Curated OER
Is Cheerleading a Sport?
Looking for a rainy day activity? An article from the New York Times provides a nice topic for discussion. There will be many opinions and lively discussion as to how the class feels about cheerleading being a sport, or not. Ask them to...
Curated OER
Lend A Hand
Children recall a time when they have been helped and record it in a class book or collage. A class discussion leads things off. Next, learners brainstorm ways they have been helped by other people in the past, and times they've helped...
Curated OER
Getting to Know the Emperors of Rome
Heredity rule? Absolute power? Class members access Internet sites, view videos, and engage in a educational game to examine the achievements and leadership style of nine Roman emperors. Individuals then select one of these figures, and...
Curated OER
Lead Contamination In Our Environment
Students identify the sources of lead in their local community and how to prevent further contamination. As a class, they watch a video about the effects of lead on the body and use the internet to discover any new technology that can...
Curated OER
Debating the Issues: Ralph Bunche and Civil Rights
Synthesizing information from a PBS documentary Ralph Bunche: An American Odyssey, its companion website, and several other resources (links to which are provided), high schoolers evaluate whether Bunche did all he could to advance the...
Curated OER
Following the Leaders
Examine the historic election of Pope Benedict XVI and reflect on the challenges he faces as the new leader of the Catholic Church. This New York Times lesson investigates how other world leaders are chosen in different forms of...
Curated OER
It's a Matter of Opinion
Dissect the parts of an advertisement with your class. Middle schoolers discuss advertisements and locate the hook in them. Then, they create an advertisement for a business, in which they include the name of the business, an...
Curated OER
Lesson: Mathias Poledna: Crystal Palace
Film analysis takes critical thinking, connections, and context. Upper graders look at the film installation, Crystal Palace in terms of the film makers choices, presentation, and perspective of truth. After an analytical discussion...
Curated OER
Art, Commentary and Evidence: Analysis of "The White Man's Burden"
A cross-curricular instructional activity combines poetry and history for your middle and high schoolers. The class critically examines Kipling's poem, "White Man's Burden" as historical evidence of the Imperialist ideology popular...
Curated OER
Quarter, Nickel, Dime....
An engaging game called, "Quarter, Nickel, and Dime" is presented in this math lesson. Players are given an envelope with slips of paper that represent the three coins. In pairs, they play the game 18 times, and the whole class charts...
Stanford University
A Healthy You
Go beyond counting calories with a healthy eating unit that focuses on reading nutritional labels, making healthy choices, and incorporating fitness into daily life. After four lessons about the different ways kids can improve their...
Curated OER
"Take my Advice": Poems with a Voice
Discuss the meaning of the phrase tone of voice with the class. They respond to a variety of scenarios where a particular tone would be prevalent. They then read "Mother to Son" without knowing the title and answer some questions about...
Curated OER
I Am Not a Crook
Students use video, Internet research and discussion to consider the presidency of Richard Nixon. They obtain information from multiple perspectives and form an opinion of how Richard Nixon should be remembered.
Curated OER
Sustainability
Here is an in-depth, and incredibly thorough lesson plan on sustainable agricultural practices; specifically, regarding the growth of coffee. After completing and discussing a worksheet called "Thinking About Tomorrow," groups of...
University of Minnesota
Do the Stroop
The Stroop test helps diagnose executive function disorders when used in conjunction with other tests. Reading color words and identifying colors seem like basic skills, but the Stroop test may show otherwise. Scholars work with a...
Curated OER
Why Does Evolution Matter Now?
Young scholars are shown why they should care about evolution. They become specialists in one sphere influenced by evolution and then share their findings with their group. Students are lead into a class discussion, so that each...
Curated OER
The Immigrant Experience: Down the Rabbit Hole
Students relate the immigrant experience to Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. In this immigration experience lesson plan, students read Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and relate it to the immigrant...
Curated OER
Snack Time
In this activity, students will color the correct number of boxes in a graph to show their choices. They will then display their understanding of the graph's meaning through a teacher led class discussion.
Curated OER
Why Not Adopt? Lesson #4
Students discuss the benefits of pet adoption. In this pet lesson plan, students participate in a class discussion on pet adoption, animal shelters and how to care for a pet. They complete worksheets in groups and write about pet...
Curated OER
The Chemistry of Lead
Students explore the basic concept of physical and chemical properties of the element lead, as well as its historical and modern day uses, and how and why it is toxic to the human body. They are shown the basic reactions of the element...
Shmoop
ELA.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.7
Considering adding more research to your curriculum? Check out this idea. The assignment example, which connects to the Common Core, is written for a lesson on "The Scarlet Ibis." However, you could adapt the bigger idea to almost any...
Curated OER
Career Choices: Interests, Values, and Skills
Have your class write down their career interests and conduct research into the different types of jobs they can have in a field. They will use critical thinking skills in order to begin thinking about making a career choice. They are...
Curated OER
Understanding American Values
Scholars read books and discuss emotions that lead up to the American Revolution. They also discuss vocabulary and use reference materials to research the Internet for causes and sentiment that led to the American Revolution.
Curated OER
Getting Hooked, Introduction for a Narrative
How can you interest your reader? Here is a great lesson on reading and discussing the characteristics of a narrative. Elementary schoolers explore writing techniques to hook the reader. They identify their hook and share their...