Explain the differences between fiction and non-fiction and the characteristics of a biography. Learners analyze three pieces of literature on the same topic to determine which is fiction and which is non-fiction. In the end, relate the...

Students determine the workings of the Braille alphabet and how people with visual impairments learn how to use it. In this Braille lesson, students study the associated vocabulary, read about Helen Keller, and complete associated...

November is NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month! If your class is participating (or simply doing a narrative writing unit), this peer review lesson is part of a larger unit which can be easily found online. Once your writers have...

What is a bully? Romeo and Juliet's Act 3 Scene 1 gives eighth and ninth graders the perfect opportunity to explore bullying. After doing some Internet research on bullying characteristics, groups reenact the scene to decide who is...

The concluding lesson plan in this four-star series is World Cup day! Players come dressed in the colors of the country they are representing for the World Cup tournament. The rules for the mini-games in this tournament are modified to...

Here is a series of five exercises intended to bring movement, dance, and theater into the classroom. Intended for special ed classes, but appropriate for any grade, learners will pantomime, play pretend, dance, move, and create...

A digital footprint is the trail of personal information that comes from purchasing online, tagging friends in photos, blogging, and using social media. Kids discuss what information can be tracked, privacy, and what your digital...

Should Internet users who send data-heavy content pay higher fees than those who are involved in activities, like sending an email, that have less content? This question is at the heart of the Net Neutrality debate. After watching a PBS...

Everyone needs to know how to eat well to stay healthy. Learners with mild disabilities log what they eat, discuss food choices, and review healthy foods. The lesson could be used to foster living skills in high-functioning individuals...

Life science learners construct lung-o-meters from gallon-sized milk jugs and then measure their lung capacities. For older students, have them graph the vital lung capacities of each person in the class. Cross-curricular pieces are...

Teams of six to eight players imagine that they are driving in a vehicle and collect balls that represent carbon dioxide emissions based on their different activities. "Greenhouse Gas Guzzler" cards tell teams how many balls to collect...

Although designed for a foods lab, the information in this resource might be just the thing for your own recipe notebook. Illustrated, step-by-step directions for making the perfect omelet, egg-citing puzzles, games, and even...

This packet, the third in the series of support materials for the Houghton Mifflin Harcourt thematic units on voyagers, contains activities for learners who may struggle with the basic concepts of the lessons. Included are...

Distracted pedestrians? Yes. This lesson on pedestrian safety points out the dangers of texting and posting while walking around traffic. In addition, kids learn about safety resources available for those on foot.

Introduces your class to random processes in networks with an activity that uses information about disease spread using the susceptible, infectious, resistant (SIR) model. Participants determine whether a susceptible person becomes...

The last unit in the series allows kindergarteners to see the dangers and hazards associated with each of the natural disasters learned so far in the series—earthquakes and volcanoes. They listen to sounds associated with the...

Double the fun — calculate two measures of deviation. The lesson plan provides information to lead the class through the process of calculating the mean absolute deviation and the standard deviation of a data set. After learning how to...

Applying engineering concepts to the field of medicine, pupils design a device to help test peripheral sight. The class learns and follows a specific design process for engineers before separating into groups; each group builds...

A teacher's guide for Kindred provides instructors with a wealth of materials to enrich either a full-class reading or independent study of Octavia E. Butler's popular science fiction novel. The activities are designed to...

Einstein once said "A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new." Enlist his help in teaching young learners the importance of looking for mistakes in hypotheses. An interactive coaches pupils in the falsifiability of...

Shakespeare's plays may be old, but they still have relevant lessons for today's world! A collection of lesson plans uses examples from The Merchant of Venice and District Merchants to teach about bravery. In addition to learning...

Get up close and personal with DNA! A two-part hands-on activity has learners extract DNA from a small organism and then their own cheek cells. Scholars then explore DNA replication using questions to guide their analyses.

What effect could one person's invention have on the human race? In the case of the Neolithic Agricultural Revolution, small improvements in farming methods led to increased food production. The human population began to boom, leading us...

In our increasingly multi-ethnic society, many students find it difficult to identify themselves as belonging to any one ethnicity. Gene Tagaban, a Tlingit, Cherokee, Filipino offers his personal experiences with these questions in his...