Study the chemistry of mining! Through nine lessons in the unit, learners explore different concepts related to mining. Their study ranges from rock and mineral analysis to the environmental impact of dynamite and the chemical reaction...

Students explore the survey of the Louisiana Purchase by creating their own surveying and mapping techniques such as natural maps, pace maps, and orienting. Other students then try to follow the maps.

Aside from the amazing animals in Gorongosa National Park, what else is there to discover? The sixth installment in an eight-part themed series contains an interactive map where scholars can learn more about the geographic features of...

Take a walk on the wild side! Episode one of an eight-part series of interactive lessons regarding Gorongosa National Park invites learners to become a part of the citizen science community. Scholars read a brief overview of the trail...

Did humans and dinosaurs coexist? How do we know? Scholars dig in to the tools and methods researchers used to study the process of human evolution by watching a slideshow with embedded video clips. Pupils learn the importance of asking...

After watching the documentary Dark Water about a traditional Chumash ceremony and reading a Chumash origin story, viewers are asked to create a coat of arms and to craft an essay that details a family tradition or their own origin story.

Learners sometimes struggle to understand the concept of adding and subtracting integers. Help them see the why behind their answers using the interactive number line. The values change as individuals adjust the number line for each new...

The Cay has been criticized by groups such as the Council on Interracial Books for Children because of the way race is portrayed. Explore the argument against the book while taking the author's perspective into account. Class members...

Get started with The Cay. First, provide some background information and images that relate to the novel. Then pupils can create double-entry journals. Once that is complete, read the first two chapters, encouraging individuals to record...

If you're looking to set your class up for writing effective arguments, try out this idea. While originally created with freedom as a guiding idea, the activity could easily be adapted for other themes. As a class, create a chart of...

Use Langston Hughes's poem, "Words Like Freedom," to explore the concepts of freedom and liberty. Learners read the poem, determine the theme, and use the provided graphic organizer to examine the connotative and denotative meanings of...

Building upon prior lessons in the series, this reading and writing exercise requires pupils to look back at their own writing, track character development in the novel The Cay, and analyze how Phillip has changed. The reading focus is...

The United States Civil War forced Northern and Southern societies, as well as the people who made up those societies, to reconstruct their vision of themselves and their identities. A series of video-based web lessons look at the great...

Was the Civil War fought only due to slavery? Using an interactive web tool, scholars investigate the four main causes of the Civil War. Gathering evidence and data to support their claims, they present a final statistical breakdown...

Is there value in preserving indigenous languages that are almost extinct? That's the question posed to viewers of a short film about the attempt of one Native American woman who is creating a dictionary for Wakchumni, the language of...

Some lessons feature videos, some interactive practice problems, and some have notes and activities. This comprehensive look at factoring and solving polynomial equations using the zero product principle has all of this and more. Though...

Build a foundational understanding of exponent patterns. Young scholars manipulate the bases of exponent expressions. They discover the meaning of negative exponents through their exploration.

Can the president of the United States hire anyone he or she wants for any position in the executive branch? The answer may surprise scholars! After investigating the appointment process, historians, by themselves or in pairs, analyze...

What a fun way to familiarize your young learners with friendly faces on campus! Scholars read "The Gingerbread Man," discussing the characters he meets. Then, they examine a map of the campus, placing photos of employees (such as the...

Learning to craft quality questions is a skill that can be taught. Class members use the Question Formulation Technique to learn how to create and refine both closed-ended and open-ended questions. They then view West of the West's...

Ease your class into reading Running Out of Time by first reading The Boy Who Stopped Time, a picture book with some similar concepts and themes. After a reading of the story, learners participate in a discussion and journaling exercise.

Fifth graders explore the Adventures of Don Quixote in a four-week language arts unit. Scholars listen to and discuss a new chapter each day as well as examine vocabulary and practice word work including suffixes, subject-verb agreement,...

Don't be fooled by cyber scams! An informative lesson teaches techies about cybersecurity. They watch videos, play a game, and engage in discussion to improve their understanding of online safety.

Offer young scholars strategies for dealing with bullies with help from BrainPop Jr.'s favorite characters, Annie and Moby. Youngsters watch a video, take part in a grand conversation, and play a game designed to reinforce...