Curated OER
I Got a Lava Livin' to Do in Pompeii
Scholars imagine themselves as citizens of Pompeii in 79 AD. First they are assigned a job (or place in society like a child or slave). Then they record their daily activities for the weeks leading up to the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in...
Curated OER
Baby Boom and the Culture of the 1950's
Students study the ripple effect of the baby boom generation on history and on their lives today. They discover how the rules and conformity of the 1950's set the stage for the rebellious, anti-establishment sixties. They study the...
Curated OER
A Billion Hungry People
Students discover the inequality of food distribution. In the hunger lesson, students discuss how some places and people do not get the food they need to survive. Students role play distributing pretend meals to people (of unequal...
Curated OER
Building Character: Remaining Resilient, Resourceful, and Responsible in the Face of Adversity
Students examine the different types of adversity African-Americans face. As a class, they role-play different roles in scenerios in which they discover the importance of facing their fears and taking responsibility for their actions. ...
Curated OER
Handout for "Tell-Tale Heart"
Looking for some additional materials for Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart"? Included in a 14-page packet are an anticipation guide, a vocabulary list, exercise, and quiz, a list of literary terms, and an essay assignment with pre-writing...
Thoughtful Learning
Checking the Emotion Thermometer
A hand-drawn thermometer provides a strong visual for how much of an emotion a child is feeling. Scholars color the thermometer's mercury to showcase whether what they are feeling is high or low at a certain moment. Questions allow...
Facing History and Ourselves
Kristallnacht: Decision-Making in Times of Injustice
Have you ever been singled out in a crowd before? Pupils investigate and analyze the events of the Holocaust. They dive into the life of a middle school student, as well as the diary entries of those in Kristallnacht during World War II.
Curated OER
Biopoem: Ender's Game
Here's an activity designed to encourage character analysis. Readers craft a biopoem for a character in Orson Scott Cards' popular science fiction novel Ender's Game.
Tellagami Labs
Tellagami
Bring the world of video messaging into your classroom with this creative communication application. Offering the ability to create animations with customized characters, backgrounds, and recorded messages, this resource is guaranteed to...
Curated OER
Paper Spider
Young artists don't have to wait for Halloween to craft eensy-weensy spiders. A one-page template includes directions and a pattern for the spider's body and legs. These little arachnids, hanging from the ceiling or the wall will climb...
Curated OER
Smoky Night
Second graders compare the neighborhoods they know to those of a different place and time. In this historical perspectives lesson, 2nd graders read Eve Bunting's Smoky Night and discuss the outcome of the story. Students also discuss...
Curated OER
The Fear of Exploration Because of... Sea Monsters
Eighth graders examine the underestimated cause as to why exploration into the western hemisphere was not common before the 1400's. They reconstruct the causes/effects of exploration to North America.
Curated OER
Creative Expressions: Phase Changes
Students place themselves in the position of a water molecule, ice molecule, or steam molecule and then describe the process of changing phase.
Curated OER
Children Leaving Cuba
First graders explore migration from Cuba to the United States. They explain reasons why people migrate to different places. Through guest speakers and discussion groups, 1st graders compare and contrast the experiences of Cuban families...
Curated OER
The Cold War at Home
Eleventh graders discover the perspective of Cold War on the American homefront. In this Cold War lesson, 11th graders watch Duck and Cover video segments that instruct citizens what to do in case of nuclear attack. Students discuss the...
Curated OER
Order My Steps
Students organize and sequence their writing ideas using different graphic organizers. They use the ideas to write a story that takes place over two days.
Curated OER
Animal Farm: Propaganda
Eighth graders are introduced to the concept of propaganda and its major techniques. Emphasis is placed on the recognition and use of this technique in a variety of writing samples.
Curated OER
Hooway for Wodney Wat
Young scholars examine speech difficulties by reading a children's book in class. In this children's literature lesson, students read the story Hooway for Wodney the Wat, and analyze the characters, story and the bullying that takes...
Teach-nology
What Went Bump in the Night?
What would you do if you found a monster watching your TV? Take a walk on the scary side with a fun cloze reading activity. As kids read the passage, they use the words on the bottom of the page to fill in the eight blank spaces that...
Overcoming Obstacles
Resolving Conflict
Win-lose, lose-lose, or win-win? The final lesson plan in the "Resolving Conflict Module" brings together all that participants have learned in the module. They first list and prioritize the steps in conflict resolution, then develop a...
Curated OER
The Battle of Bentonville: Caring for Casualties of the Civil War (69)
Students explore development of battlefield medical care during the Civil War, particularly in the Union Army, and then gather information on experiences of members of volunteer service organizations or medical professions in the...
Curated OER
Who, What, When, Where, Why, and the Media
Students in a preschool classroom discuss potentially fearful current events in a way they can understand. They write or draw about a current event, discussing the 5 W's of news reporting.
Curated OER
Language Immersion
Students listen to an audio program aired on Nation Public Radio that presents a journalists report of the Blackfeet immersion programs taking place in Browning, Montana. They take notes on the program. Students discuss how immersion...
Curated OER
Why Were the Japanese Interned During World War II?
Seventh graders analyze sources to determine why Japanese-Americans were placed in internment camps during World War II. They discuss the fact that individual rights are sometimes taken by institutions because of fear and paranoia. They...