Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Places We Live

For Teachers 2nd - 3rd
Students compare/contrast rural and urban communities, and view and discuss the images on the Illinois quarter. They discuss Abraham Lincoln's life, complete a chart and a Venn diagram comparing urban and rural settings, and create a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Water: The Liquid of Life

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders complete a lesson on the properties, types and amounts of water on Earth. In groups, they travel between stations to identify water resources in Illinois and pollution sources. They complete the lesson with a field trip...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Prairie Climate

For Teachers 9th
Ninth graders research the average temperature and precipitation of a prairie region to determine the type of climate it is, and how it differs from other biomes. They examine the types of adaptions animals have made to live in the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Animals from Afar

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students visualize the scope of the Roman empire by illustrating the geographic origins of various imported animals. They study how exotic animals were imported into Rome from the farthest regions of the empire.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Local Customs of Southeast Asian Countries

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students examine the cultural nuances of insular countries in southeast Asia. They perform skits demonstrating local customs of the countries examined, including greetings, visiting, business, drinking, and gift giving.
Worksheet
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Baseball--Where the Parks Are

For Students 4th - 6th
In this social studies instructional activity, students utilize a map to label the location of each city with a Major League team and then with colored pencils label the homes of the All-American Girls League teams.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Lincoln-Douglas Debates of 1858: Interactive Map Activity

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students utilize an interactive map to explore the 1858 Senate campaign in Illinois. They examine how factors such as population, transportation, and party strongholds can affect campaign strategies. Students write an essay discussing...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Lincoln-Douglas Debates of 1858: Interactive Map Activity

For Teachers 11th
Eleventh graders utilize an interactive map to explore the 1858 Senate campaign in Illinois and how factors such as population, transportation, and party strongholds can affect campaign strategies.
Lesson Plan
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Scaling the Map

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students practice determining map distances using the map scales. They discover how much an area represents on the map in relation to the actual area. They decide on the best place to build their cavern.
Lesson Plan
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Militia of the American Revolutionary War

For Teachers 7th - 10th
Students explore the role of the colonial militia n the American Revolutionary War. Using traditional and internet resources, students, complete a research worksheet designed to provide information about the militia. Worksheet is...
Lesson Plan
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Battle of the Bulge

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Students identify the date and location of the Battle of the Bulge and the sides battling in it and who the military leaders were. They identify what each side did in the battle, who the victor was, and the condition each side was in...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Predicting the Past

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Pupils study how archaeologists record the past. They discuss archaeology and artifacts. They view a list of artifacts discovered by Marquette at the Illinois Village and answer questions regarding them. They complete a test about three...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

TORNADOES!

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders compare the parts of a real tornado with the parts of a tornado created in a demonstration, label "Tornado Alley" on their maps, and label the locations of famous tornado disasters on their maps.
Lesson Plan
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Working on the Railroad

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students plan a trip on the railroad.  In this railroad creation and implementation lesson plan, students listen to the song "Working on the Railroad", make a map of where the track was laid and discuss the geographical...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Grocery Aisle Signs and Locating Items

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed
Students engage in lesson that is intended to help those who have mild disabilities with life skills. They focus upon the practice of shopping and finding items located in the grocery store. Students view a slideshow with different store...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

U.S. And Global Deforestation

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students analyze graph showing global deforestation, view photograph of deforestation in Brazil's interior rain forest and examine three maps showing deforestation within the United States, describe political, economic, and social...
Lesson Plan
Agriculture in the Classroom

Pumpkins... Not Just For Halloween

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
Celebrate fall with four pumpkin themed hands-on activities! After learning about pumpkins, scholars complete two activity sheets that reinforce estimation and word problems. They then plant pumpkin seeds and bake a pie in...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Coin Connections

For Teachers K - 1st
Students examine the Illinois state quarter and review Lincoln and the fact that he is also on the penny. They color paper coins, identify their values, and create a money mobile. They play a Cent Sense game to practice which coins are...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Dred Scott v. Sandford

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Young scholars examine the issues of slavery and due process. In this Supreme Court lesson, students examine primary documents from Dred Scott v. Sandford and discuss the implications of the decision.
Lesson Plan
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Solving Environmental Problems

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students identify a community environmental problem and possible solutions. They analyze the connection between the problem and the solutions and the importance of it to the local community. Students then draw a picture of an...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson 22: The Great Chicago Fire Survivors

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students, in groups, create a historical fiction story of a Great Chicago Fire survivor by writing a survival narrative.
Lesson Plan
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CAPITALIZATION

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students write a class A,B,C book based on people and events important to the class. They use capital letters at the beginning of sentences and for proper names. They use periods at the end of sentences.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson Plan on Military Leaders in the American Civil War

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students, in groups, half representing the Confederacy, half the Union, conduct research to find out about important Civil War military leaders from each side. They find the answers to a variety of questions regarding their military...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Butterfly Report

For Students 4th - 6th
In this biology activity, students draw or trace an accurate picture of a butterfly. Then they complete the information related to their butterfly's classification and list the habitats where they are likely to be found. Students also...