In this which one is not the insect activity, students look at three lines of bugs and circle the one on each line that is not an insect. Students then color each insect or bug with appropriate colors.

Kids kick of the lesson by comparing and contrasting the focus painting to other similar paintings of Native American women. They then compare their own personal portraits (photographs) in a similar way. They use the differences in each...

Geometry novices will enjoy this approach to finding area, as they aren't required to include units or a formula. The main objective here is to segment a rectangle into columns and rows to create squares, which then are used to find the...

High school learners examine primary source materials on history and the supernatural which relate to Julius Caesar. They then act out a scene based on different historical understandings and identify facts, theories, and similarities in...

Young artists will respond to reading children's literature, by engaging in original storytelling and representing their own images through the visual arts. Then they orally describe details of people, places, and things in their stories...

Discovering the creative process can be done through critical analysis. Upper graders examine a hand -carved Shinto Deity, discussing purpose, technique, and artistic expression. They then read a poem about the creative process. and...

Young authors examine a clay figure in order to learn about the 6+1 Trait writing process. They consider how the art was made or buit up step-by-step, they then write about a process in their own lives that occurs in a similar way. 

Cross-media analysis takes time and attention to detail. The class analyzes the painting Long Jakes and the poem "Backward Bill." They pay attention to the similarities and differences in each piece, looking for details that describe the...

Study historical events by combining the study of historical fiction and non-fiction. Learners read about true past events in historical fiction novels and then research non-fiction accounts of the same events. What are some differences...

Introduce your class to the concept of comparing and contrasting with this instructional activity. After modeling a Venn diagram, help your students find the similarities and differences between two pictures. They can then work on...

A reading of Roald Dahl’s Lamb to the Slaughter opens a discussion of justice and fairness. Using a Venn diagram and an Idea Wheel graphic organizer, class members consider the similarities and differences in these two terms. They then...

After reading an interesting article comparing the disputed presidential election of 1877 to a similar event in the year 2000, kids blog a response. They read the article, check out the embedded links, then respond to four related...

Make number concepts fun with this party-themed set of activities aimed at familiarizing young counters with 11 and 12. They begin by tracing each numeral before printing it once on their own. Next, learners count a set of...

As learners become familiar with single-digit numbers, give them this fun set of activities focused on the number three. Incorporate language arts as they trace the word form and then write it once on their own. Next, counters...

Such an ambitious lesson! Third graders with special needs listen to an audio recording of the novel, Moby Dick. They stop often to discuss each of the main characters and analyze their actions in the story. They then make puppets of one...

Reading out loud can be a real thrill for some, and a real issue for others. Teach your class that reading with inflection and fluency can be as easy as singing a song. They'll first analyze two Bobby McFerrin songs for intonation,...

Explore word relationships and the relationships between people with an interesting lesson. Learners practice pairing words that typically go together and write brief narratives using these words. They then go through a similar process,...

After reading Loree Leedy's There's a Frog in My Throat: 440 Animal Sayings a Little Bird Told Me, kids create and illustrate their own poems that convey the meaning of an idiom. The poems are then transferred into Shutterfly's Photo...

Here's a metaphor instructional activity that asks kids to identify the two things being compared and then to explain the similar characteristics that are being identified.

On June 26, 1963 President John F. Kennedy delivered his famous "Ich bin ein Berliner" speech close to the Berlin Wall at the Rudolph Wilde Platz. On June 12, 1987 President Ronald Reagan Delivered his famous "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down...

If you lived in prehistoric times, what kinds of choices could your family make to increase their chance of survival? By making similar decisions in a simulation game, participants discover how specialization creates both opportunity and...

To begin a study of Walt Whitman's poem, "Election Day, November 1884," learners first call out a word or two that describes their reaction to the recent presidential election. They then read an encyclopedia entry about the Presidential...

A word splash activity introduces scholars to the activity's theme—cultural characteristics. First, in examining Little Red Riding Hood by The Brothers Grimm, learners highlight the cultural characteristics and then spot the...

What do the myth of the phoenix bird and Ada Limón's poem "Instructions on Not Giving Up" have in common? Young scholars create a list of what they notice about both the myth and poem, then consider what the similarities might indicate...