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What's the Purpose Anyway?
Examine author's purpose in newspaper articles, comic books, cookbooks, encyclopedias and other forms of written materials. Working in groups, middle and high schoolers read teacher-selected articles and write an explanation of the...
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The Making of Our First President
High schoolers investigate George Washington's military career. In this George Washington lesson, students research the contributions of Washington the colonial military and then write editorials about his accomplishments for a mock...
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Hammurabi's Code of Laws
Students explore why the need arose for laws to govern society, comparing and contrasting hunter/gatherer societies vs. agrarian societies. They write letters to the editor of the Babylonian Times, discussing their opinion of Hammurabi's...
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Digesting the News
Students explore the editorial concepts, site designs and business models of online news digests. They propose detailed plans for Web sites that demonstrate their own areas of expertise.
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Satire in Fiction
Twelfth graders identify satire in various fictional texts. In this language arts lesson, 12th graders will learn to define satire, parody, and caricature. Students will identify different forms of satire in historical and...
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The Rights of Bike Riders
Students write a letter to the editor of a newspaper about the bicycle helmet safety issue. They gather statistics about bicycle helmet use and discuss the statistics as a class and explain how to interpret the numbers accurately. They...
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The Diary of Anne Frank
Eighth graders apply knowledge of the Holocaust in general and The Diary of Anne Frank in particular to their writing. Acting the play out in class provides them an almost firsthand knowledge of Anne and the other characters.
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Language Arts: The Three Appeals
Students are able to identify and describe the persuasive techniques used in editorial writing. They are able to label persuasive techniques with the logos, pathos, and ethos terminology.
Virginia Department of Education
Deciding the Mode
Are your young writers having difficulty distinguishing between expository and persuasive writing? Discuss the difference between the two, and how some prompts can be responded to in either fashion. Included here is a simple lesson plan...
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"No News Like Ancient News"
Want to know more about Ancient history? Young historians will read a minimum of two web sites to complete the chart "Residents of Olympus". They choose one Greek god or goddess to research. This could be a small group activity or...
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Islamic Art
Students examine the various forms of Islamic Art. Using the art, they identify the basic elements and research its history and style of calligraphy. They create a piece of art based on information they collected and demonstrate...
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Mixed Up Media
Students explore online journalism. In this journalism lesson, students discover how electronic medias are changing journalism, examine the conventions of electronic media, and discuss the authority and reliability of forms of electronic...
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Reading/English Language Arts/ Instructional Strategies
Learners are given a line drawing that only that students sees. They are asked to describe the drawings to the reset of the class to see if they can draw it as the teacher describes it. Learners work with a partner, and they are given a...
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Toontime
Pupils examine and discuss how editorial cartoons are made and their role in society. They research and write about Andrew Jackson's presidency, and create an editorial cartoon of a modern presidency.
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How safe is your school bus?
High schoolers research various aspects of school bus safety about what makes a bus safe or unsafe. They check the Internet (with sites below and others) and see what the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has to say.
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Write All About It
Fourth graders use research skills and the writing process to create a newspaper. Although students work in groups to complete the final draft of the newspaper, each student is responsible for doing his or her own research and writing...
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An Investigation of Primary and Secondary Sources Using The Records on Mary McLeod Bethune
Students listen to a summary of the life of Mary Bethune. They read or listen to an excerpt from an interview with Mary Bethune. They discuss the differences between the transcript and the draft of the biography.
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No Joke - My Voice Counts!
Young scholars respond to cartoons. In this social and cultural issues lesson, students examine how cartoons can be used to get a message across to the reader. After examining numerous cartoons, young scholars create their own cartoon...
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Countable and Uncountable Nouns - Noun Quantifiers
Students solidify their knowledge of countable and uncountable nouns and their quantifiers. The lesson includes a number of overlooked or idiomatic expressions to help higher level students expand their knowledge.
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- Making Metaphors with Munchies
Students brainstorm independently first, then ask their best friend on the team, or seat partners, depending on the year & student mix, to add to their list of personal characteristics and/or to name three words they think of...
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FBI Counts Mosques
Students gather as much background as possible about this controversial FBI directive and what Muslim and civil liberties groups believe about it. They perform interviews with Muslim students to gather opinions and then form a conclusion...
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What Is Legal With Music On The Web?
Learners research what is legal now as far as downloading music from the Internet. They also gather information now that some citizens have been charged with crimes. The research allows students to form informed opinions that are educated.
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Do You Agree?
Students recognize bias in a political cartoon, evaluate how the media uses both positive and/or negative political cartoons, and assess the influence a political cartoon can have on a person.
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Cloud in the Classroom
Students describe the relationship between animals and humans. In this biology activity, students research about the history of horses in America. They present a mock news broadcast about their research.