Curated OER
Warm Thoughts About the Cold
“What do you think life is like at the South Pole?” After responding to this journal prompt, class members read and discuss the New York Times article, “At South Pole, New Home for a New Era.” Using resources available from the Times’...
Curated OER
Local Motives
Investigate current local elections across the United States with this New York Times reading lesson. Using informational text, middle and high schoolers research local elections and create their own news reports about what they...
Curated OER
For the Record
Students read a New York Times article in order to examine the importance of cultural artifacts. They create essays from the point of view of one cultural artifact to demonstrate the knowledge they gained by doing research.
Curated OER
Presidential Election Year: Major Issues
Whether or not it's a presidential election year, this debate activity will spark research on current political issues. Split your government scholars into 4 groups and assign each a political party. One person will be the "candidate"...
Curated OER
Time Line Reporters
Individuals in your class research the origin of an animal and present their discoveries to the class. The first appearance of the animal and its date of extinction are indicated on a class time line.
Curated OER
How is the Game Played in an Economics Class?
Students research companies, choose stocks, and create portfolios online while playing the stock market game.
Curated OER
Full Circle Advertising: A Look at Teen Alcohol Use and Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
High schoolers analyze ads and learn about the effects of alcohol. Note that the PowerPoint mentioned in the procedure is not included, so you will need to prepare your own presentation. After the lecture, segue into fetal alcohol...
Curated OER
Why Can’t I Have Sugar? All About Diabetes
Begin the lesson by having your class write what they know about diabetes. They learn through a skit how the body metabolizes glucose. A visual representation of the two types of diabetes is displayed, and then learners participate in...
Curated OER
Dragonwings: Explore Chapters 1-5
If you are beginning Laurence Yep's Dragonwings, this will provide activities for the first five chapters. The objectives include making connections to oneself and the world, organizing information and events, vocabulary acquisition,...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Lesson 2: What Has Happened in the White House?
Working in small groups, or individually, learners are given images of events that took place at the White House. They study the image and research that time in history to better understand how the White House has been affected by...
Curated OER
Stop the Fighting and Start Uniting
Research current and proposed peace talks around the world with this New York Times lesson, Using the Darfur peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria as a starting point, middle schoolers create a news program on the subject. They propose a future...
Curated OER
All the World's a Stage
Is the circus a form of theater? Read "A City of Clowns? What Else Is New?" to sway your class that a circus, is indeed, a theatrical performance. Critical thinkers compare/contrast various forms of theater and identify what makes the...
Curated OER
Are Your Favorite Rockstars Poets?
Tenth graders decide if the song lyrics that they listen to, could be considered a sonnet or a poem. They are invited to explore lyrics and their meaning. Students write a persuading argument on whatever they decide, but it must be...
Curated OER
Life in Ancient Ghana, Mali, and Songhai
Learners study the ancient African kingdoms of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai. They brainstorm what they know about ancient African kingdoms before investigating the trade and barter situations, and researching one of the kingdoms for an oral...
Curated OER
The Gay '80s, '90s and '00s
After reading and discussing a news article from the New York Times regarding gay and lesbian issues of the last thirty years, students engage in several activities to explore current events. They create a timeline, either electronically...
Curated OER
Mark Twain: Straddling the Civil War
Mark Twain's life, politics, writing, and role as a mirror of pre- and post-Civil War American culture are the focus 11th and 12th graders in this section from an expansive author study. A critical writing assignment comparing Twain...
Curated OER
Charles Darwin Meets John Paul II
If you teach AP English language and composition and are looking for a way to address the differences between written and spoken arguments, consider this instructional activity. Over the course of three days, class members research...
Curated OER
Avoiding Consumer Fraud: Financial Scams and Schemes
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...
Alabama Department of Archives and History
Women of the Movement: Civil Rights Movement in Alabama
Many know of Rosa Parks involvement in the Civil Rights Movement, but who were other female leaders? The lesson focuses on female Civil Rights leaders and their achievements. Scholars complete research, participate in group discussions,...
Towson University
Looking Backwards, Looking Forward
How do scientists know what Earth's climate was like millions of years ago? Young environmental scholars discover how researchers used proxy data to determine the conditions present before written record. Grouped pupils gain experience...
Library of Congress
After Reconstruction: Problems of African Americans in the South
Lynchings, race riots, and Jim Crow laws were just a few examples of antagonism that African Americans faced after Emancipation. Class groups investigate these and other events, and prepare a presentation to inform the class about...
National Council of Teachers of English
Timelines and Texts: Motivating Students to Read Nonfiction
With the emphasis on incorporating more nonfiction in language arts classes the question arises about how to design activities that motivate kids to engage with informational text. How about an assignment that asks class members to...
Kenan Fellows
Let's Move
Find a statistical reason for a fresh start. Using a hypothetical scenario, individuals research statistical data of three different cities. Their goal? Find the best statistical reason for a business to move to a new location. Their...
Curated OER
Pet Perspective
Discuss point of view through a familiar medium: your pet! Learners write a story from the perspective of their own or the class pet. Prompts such as "My Family" (or "My Class"), "My Day," and "A Day in the Life of a _________" help...