Curated OER
Harvesting of Trees: Library Media Center Resources
Students research harvesting of trees in the United States and write a summary. In this informative lesson plan students state whether they agree or disagree with an article and write a summary on why.
Curated OER
Organizers for Students
Young scholars . In this organization lesson, students have a general discussion about sports cards and make a chart to answer the questions. Young scholars read the baseball card story from USA Today. Students watch a web video about...
Curated OER
Create A Map!
Students examine two- and three-dimensional shapes, and discuss map skills and attributes. They plan and create their own school campus maps using pre-cut building site shapes.
Curated OER
Famous People Lesson Plan
High schoolers brainstorm a list of the achievements of people in their lives. In groups, they discuss the decisions that help people meet their goals later in life and identify values that help one overcome obstacles. They use the...
Curated OER
Class Book Awards
Learners study the criteria used to select notable book awards, including the Caldecott Medal and the Newbery Medal. Then they develop their own Class Book Awards to bestow upon favorite books in the classroom library. They decide on...
Curated OER
Characteristics of Imaginative Stories
Third graders explore genre characteristics. In this genre literacy lesson, 3rd graders listen to a variety of fiction stories and classify them according to genre. Students identify common features in each genre and complete a chart by...
Ontario
Animation Programming—Computer Studies
Introduce high schoolers interested in animation programming to fundamental programming concepts so that they can plan and write simple programs.
Curated OER
Structure of Natural Narratives
Class pairs select a prompt from a provided list and tell (and record) their story to their partner. They then examine linguist William Labov's model for natural narratives, and apply his model to their tale. Next, class members watch...
Library of Congress
Industrial Revolution
Could you live without your phone? What about cars, steel, or clothing? Class groups collaborate to produce presentations that argue that either the telephone, the gramophone, the automobile, the textile industry, or the steel...
Curated OER
Slave Narratives: Constructing U.S. History Through Analyzing Primary Sources
Learners access oral histories that contain slave narratives from the Library of Congress. They describe the lives of former slaves, sample varied individual experiences and make generalizations about their research in journal entries.
Teaching Tolerance
Community Arts Showcase
An art showcase encourages class members to explore the themes of social justice and tolerance. They create an original artwork, engage in group discussions, and journal writing. The art gallery also provides a chance for families and...
US House of Representatives
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words
Groups select a photograph from one of the four eras of African Americans in Congress and develop a five-minute presentation that provides background information about the image as well as its historical significance. The class compares...
Library of Congress
The Emancipation Proclamation and the Thirteenth Amendment
How did the Emancipation Proclamation lead to the Thirteenth Amendment? Middle schoolers analyze primary source documents including the text of the Emancipation Proclamation, political cartoons, photographs, and prints to understand...
Free Library of Philadelphia
Resources for Ghost Boys
Jewell Parker Rhodes, the author of Ghost Boys, wanted to bring the historical legacy of Emmett Till and the current topic of racial prejudice into today's young readers' mindsets. Use a reading guide and set of discussion questions to...
Global Oneness Project
A Vanishing Island
The effects of rising sea levels on Isle de Jean Charles, located off the coast of Louisiana, are documented in Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee's poignant short video. Viewers are asked to consider not only the plight of residents but also what...
American Institute of Architects
Architecture: It's Elementary!—First Grade
Build an interest and appreciation for architecture in your young learners with this fun 10-lesson art unit. Engaging children in using their five senses, the class first observes the environment around them, paying...
Curated OER
Understanding Cause and Effect
Students experience and study cause and effect as they assess the consequences man faces when time travel is attempted. They determine, in their imaginations, what time period they would like to visit. Each student then listens to,...
Curated OER
Homework Contract
Establish strong study habits from the beginning of the year with a contract that details good practices for completing homework. Parents and kids decide how many minutes a night should be devoted to study, and for how many weeks the...
Curated OER
Inference
Making inferences about what you read is an important skill for both elementary, middle, and high school learners. Focusing on events which occurred during World War II, they answer a series of questions related to what we can infer as...
Curated OER
Study of Animals
Third graders use the internet to research about an animal. After watching a demonstration, they follow the same steps to gain access to the internet as their teacher and find a picture of their animal to print. They complete a worksheet...
Curated OER
Appalachia: Physical Fitness
Students plan a family fitness outing. In this physical education lesson, students will research possible physical activities which might be completed by a family during a daily-long outing in the Appalachian area. Students will...
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Online Public Access Catalog
Fourth graders learn how to find books in the library. In this library lesson, 4th graders observe how to use an online system to search for a book by title, author and subject. Students practice searching for books.
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Sorting
Students practice sorting books. In this sorting lesson, students play the Flood Game on the PBS web site. With knowledge of the sorting system used by libraries, students sort small numbers of books using categories devised by their...
Curated OER
What is a Dictionary?
Second graders explore the purpose of a dictionary. In this library media instructional activity, 2nd graders explore My First Dictionary and identify guidewords, entry words, and captions. Students list ways they can use the dictionary.