Curated OER
Costume Exploration
What a great instructional activity, upper graders are sure to love. They explore costume design and the relationships between theatre, culture, and history. They research three time periods, write a response about two of them, then...
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Nellie Bly's Newspaper Club: Introducing the Science of Writing
Students evaluate a video about Nellie Bly, a famous reporter from the 19th century. They consider what makes a high-interest news article, write an essay in pairs and present it a literary tea.
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"All About Me" Paragraph
Fifth graders write a paragraph titled "All About Me" in the computer lab after they have drawn graphic organizers to fill in background information about themselves and used a "10-Point Writing Checklist" to do peer editing.
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The Poetics of Hip Hop
Students consider the role of rhythm, form, diction, and sound in poetry. In this integrated arts instructional activity, students discuss the attributes of poetry as they analyze Shakespearean sonnets, hip hop music lyrics, and...
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Exploring the Sonnet
Students research English/Shakespearean and Italian/Petrarchan sonnet forms. They write an original sonnet on their preferred form (English or Italian), write the poem on the wordprocessor and publish and post it on the net at the Sonnet...
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Designing Scavengers
Students write a headline that captures the most important aspects of the People's Design Award. In this design instructional activity, students are introduced to The People's Design Award and collaborate to create a headline for a...
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Multimedia Valentine's Card
Third graders create a Valentine's card stack for a special person of their choice. They write a clear and coherent sentences and paragraphs that create a central idea. Students use the computer to create a HyperStudio two card stack....
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The Poetics of Hip Hop
The Bard, Nikki Giovanni, Mos Def? “Sonnet 18,” Ego Tripping,” and “Black on Both Sides”? Sure! It’s the poetics. Class members compare the lyrics, rhythm, and rhyme in classic poetry to hip-hop in a richly detailed resource that...
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The People's Design Award
Students analyze, critique, and evaluate information from various sources and learn about the design process. In this design lesson, students critique work submitted to People's Design Award and create a design of their own to present to...
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Creating a Children's Book
Students create a studenT book following an introduction to the publication process. Through exposure to several sources, students learn the steps involved in publishing a book.
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Irish Literature Scavenger Hunt
Fourth graders locate and evaluate various books, journals, anthologies, and Internet sources that contain information that may be used in answering the scavenger hunt questions related to Ireland and Irish literature.
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Coast-to-Coast Book Design-Part 4: Let's Create the Pages!
Young scholars work in groups to share their lists of A-B-C ideas they came up with from the previous activity. They review page layouts taught during lesson two. Students complete a rough draft of their page. They create a colored...