Curated OER
Secret Life of Bees Research
The Secret Life of Bees provides high schoolers an opportunity to connect the events in the novel to events in America’s history. After choosing a topic from a provided list, individuals research how the event affected the Civil Rights...
Curated OER
Learning Inference
Making inferences can be a tricky proposition for middle schoolers. In the lesson presented here, pupils practice the skill of drawing a conclusion and making a judgment - which are what making an inference is all about! There are five...
Curated OER
Barnyard Protest: Cows, Chickens & Fundamental Freedoms
Here is an ambitious and engaging lesson that should help elementary schoolers begin to develop a basic understanding of human rights. Pupils are asked to think about their own rights, the rights of others, and how an individual's voice...
Roald Dahl
Matilda - The Third Miracle
Magnus takes a visit to the classroom in the 20th chapter of Matilda. Or does he? After reading, learners interview the person in the hot seat to get a detailed account of what happened during this chapter. Then, they write individual...
Curated OER
Jurassic Park: The Science and Ethics of Genetic Engineering
Explore genetic engineering through an engaging "Jurassic Park" unit, which is an extensive use of a cross-curricular teaching event. Planned for AP Biology, English, and Calculus students, learners and teachers are involved for 4-6...
Curated OER
Chasing Metaphors
Students use metaphors in order to see commonly experienced objects, events, and people in new and more meaningful ways.
Teach Engineering
You Are There... First Flight
Glide into the study of flight. An engaging lesson has scholars research information on the Wright brothers. They develop props and produce a recreation of the first flight at Kitty Hawk. They then report on the event as if they were...
Curated OER
Peace in the Middle East
Students study a region. In this history lesson, students discover how different people and events have affected the Middle East in its efforts to be a peaceful area. They work in small groups on an assigned topic and present their...
Shakespeare in American Life
Tom Hanks and Caliban: Survivor Superstars
Here’s a clever way to combine language arts and social studies. Shakespeare’s The Tempest is believed to have been inspired by the wreck of the Sea Venture on Bermuda in 1609. The class views a brief scene from Castaway in which Tom...
Code.org
Minecraft Hour of Code
Devote an hour to computer coding ... it's time well spent! The activity has young computer scientists write code to solve puzzles in the Minecraft game. They learn how to apply block codes and repeat loops.
Curated OER
The Happy Progress of Our Affairs: George Washington and the U.S. Constitution
Young scholars engage in a instructional activity which uses Washington's own words to illustrate the events leading to the establishment of our national government, and the crucial roles he played throughout that process.
Curated OER
United States Entry into World War I: A Documentary Chronology
Students complete a unit of lessons on the events that led to U.S. involvement in WWI. They complete a Webquest, conduct research, complete a Venn diagram, read and discuss the reasons for entering the war, and create a slideshow.
Curated OER
Revolutionary News Network
Seventh graders study events leading to, during and resulting from the American Revolution. They review elements of a political cartoon. They create and dramatize a scene from a Revolutionary War novel.
Curated OER
Analyzing Atmosphere: Macbeth Murder Scene and Dagger Speech
Shakespeare's Macbeth (Act II, Scenes I and II) lacks explicit details of the murder of King Duncan, yet the author creates an atmosphere that allows us to visualize the event. Readers interpret the "Dagger Speech" by writing stage...
Curated OER
Beneficial Bug Scavenger Hunt
Going on a scavenger hunt sounds like a great way to spice up any lesson plan. To better understand how beneficial insects are, the class goes outdoors to search for and observe a bug that has big benefits. Included in the lesson are...
National Wildlife Federation
Yesterday: Our Energy Needs Over Time
How has our relationship to energy changed over time? An engaging exploration challenges learners to create a timeline showing human energy needs and uses over time. Scholars review what timelines are, choose a 50-year period in history...
Curated OER
"Whose (Is)land is This?": topics in Immigration and The Tempest
Class members compare the ways the subject of immigration is treated in The Tempest, Act I, scene ii, Act II, scene i and Act III, scene ii with patterns in American history. After tracing their own family’s journey, a series of...
Polk County Public Schools
Suffragists
The Women's Rights movement is the focus of an engaging and collaborative exercise, in which young historians use information found in textbooks, class notes, and the provided documents to craft a DBQ essay.
Curated OER
James Madison: From Father of the Constitution to President
Students investigate reasons why James Madison is called the "Father of the Constitution." They discuss three events during his presidency that raised constitutional questions and look at Madison's opinions of those questions. They...
Curated OER
Microscopic Water Life
Students use a light microscope to observe the organisms living in a sample of ocean or fresh water. Students create a drawing of the organisms that they observe. Students then discuss the different body plans of the organisms and the...
Curated OER
My Secret War: Lesson 5
Fifth graders determine how freedom comes with rights and responsibilities through literature and poetry about World War II. In this World War II lesson, 5th graders use the letters in the word "infamy" to write an acrostic poem. They...
Curated OER
During Reading Strategy: Literary Newspaper
Add some writing to your class's reading of Cold Sassy Tree! With this plan, readers assume the role of journalist and create a segment of a paper with their peers. Suggested segments are included, and a worksheet dividing the text into...
Curated OER
Speak Anticipation Guide
Although labeled an anticipation guide, this plan is designed to be used about 22 pages into Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson. A guide is provided with 10 statements. As they read each one, they mark whether or not they agree and whether...
Curated OER
How to Write a Biography
Looking for a great lesson on how to write a biography? Here, middle schoolers draw from magazine articles, novels, historical figures, and current events to choose a person, or character to write about in a biography. They follow a...