Following detailed directions, teams collect the voltage and current outputs of a photovoltaic cell by adjusting the resistance. Using the collected data, they determine the highest power output. Implications for weather and a large...

Reading informational text is a skill that transcends subjects and grade levels. Practice reading about different topics in various formats with a language arts lesson that includes opportunities for writing and research as well.

It takes a strong foundation to build a house and a stronger one for a bridge. This resource presents the effects of geology and soil on bridge foundations. Working in groups, the class investigates the interaction of shallow and deep...

It's easy to criticize those in power until you're sitting at their desk, faced with the same decisions. A history lesson prompts secondary learners to research the Roosevelt presidencies through the lens of leadership and...

Introduce starting space scientists to the electromagnetic spectrum, expecially the portion of visible light. Teach them about wavelength and frequesncy. Then give them a roll of adding machine tape and a manila folder to make a...

Here is a 12-page outline of an introductory science lesson. The teacher lectures on what science is, the role of a scientists, different disciplines of science, and the impact of scientific discoveries. Detailed lecture notes are...

Upper graders read the book Holes as a class or by themselves. In groups, they identify symbols and discuss how they are connected  among the many plots in the story. They create a timeline in which they sequence the main...

The PBS film, Bronx Princess, launches a study of complex parent-child relationships. Using the provided reading guide, viewers respond to clips from the film and compare Rocky and Yaa’s relationship to other parent-child relationships....

Young entomologists discover insect anatomy in a very detailed unit plan. Offering background information for teachers about various insects, class members explore the differences between bugs and insects—and yes, there are many...

Check out this detailed resource for some beginning of the year activities. After examining examples, class members uses the computer lab to create a personal brochure enhanced with clip art or photos to introduce themselves to the...

Young consumers get a hefty dose of information on how fraud can put their financial health at risk. The resource provides detailed lecture notes, scaffolded notetaking sheets, vocabulary worksheets, transparencies, and seven links to...

Following directions is an important skill for any grade level. High schoolers work follow directions to an activity that focuses on filling out college and job applications.

Secondary artists create a metal box made from copper tooling foil and solid oil paint sticks (Shiva Paintstiks). The exacting design develops organizational principles and the painted finish allows for individual expression of...

Using research notes on feudal roles in medieval Europe, learners work cooperatively to write a play about one day in the life of a boy or girl in the Middle Ages.

Kiln-glazed ceramics not an option? Kids can create their own art nouveau tiles using ceramic bisque tiles. The packet includes a video to prepare and inspire your artists, as well as detailed directions for various age groups, a...

Good books are accessible through a variety of literary lenses. To consider how the same story can be seen in different lights, groups develop a storyboard for a movie teaser that would focus on one of six concepts found in Suzanne...

Robert Coles’ The Story of Ruby Bridges forms the basis of this powerful cross-curricular study of civic education and civic responsibility. Class members consider how the book presents authority, responsibility, justice, and privacy.....

Grading essays after reading a novel written by a lyrical master (think Nabokov, Morrison, Chabon) is a deflating experience. Why can’t your student’s display the same skill in diction as your favorite writers? Because you did not use...

Why is a letter a better way to learn about a person than a different primary source? Explore Thomas Day's ideas and advice to his daughter in a letter from 1851, which details the struggles of the American South before the Civil War....

Third graders complete several activities in their quest to find out about the addition of fluoride to city water. First, they create a guide sheet to help organize notes. The next two steps involve taking notes through guided practice....

Students develop their speaking skills. In this oral communication lesson, students read "One Hen" by Katie Smith Milway and work in groups to discover how making a small loan to the main character in the story had positive effects....

Students record changes in an ecosystem. In this science lesson plan students make a hypothesis about changes in a terrarium. They record their observations. The students conduct an experiment to test their hypothesis.

Students explore immigration.  In this immigration lesson, students research the topic and compare immigration of the past to the present.  They create a decade long timeline of immigration.

Map the classroom with your kids to help them understand how maps work and how to read them. The lesson starts off with a story about animals living and moving around the globe, and then kids create maps of their classroom to show how...