other. The inside circle faces out (so that they're looking at...
Google
Graphing with Google Docs & Forms
Get to know your class and teach about data analysis all with the help of Google Docs. Using student-generated questions, create a class survey using Google Forms. Reserve time in the computer lab for learners to complete the form and,...
Curated OER
The Billy Goats Gruff and the Days of the Week
First graders explore the days of the week. In this days of the week lesson, 1st graders listen to the story The Billy Goats Gruff, then act out the events by stepping on "rocks" that name the days of the week. Students must go in the...
Curated OER
First Lady Fashions
Sixth graders research and explore the fashion of a certain time while identifying with the personal convictions and tastes of the famous first ladies of the past. They practice what they explore adjectives to describe what they see and...
Curated OER
Trailers Become Schools After Hurricane Katrina
Young scholars share their thoughts about natural disasters, then read a news article about how life at an elementary school was changed after Hurricane Katrina. For this current events lesson, the teacher introduces the article with a...
Curated OER
Oprah Winfrey Opens New School in Africa
Students locate Africa and share their knowledge of the continent, then read a news article about Oprah Winfrey building a school in South Africa. In this current events lesson, the teacher introduces the article with a discussion and...
Peace Corps
Starting Off the Day (and School Year) in Ukraine
Young scholars compare the first day of school in Ukraine with the first day of school in the United States, including the challenges students and teachers both face in each country. They respond in class, in their journals, to the...
Centre for Clinical Interventions
Social Skills Treatment Programme
Even though they may not be tested on standardized assessments, social skills are vital for students to develop during their years in school. Through a series of discussions, activities, and role-playing exercises, these lessons teach...
Curated OER
Back-to-School Night: What Parents Need to Know
Get prepared for your Back-to-School Night presentation with these tips and ideas.
Curated OER
Public Schools and Prayer - Do They Mix?
Students discuss and research different Supreme Court cases and examine religious freedom and prayer in public schools.
Kelly's Kindergarten
May Daily Activities
Five weeks of daily activities for the month of May! With a new activity for each day of the month, your youngsters will utilize a variety of skills and practice everything from sight words and spelling to counting by twos or coloring...
Curated OER
Building Relationships in a High School Classroom
Students explore building new friendships during the first week of school. They participate in a variety of getting to know each other activities. Students work cooperatively and develop collegial relationships with their classmates.
Curated OER
Elementary School Health and Wellness Fair
This is a nice idea for high school high schoolers to organize and present a Health and Wellness Fair at a local elementary school. It looks like it would take a lot of organization, but would certainly build community relationships....
Laura Candler
Bio Poems Made Easy
A creative way bring autobiographical writing to your poetry unit or back-to-school curriculum, this lesson plan guides you through a bio poem activity. Kids use the graphic organizer to describe themselves using adjectives, things they...
Scholastic
Now that You Have Them, What Do You Do With Class Rules?
Establishing classroom rules within the first two weeks of school is important. But what do you do with the rules after they've been created, and how can you establish them so that they have a lasting effect all year long? Use an...
Curated OER
How To Earn Commendable Marks In Fourth Grade
Fourth graders engage in studying the rules of being in a 4th grade classroom. They are given at the beginning of the year and practiced during the first weeks of school along with routines.
Curated OER
All About Me
Kids almost always want to share the things that make them special. They create and deliver an autobiographical multimedia presentation using step-by-step outlines to plan their content. This is a great "All About Me" instructional...
Curated OER
"Positive Negative Designs"
Once in a while you need a quick, fun activity to add interest to your classroom. Your kids will flip over the effects they'll be able to make as they explore positive and negative designs. They'll use a cutting technique that results in...
Carolina K-12
Making First Vote Your Vote: Designing a Schoolwide Election
Encourage pupils to design an election plan for the entire school. They participate in a Board of Elections, create polling rules, discuss election controversies, write questions about the issues, run the election through an online...
Curated OER
First Day Protocol
While this is not really a step by step lesson plan, it's a fabulous idea to do a presentation instead of the usual drone lecture on the first day. This project takes a little work each year to take digital pictures throughout the year...