Curated OER
Talking Trees: Earth Day
Students complete a tree poster activity to learn about Earth Day, stewardship, and the environment. In this environmental stewardship lesson, students read The Story of the Tree and discuss stewardship with trees. Students act out tree...
Curated OER
Creative Activities for the Sciences
Students expand their creative outlets. In this science lesson, three ideas, including videos, are presented to help get students motivated to think creatively and express themselves.
Curated OER
The Mozart Effect
Music has been said to effect short term memory. Learners test out this hypothesis, graphing how knowledge retention in a biology classroom changes when music is played in the background. In the end, a better appreciation of the dynamics...
Incredible Art
Skateboard Deck Graphics
Young artists don't need to be skateboarders to enjoy this assignment. Class members use the provided worksheet to craft 10 sketches that convey action or motion using no more than seven lines. They then select their three best ideas and...
MENSA Education & Research Foundation
Intensities in the Classroom
Everyone learns and experiences life differently. A set of lessons about character intensities encourages middle and high schoolers to analyze themselves, their peers, and characters from a book based on the five listed intensities:...
Curated OER
Follow Your Dreams: Career Goals
It is so important for impending high school graduates to start thinking about their potential careers. Here, they discuss the persistence of Blondie Hasler and his impressive transatlantic trip. They follow various routes on a map and...
Visa
A Way to Wealth: Understanding Interest and Investments
Money motivates! Help young bankers understand how math plays a part in investing. Give learners math practice while instilling real-world financial literacy skills.
Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media
What Brought Settlers to the Midwest?
Drawn by promises of fertile land, thousands of settlers poured West because of the Homestead Act of 1862. By examining images of the ads that drew them westward, learners consider the motivations for movement. They also consider how the...
Georgia Department of Education
The Basketball Star
Have learners use math to prove they are sports stars! Assess a pupil's ability to create and analyze data using a variety of graphs. The class will be motivated by the association of math and basketball data.
National Endowment for the Humanities
The President Under the Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation sounds like one big, fancy title to middle schoolers. Here, scaffolded steps help to ease novices into understanding this all-important American document. Discussion questions, instructional activity...
Curated OER
Motivating and Speaking Activities
Students participate in various activities to encourage speaking. They design a board game using the questions, dice and counters. Students are given partial information about a topic. They exchange information with their classmates...
Curated OER
Short Story Motivator
Students review an episode of their favorite television shows. They discuss the plot in the show and compare it to a short story. They complete a story map as they watch the episode.
Curated OER
The Roots of The Modern Day African Americans And The Suggested Motivation For A Bright Future (Actual Experiences of Booker T. Washington, Frederick Douglass And Joseph Sengbe (Cinque))
Fifth graders examine the roots of African American pride and accomplishments. Individually, they are assigned an African country for them to research. In groups, they discover the life and works of Frederick Douglass, Booker T....
Curated OER
Fortune Cookie Activity Cards
Students are given a pre-made fortune cookie at the beginning of class. Individually, they open up the cookie and read their fortune and complete the exercise on the paper. They exchange fortunes and exercises with their classmates when...
Curated OER
Heartfelt/Handmade Activities: Genre Painting
Students examine genre painting. They explore the Illinois State Museum website, identify how genre paintings were composed, analyze the activities of an Illinois farm in the 1850s, and create a genre painting of current everyday...
Curated OER
Illnois River and Lake Mussel Habitat Diorama Activity
Students identify the environmental elements of river and lake mussels. They compare the elements to the time before settlement and during industrialization. They also participate in a field trip to a mussel exhibit.
Curated OER
Power to the People: Social Movements of the 1960s
Students engage in a professional development workshop for teachers in the delivery of curriculum about the era of the 1960's. The emphasis of the workshop is using popular culture of the time in order to launch investigations that are...
Curated OER
Student Survey
Students create questions they would like to ask another class of Students, send the questions by email, examine results, and create slideshow illustrating results.
Curated OER
Techno PC: Computer Lessons for Elementary Students
Students explore computer science by participating in mini activities. In this graphic design lesson, identify the different components on a personal computer and define their purpose. Students utilize Microsoft Paint to create a digital...
Curated OER
Heartfelt/Handmade Activity: Hand-Molded Pottery
Young scholars view and discuss examples of pottery. They discuss how pottery has always been made by hand and use a ball of clay to roll and shape into a form of their choice.
Curated OER
DNA Activities
Students work together to identify the structure of DNA. They practice using new vocabulary as well. They create a 3-D model of DNA to complete the instructional activity.
Curated OER
Making Connections Activity: Seeing Connections Among Works of Art
Students view images from fine and decorative art galleries in the Museumlink Illinois website. They make connections regarding theme, mood, or emotional expression. They present their findings orally and display their images.
Curated OER
Prairie Activity: Prairie Quilt
Young scholars investigate prairie life in the 19th century. They research quilts and prairie images online, take a photo of an object related to prairie life, transfer the image onto fabric, and create a class quilt.
Curated OER
Botanical Illustration with Watercolor Activity
Students examine anatomy of flowers as depicted in watercolor drawings, and create their own artwork.