Students use the Drake Equation to calculate the probability of sustaining life on various planets. Through the use of the equation, they determine whether intelligent and advanced civilizations can be developed on planets other than...

How does word choice affect the reading of a text? Compare two headlines that were written about the same event. Is one biased? Discuss how word choice often reveals the author's feelings about a topic. Then look at different techniques...

To conclude a study of social justice and tolerance designed to prepare classes for a visit to the Museum of Tolerance, class members brainstorm a safe and peaceful world. They then write about their own vision of this world.

Check the label! That's the big idea in a activity about using the nutrition facts on food labels rather than advertising hype to make healthy choices about what to eat. After reading background articles and learning how to read...

What would change in your daily life due to a power outage? Here, learners explore the inventions brought to us by the one and only, Thomas Edison, and imagine a day without them. Scholars take part in a grand conversation and write a...

Criticism of news and entertainment journalism is at an all-time high. Help 21st-century learners develop the media literacy skills they need to become critical consumers with a three-lesson guide the looks at persuasive techniques used...

Forgiveness can be a difficult step to take in any circumstance, but is it more difficult if the offense is more egregious? High schoolers consider the concept of forgiveness before reading William Shakespeare's The Tempest. As...

Save that site! Budding historians go on a rescue mission to save important Civil War battle sites using a project-based lesson. After carefully researching the importance of critical engagements and evaluating current threats, learners...

What could you pack for a trip if you don't know the destination? After writing a list of items they would want to bring, fourth graders learn that the "trip" is to the South Pole - revealing the need to understand all available...

Students use persuasive devices to construct oral or written arguments. In this arguments lesson, students discuss the types of persuasive devices used in arguments and form groups to select a topic to research. Students create a...

Students present speeches. In this philanthropy instructional activity, students invite another class to come visit. They talk about philanthropy and present persuasive speeches written in a previous instructional activity. The visiting...

Students participate in a nonprofit organization activity for hunger outreach problems. In this service project lesson, students practice counting coins, complete a service project for a hunger outreach, discuss nutrition and healthy...

The murder of Emmett Till is the focus of a guided inquiry that asks scholars to research the events, the trial, recent attempts to reopen the case and the effect of the murder on people today.

Pupils research controversial statements about biological applications and write a persuasive essay. For this biology lesson plan, students are assigned a controversial statement as a research topic, then they use this topic to create a...

Listen to Sitti's Secrets and have your class discuss their opinions about Arab families.  They will become familiar with the Palestinian /Arabic Culture through a critical literacy focus.  Learners will write a persuasive...

Students are introduced to the purpose of the World Bank and its president Paul Wolfowitz. After reading an article, they work together to complete a writing exercise in which they use primary source documents to state their viewpoint. ...

Young scholars watch two commericals from previous presidential elections on the topic of healthcare. After reading an article, they identify the position of the various candidates for the 2008 election. In groups, they brainstorm their...

High schoolers explore the history of the Pennsylvania Constitution of 1776. In this historical analysis lesson, students analyze the constitution of the state and determine how citizens benefited (or didn't benefit) from the document....

Students examine fractured fairy tales before responding by writing in many different genres including a persuasive essay, a personal narrative, a letter, an advertisement, and a resume'. They create a pop-up book with their written...

Students participate in a round-table discussion about the juvenile justice system and investigate the 'age of accountability' debate. They write a persuasive essay supporting or refuting the punishment received by the children discussed...

Students explore wildlife conservation by investigating the reintroduction of species into their natural habitats and species near extinction. They create a poster and a position paper that explains the importance of preserving this...

Students examine the French draft law to ban religious symbols from public schools. They research "secularist" and "pluralist" positions regarding this ban, debate the topic in class, and draft a position paper on the ban.

Students investigate the lives of pets by videotaping them.  For this animal life lesson, students videotape a cat and other pets using school cameras in a computer lab.  Students review the footage from the cat and other...

Tenth graders participate in a lesson plan that is focused on the concept of writing persuasive speechs. They conduct research from a variety of sources in order to gather information to write well informed speeches.