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Getting To Know You
Students listen to the book "I like me" by Nancy Carison, or a similar self-esteem book, and then create self-portraitswhile the song "Getting to Know You" is being played. This is an excellent ice-breaker for the beginning of the...
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To Sum it all Up...
Learners observe and demonstrate the process of summarizing text. They read and discuss the steps to summarize text, then in small groups read and summarize an article about frogs from "National Geographic" online. Independently they...
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Castles and Cornerstones
Students become familiar with the style of architecture of medieval times. In this architecture lesson plan, students design a model of a medieval castle including its cornerstone. Students understand scale in their representation.
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Medieval and Renaissance Art: Botanical Symbolism
Students study the significance of flowers in art from two periods. In this Medieval and Renaissance art lesson, students research the presence and meaning of botanical illustrations in twelfth, thirtieth, and fourteenth century...
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Get Dramatic: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Students explain reducing, recycling and reusing. In this science/ arts lesson plan, students create a commercial and display a backdrop made out of recycled goods. Additionally, students write written responses to writing prompts.
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Hinges I, Hinges II
Students use their bodies in daily activities, by promoting a regular routine of using large and small motor skills, personal space, and boundary awareness. They move a scarf to the rhythm of the different kinds of music the teacher...
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Counting Crows
Students discuss the fable, The Crow and the Pitcher. For this literature lesson, students read the fable and create a crow sock puppet. Students use their puppets to dramatize the fable.
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Life of a Navajo Weaver
Students explore Native American weaving patterns and dance movements. In this Native Americans lesson, students view examples of weaving patterns on the Internet and compare the patterns to a Native American dance. Students demonstrate...
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Masks and Aesop's Fables
Students study and perform Aesop's fables. In this Aesop's fables lesson, students read and/or listen to a number of the famous fables. They make masks based on the characters and perform a fable using the masks. They write about the...
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Chivalry and Courtly Love
Eleventh graders examine chivalry and courtly love. In this Arthurian legend lesson, 11th graders explore the legend and how chivalry, honor, and courtly love have been internalized into today's culture. Students author and perform plays...
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A World of Myths
Students read and write myths. In this world mythology lesson, students read and analyze myths from various cultures and then recognize their attributes as they write their own myths to explain natural phenomena.
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Elements of Myth
Students read and act out myths. In this world mythology lesson, students read and analyze myths from various cultures and then recognize their attributes as they prepare presentations of myths that explain natural phenomena.
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Lewis and Clark: Prized Possessions
Students consider the role of Sacagawea as part of the Corps of Discovery. In this Lewis and Clark expedition lesson, students discover details about Sacagawea's wampum belt and then create their own wampum belts using their computer and...
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Playing with Puns
Students examine the wit of characters in two plays. In this drama lesson, students read The Shakespeare Stealer by Gary L. Blackwood and Twelfth Night by Shakespeare. Students analyze the puns used in both plays and write essays that...
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Writing Folktales
Students consider the structure of folktales. In this writing skills lesson plan, students list the attributes of folktales that they read in class. Students then complete handouts based on the elements of the tales as well as types of...
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Mountain Creation: A Drama Exploration
Students explore mountain formation. In this cross curriculum earth science and legend writing instructional activity, students listen to the poem "The Way to make Perfect Mountains" by Byrd Baylor and identify examples of vivid language...
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The Monkey Dance: Exploring Balinese Culture
Students explore Balinese culture. In this Balinese integrated fine arts instructional activity, students listen to a podcast of "The Monkey Dance," taking notes about important features of the dance. Students participate in a jigsaw...
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Understanding Tenement Life
Students look at life for immigrants in the 19th century. In this immigrant lesson plan, students discuss how the poor German, Irish, Italian, and Jewish immigrants lived in tenement housing. They research the reasons they came to...
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Schools and Schoolbooks, 1780-1820
Students review 18th century New England schoolbooks to explain how changes occurred in early American education.
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Sixteenth Street: Civil Rights at the Crossroads
Young scholars study the Civil Rights movement constructing definitions of discrimination, prejudice and racism. They use varied media to study the bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, write a newspaper and complete a mock trial.
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Island of the Blue Dolphins Jigsaw
Fourth graders research three topics from the book, either Village Life, Sea Life, or San Nicholas Island. They research independently and meet in a jigsaw format to share what they learned. As group they create a poster for class...
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Critical Pedagogy
Students read Ruthanne Lum McCunn's Thousand Pieces of Gold and as a class, discuss the Chinese practice of foot binding. They work in groups to read further about how women of different cultures attempt to conform. They write about...
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- Making Metaphors with Munchies
Students brainstorm independently first, then ask their best friend on the team, or seat partners, depending on the year & student mix, to add to their list of personal characteristics and/or to name three words they think of...
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Let's sum it all up!
Young scholars identify that comprehension is the main goal in reading. Then they read the words in a text, but also draw information from what they read. Students also identify and practice summarization. They read a piece of text...