Curated OER
Introduction to the Blues
Students learn the basic elements of blues and different lyric structures.
Rainforest Alliance
Stop and Smell the Flowers
It's a bird! It's a bee! Actually, it's your learners flying from flower to flower smelling their scents! Using paper flowers and essential oils, pupils flutter between flowers to use their sense of smell to experience how animals use...
Mathed Up!
Pie Charts
Representing data is as easy as pie. Class members construct pie charts given a frequency table. Individuals then determine the size of the angles needed for each sector and interpret the size of sectors within the context of frequency....
Curated OER
Contra Dance
Contra dance was brought to America by French Soldiers after the Revolutionary War. Contra dancing is done in lines, but with partners facing each other. Some moves one partner is moving forward while the other moves backwards. Some...
Curated OER
Learning to give: freedom songs
Students learn freedom songs and discuss how the famous leaders of the Civil Rights Movement used them to motivate people to overcome adversity during this time. In this freedom songs lesson, students learn the songs and discuss their...
Curated OER
Jay Chou: Famous People (ELL Assignment)
This 13-page assignment was designed for English language learners and includes a one-page reading on the Taiwanese entertainer, Jay Chou, and 10 activities/exercises that address listening and reading comprehension, speaking, vocabulary...
San Francisco Symphony
Mr. Lincoln Through the Eyes of Aaron Copland
Use Aaron Copland's symphonic piece, "Lincoln Portrait" to engage learners in a cross-curricular experience. They'll listen to the piece, watch a video, read the Gettysburg Address, and write a series of fact or opinion sentences. An...
Curated OER
Ragtime: 1880-1920
Build an understanding of the social, economic, and cultural changes that were incited by the American Industrial Revolution. Learners will research the historical context of the Ragtime Era, and compose an oral presentation in the...
Azar Grammar
Song Lessons: Father and Daughter
Paul Simon's "Father and Daughter" offers language learners and native English speakers an opportunity to study adverb, adjective, and noun clauses.
Curated OER
Lady Gaga: Famous People, ELL Assignment
Lady Gaga is the focus of this lengthy assignment for English learners. More than 10 exercises address reading and listening comprehension, speaking skills, vocabulary acquisition, grammar and more! A thorough worksheet. Answers are...
San Francisco Symphony
American Civil War Songs
Learners will compare and contrast two songs from the Civil War era, one from the North and one from the South. They'll write a comparative essay on their songs, and then compare their essays and songs with others in their small groups....
Curated OER
Rainy Day? P.E. Anyway!
If your PE class is faced with bad weather and must stay indoors, try one of these activities to keep them engaged and moving! Activities involve working in teams, identifying sports or parts of the body, coordination practice, and/or...
Curated OER
Wonderful Whales
Primary marine biologists consider the largest living animals on Earth, the whales. Introduce them to general anatomy, unique adaptations, and behaviors. Teach them to sing a song that will help them remember some of these facts....
Museum of the Moving Image
Developing Critical Analysis
To gain an understanding of how images and sounds are used to influence viewers, class members analyze these features in Presidential campaign commercials from 1952-2012.
Curated OER
Nurture Poetry
Young scholars create a poetry book. In this poetry lesson, students write a cinquain poem, name poem, haiku, limerick, and preposition poem.
Curated OER
Racing with Sam
This assignment begins with an 8-page article about Sam Berns, a young man who suffers the rare genetic disease called progeria. Progeria is caused by a gene mutation and manifests itself as rapid premature aging. When your biology class...
Curated OER
Thomas Edison's Bright Ideas
Thomas Alva Edison may be one of the most well-known scientists to elementary or middle schoolers. Use his story to show that he invented more than just the light bulb and to inspire youngsters to work hard! You could use this on the...
Curated OER
The 2012 Grammy Awards
Kids answer 11 who, what, when, where, and why questions after reading a New York Times article about the Grammy Awards. Boosting reading comprehension by reading about a topical event keeps pupils informed and interested. A related blog...
American Museum of Natural History
Make Your Own Paper
Paper, paper everywhere. Paper is so prolific that few think about where the idea for it originated and how it is made. Introduce young readers to the paper-making process with an activity that lets them create their own.
Curated OER
Using Effective, Evocative Writing as a Model
Students study an author's style to strengthen their own writing. They read an author's account of the resiliency of the Malian people and about their culture. They examine her focus on Malian women.
Curated OER
Vibrating Objects Produce Sound
Students use many different materials and resources in order to study and identify sounds that are loud or soft, high or low, pleasant or unpleasant.
Curated OER
Scrabble Endurance
Students practice movement skills while working on their spelling. They review spelling words and practice the locomotor and non-locomotor skills involved.
Curated OER
The Water Cycle and Clementine
Third graders sing a piggyback song to explore the parts of the water cycle and then illustrate and label the water cycle in their science journals.
