Curated OER
The Ethics of Outsourcing to China
After viewing clips from a documentary on factory work in China and US outsourcing, learners have a fishbowl discussion. They work in groups to build both personal points of view and strong arguments on the effects of outsourcing in...
Curated OER
Holiday Cookie Exchange
Students build community with cookies. In this service learning instructional activity, students make holiday cookies to share with the custodial maintenance staff and cafeteria staff in their school.
Missouri Department of Elementary
Relationships…Quality Control
Quality relationships don't just happen. They require nurturing, patience, thoughtful communication, and honesty. Help tweens develop these relationship skills with an activity that asks them to themselves and then outline a...
Curated OER
Grade 8: Intermediate-Level Social Studies, Booklet 2 Document-Based Question, 2008
In this 8th grade social studies standardized test practice learning exercise, students respond to 1 essay and 10 short answer questions that require them to review their knowledge of history and government in the United States.
Curated OER
Social Studies: Dressing in Style
Students explore the effects of personal appearance and determine if their own is acceptable. They examine clothing and discuss the situations in which the various items would be appropriate. Students take pictures of others in the...
Curated OER
Community Helpers
In this community workers instructional activity, students read a one page text that has information about 8 community helpers and their jobs. Students then answer 8 matching questions and draw a mini poster that tells why community...
Curated OER
Friendship Salad
What goes into a friendship salad? Kids find out as they create a fruit salad made of all the important parts of a successful classroom (helpers, listeners, hard workers, sharing, and encouraging words). Don't let that rotten banana in,...
Advocates for Human Rights
Migrants in the Media
Class members examine two documents—The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and The Rights of Migrants in the United States—and then use reports in the media to assess how well the US is doing in ensuring these rights.
Curated OER
American History: The United Farm Workers (UFW) and Pesticides
Learners are able to answer research questions through internet research. They write a bridf history of the UFW using research. Students are able to create resumes of Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta by researching their biography.
Main Memory Network
Longfellow's "The Village Blacksmith" and Whitman's "Song of Myself"
Although the work Americans do has changed over time, the plight of the American worker has largely remained the same. Facilitate a class discussion aboutAmerican workers using Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "The Village Blacksmith" and...
Missouri Department of Elementary
Listening Exercise
Active listening is key to interacting with others in a way that shows respect. To develop their skill as listeners, high schoolers first play the "Telephone Game" to demonstrate some of the problems that arise in communication. Pairs...
Missouri Department of Elementary
Similar and Different
Using a Venn diagram, pupils compare the similarities and differences between two classmates. Next, they review the CARE acronym (Collaboration, Acceptance, Respect, Empathy) and discuss how it applies to diversity in the classroom.
Missouri Department of Elementary
To Give In or Not to Give In—That Is the Question!
No! A very simple word that can be very hard to say. Seventh graders have an opportunity to practice this difficult skill as they engage in a series of role-playing scenarios. As an exit ticket, 7th graders write a reflection on the...
Missouri Department of Elementary
Getting Caught in the Web
When it comes to teamwork, it's best not to drop the ball. Pupils stand in a circle, tossing around a ball of yarn to one another to create a web. Next, they use teamwork skills to keep a soccer ball from falling off the web before...
Missouri Department of Elementary
So Much to Do, So Little Time: How Do I Tie All of the Loose Ends Together?
How do people manage to get everything done when there are so few hours in a day? Scholars explore the question as they participate in small group discussions about time management. They construct a daily schedule and complete a...
Curated OER
Finding My Pathway
Eighth graders engage in a lesson plan that is concerned with the acquiring of skills necessary to make informed career choices. They examine the type of language that should be acquired for communication in the workplace. They also have...
Missouri Department of Elementary
If It’s to Be, It’s Up to Me
Here's a clever switch on the tale of Pandora's Box. Rather than lifting the lid and having problems escape, class members write a problem on a strip of paper and place it in Pandora's Problem Box. A student then pulls a problem...
Missouri Department of Elementary
Putting on Armor
Peers can exert tremendous pressure that can lead to positive and negative consequences. To conclude the Risky Business unit, class members create a Personal Safety Plan. They list things or situations that cause stress, things they have...
Missouri Department of Elementary
Lean Mean Coping Machine!
Seventh graders are asked to choose and rank five scenarios from a list of ten that are most important to them. After explaining the reasons for the choices, they then identify the coping skills they used to make their decisions.
Missouri Department of Elementary
What Does Respect Look Like at Home?
Individuals consider why is it important to respect family members as they complete a self-respect survey to assess their respectful behaviors at home. They then choose three items from the survey and write about how they plan to improve...
Missouri Department of Elementary
The Hope to Cope: Coping Skills
Making decisions can be stressful, even for sixth graders. And even students this young have developed coping skills, some positive and some negative, to help them deal with stress. Class members are asked to identify several of their...
Curated OER
What Does Respect Look Like in School?
Fourth graders discuss why everyone needs and wants to feel respected. As a class, they share what respect looks like and what disrespect looks like. They pretend they have to leave their most valued object with a secret agent and what...
Curated OER
All Around the Neighborhood - Part 2
Second graders review community leaders, their role and responsibility. After reviewing the job of a police officer, they write about the skills, roles and responsibilities a worker has on a provided silhouette. Students share their...
Curated OER
All Around the Neighborhood
Second graders explore the roles, responsibilities and skills of community leaders as they discuss the definition of community. They brainstorm businesses in the community and explore the importance of each profession represented in the...