Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Songwriting Skill - Choosing a Tone: Jordan Pruitt - “One Love”
"Tone means attitude." Or so says this resource that uses Jordan Pruitt's "One Love" to model for songwriters how to develop an attitude in their lyrics. Class members engage in a number of exercises designed to give them direct and...
Curated OER
Missing Macroinvertebrates - Stream Side Science
Field study groups collect samples of stream water and identify the macroinvertebrates found. Using their data, they calculate a water quality index to rate the health of the stream. They graph their data and discuss the value of a water...
Curated OER
Note-Taking: K.I.S.S. "Keep It Short and Simple"
Note-taking is an essential study skill, and it needs to be taught! In the context of a research project on energy sources, learners find multiple sources, evaluating, paraphrasing, and citing them correctly. Two lists with note-taking...
National Security Agency
Are You Game? A Lesson Connecting Fractions and Probability
Exactly how fair are the board games children grow up playing? Young mathematicians investigate this questions as they work their way through this five-lesson series on basic probability.
Curated OER
Women in Texas Politics: Winning the Vote, Three Pioneers, and Serving the People
Fourth graders study women's involvement in Texas politics. In this US history lesson, 4th graders discuss woman suffrage, examine three Texas female pioneer legislators by reading biographies, and explore women's issues by generating a...
Curated OER
Tejana Military Members in World War II
Seventh graders discover who the Tejanas were and how they contributed to World War II. In this World War II lesson, 7th graders listen to their instructor discuss who the Tejanas were prior to researching the contributions of three of...
Mathematics Assessment Project
Sampling and Estimating: Counting Trees
Your task today: count all the trees on a tree farm. To complete the assignment, learners first estimate the number of trees on a tree farm using random sampling. To improve their own response they then evaluate provided...
Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy
A Search for Symbolism in The Great Gatsby
After reading The Great Gatsby, groups return to the text and note passages where Fitzgerald uses symbols and color imagery in his narrative. They then develop a presentation that explains the context, the implications, and possible...
Reed Novel Studies
The Wednesday Wars: Novel Study
Teacher's pet or enemy? Holling, a character in The Wednesday Wars, feels his teacher is out to get him. However, he has to remain on his best behavior to ensure his father's business does not suffer. How will he ever survive 7th grade?...
Curated OER
Classroom Archaeology
Students, in groups, receive a box of artifacts. They record their findings and discuss what the items would have been used for. They come together at the end of the lesson to share their findings.
Illinois Department of Natural Resources
Section One: What is Biodiversity?
Four intriguing and scientific activities invite learners to explore the natural resources of their town. The activities cover concepts such as genetic traits, organizing species in a taxonomy, the differences between different species...
Curated OER
The Carbon Cycle
Here is an interesting science instructional activity. Pupils discover that carbon, just like water, is absolutely necessary for all living things to survive. They study how it cycles through nature, become familiar with the periodic...
Curated OER
Turning the Tide in Europe, 1942-1944
High schoolers explore the overall strategies pursued by the Americans and their British allies in the initial months of World War II in Europe. By examining military documents, students examine the decision to invade North Africa...
Curated OER
The War in the North, 1775-1778
Students investigate the hardships and difficulties that the Continental army faced in the early years of the American War for independence. the battles of Lexington and concord and the expectations of the Continental Army forms the...
Curated OER
Poetry Project
Choosing a poet or a theme, eighth graders conduct research in the world of poetry. They conduct Internet research and select five poems that fit their poet or theme, and create a seven slide PowerPoint presentation on their selected...
Texas State University
Earth: Deposition and Lithification
Geology geniuses analyze sediment samples with a hand lens and sort according to physical characteristics. They also learn about the processes of cementation, compaction, and lithification within the rock cycle. The lesson plan is...
Curated OER
Using Wordless Comics To Help Create Meaning in Reading
Use picture cues as a tool in order to create meaning along with text. With a wordless comic, young illustrators discuss the main idea and character traits, and independently write a summary for a page of a wordless comic. This strategy...
Curated OER
De-Mystifying Poetry: Understanding Narrative Poetry
Tenth graders explore narrative poetry. They analyze sections of a poem and present to groups. They compose their own narrative poems using pictures as prompts. They exchange their poems and analyze their classmate's poem.
Curated OER
Solar Kit Lesson #1 - Solar Cell Inquiry
Give youngsters the components of a solar-powered electric circuit and turn them loose to figure out how to connect them in order for a light to shine or motor to turn. They compare energy output of a solar panel to that of a battery. On...
Curated OER
Was the Stamp Act Fair?
Elementary and middle schoolers examine and evaluate different perspectives concerning events leading to the American Revolution. In this case, they hone in on the Stamp Act. They research controversial bills, laws, or events of the time...
Curated OER
"Old 300"
Fourth graders combine art and history to assess the importance of the "Old 300." They explore a group of colonists that Stephen F. Austin brought to Texas as the first settlers and then create a time line of major events leading to the...
Curated OER
Friar Margil & The Spanish Missions
Students explore the life of Friar Margil de Jesus as well as other Spanish friars. They research Friar Margil and write a paragraph explaining why Spanish friars came to Texas. In groups, students create a PowerPoint presentation...
Curated OER
Crafting Models of Efficiency
Students build and compare models of both an energy inefficient and efficient classroom. In this energy efficiency lesson, students creatively use recycled materials to build two separate classroom models. They factor in concepts such as...
Curated OER
Friar Margil and the Spanish Missions
Fourth graders investigate the life of Friar Margil. For this research lesson, 4th graders analyze an illustration of Friar Margil, then create their own illustration of Friar Margil's life. A list of 5 materials is included.