Like Yuki, Mrs. Sakane, and Ken, characters in Journey to Topaz, class groups must reach a consensus on 12 items they would bring if forced to relocate.  The activity provides readers with an opportunity to make text-to-self and...

The Secret Life of Bees provides high schoolers an opportunity to connect the events in the novel to events in America’s history. After choosing a topic from a provided list, individuals research how the event affected the Civil Rights...

With so many tons of trash going into landfills each year, your environmentalists can calculate how much the average person is tossing away. This activity has a series of questions not only requiring math, but a conscious thought of how...

Making connections between multiple methods of solving problems is an important part of understanding conditional probability. The lesson shows solutions to problems using Venn diagrams, tree diagrams, formulas, and...

Save yourself! Groups create a sturdy emergency shelter out of bamboo. The shelter must be large enough to fit one person. Now the most important question: Which member of the group gets to use the shelter in an emergency?

Encourage text-to-self connections with a prereading strategy designed for Flipped. Clear steps are included, and the actual anticipation guide is the final page of the three-page packet. Ten statements are provided, and class members...

Key parts of an introductory paragraph (grabber sentence, connecting information, thesis) are highlighted in a presentation that uses color-coded sample paragraphs to illustrate how these parts combine to form a complete opening paragraph.

Liken a cell and its organelles to a tiny person and its organs. After gathering information on cell structures and their functions, small groups collaborate to come up with an analogy of their own. They produce a collage describing the...

Learners work in groups to create a storyboard about their video. They shoot a video designed to teach others to connect the computer and camcorder and how to capture video in Adobe Premiere Elements editing program.

Middle schoolers determine how they are included in "Circles of Strength." In this character activity, students reflect on how they are part of "Circles of Strength" in the "Circle of Life." They make an individual circle that includes...

A scarlet letter “V” stands for a desktop teaching vocabulary activity designed for Speak. Prior to reading Laurie Hales Anderson’s young adult novel, individuals sign up for a word, design a handout that illustrates the word, includes...

Having fresh, clean drinking water is a privilege many people take for granted. Help raise awareness about the scarcity of water and the importance of conservation by discussing different ways water is used in everyday life. Brainstorm...

A plethora of activities make up a cross curricular choice page filled with math games—relay races, dice, and crossword puzzles—a survey challenge equipped with data organization, graphing, a quicksand recipe, Hula-Hoop activity to...

After watching a video of Native American artist Maria Martinez create art out of clay, learners will create burnished coil pots similar to those made by artist, Kerry Moosman. This lesson includes a supply list, web links, historical...

This is part of a larger unit on cars (financing, insurance, budget, etc.). Before comparison shopping for their ideal car, teens fill out a survey on their transportation preferences. In related lessons, they consider financing,...

How do one's habits and lifestyle choices affect the environment? Through a short online survey, learners will calculate their own carbon footprints then determine how to reduce their impact on the environment through simple steps, such...

To increase awareness and launch a discussion of consumerism, class members view What Would It Look Like, a 25 minute film of images that capture the global effects of the consumption of goods. Viewers make a list of the images that...

For many high schoolers, what they want to be when they grow up can be very intimidating. Here's an activity that gets them thinking about their interests and how they might connect these interests to future jobs. After watching a short...

Help your class create collective poetry following a simple, engaging model from Teaching Tolerance (tolerance.org). Each young poet writes five things on an index card: sayings from others, favorite sound, favorite place, favorite...

Learners analyze euthanasia as a possible way to die.  In this controversial lesson, students reflect and discuss euthanasia as a possible way to enter death.  Classroom discussion allows learners to voice their opinion and...

At 32 slides, one would think this presentation on thesis statements is a bit too long, but it is the most important component of a well-written essay! Help your developing writers craft concise, interesting theses with this PowerPoint....

Such an ambitious lesson! Third graders with special needs listen to an audio recording of the novel, Moby Dick. They stop often to discuss each of the main characters and analyze their actions in the story. They then make puppets of one...

Add a strong poetry lesson to your literature unit. Middle and high schoolers investigate their writing voices with journaling and group discussion, then choose a famous poet to study. They write letters to their chosen poets, explaining...

Connect science, art, and language arts with a nature-themed bookmaking project. Kids craft book covers, cut paper for pages, and learn how to bind their creations.