Students use tools to represent bird beaks and pick up different types of food with them in order to discover which beak would help the bird survive depending on their food type.

The death of a parent can turn a child's world upside down. A curriculum guide for The Secret Hum of a Daisy explores defining moments in the main character's life, including the loss of her mother. Chapter-by-chapter discussion...

Young explorers may not be able to travel the Silk Road but they can listen to music that was played on instruments of the time and create their own songs with the help of an interesting interactive resource. 

Student make bird feeders and describe feeding behaviors. For this bird feeder lesson plan, students construct simple bird feeders. They then put them outside and observe the feeding behaviors of birds. Then they graph the number of...

Prepare class members for formative assessments of student thinking in reading (FAST-R) with a resource that compares Paul Laurence Dunbar's "Sympathy" and Maya Angelou's "Caged Bird." Readers respond to 10 multiple choice questions and...

While this lesson focuses on the birds and fish found on the Hudson River, it could be adapted for use in any classroom. Using a vocabulary list, learners explore the meaning of words like adaptation, habitat, barbel, and more. Then,...

The emotional and spiritual oppression of slavery in the African-American experience is the focus of this instructional activity. Middle schoolers analyze various texts by Frederick Douglass and Maya Angelou related to freedom...

Do you hear what I hear? Encourage scholars to use their listening skills and participate in a series of activities that demonstrate how the sense of hearing is crucial to the human and animal world. Activities guide learners...

Second graders explore biology by creating birdhouses. In this bird identification lesson, 2nd graders discuss the different types of birds that live in their environment and what characteristics each type of bird has. Students create a...

An incredibly thorough, and well-designed lesson teaches youngsters about the presumed extinction and rediscovery of the ivory-billed woodpecker in Arkansas. Learners discuss the environmental factors that led to the birds disappearance....

An interesting activity takes pupils on a trip through the carbon cycle. A reading passage allows scholars to take notes and make choices about what happens to the carbon on its journey. This third activity in a series of 21...

Prepare readers of Arthur Miller's The Crucible for a timed, in-class essay assessment with seven graphic organizers that ask individuals to note conflicts, both internal and external, characters' actions, possible...

Here is a handy guide for putting together a research report on birds, or on a selection of other topics (see the added materials.). Individuals are guided to think of three questions about their topic, they narrow down subtopics, use a...

How is risk determined? Through the use of a reading passage, individuals or groups learn about bird interactions with man made structures along with wind turbines. Pupils use information from the second reading passage to conduct an...

Readers of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings are asked to craft an essay in which they compare how Maya Angelou uses figurative language to depict herself and Mrs. Flowers. 

A revolutionary work of literature requires a revolutionary assessment project. A series of activities on Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings includes discussion questions, a plot synopsis, and a selection of both short...

How have birds evolved from prehistoric animals? With the three-part lesson, small groups first research different prehistoric animals and determine whether they are birds. Then, scholars explore different bird adaptations using the Flap...

Elementary ecologists pretend to be migratory hummingbirds. They fly between wintering and nesting grounds, trying to reach a habitat haven. In a musical-chair fashion, some birds will miss out, and are removed from the game. To further...

Budding poets choose a topic for a sensory-filled poem. Authors describe that topic using detailed language based on the five senses. Then, switch the senses to create a fanciful poem intended to add a touch of fun to the objective. 

Fish, fowl, foul fish, or foul fowl? Just what is a siren? Young scholars listen to a video clip and draw what they imagine when they hear the word "siren." After watching several videos depicting sirens, class members read "The Sirens'...

In order to answer a music trivia question, young musicians must count the number of ties in a melody, name the final note, and use these clues to spell out Charlie Parker's nickname. This activity is not for the birds.

Students explore one bird a day and eventually put together a book about each of the birds they learn.

Students create a bird feeder to form their technological skills and create a better bond with nature. In this nature lesson plan, students use websites, technology, brainstorm ideas, and build models.

Providing a higher-level thinking experience, this presentation provides an in-depth and interesting review of mammals. The terms used in the presentation give students a chance to be exposed to scientific classifications. There is also...