Beginning with a discussion about using technology to collect data, this resource includes a video about the next Mars rover as an example. Young scientists are taught that filtering is necessary before collected data can be analyzed....

Practice reading strategies using Elizabeti's Doll by Stephanie Stuve-Bodeen. Readers utilize decoding and comprehension strategies before, during, and after reading the story. A detailed list of text features, high frequency words,...

Focus on the literary themes of Kyoko Mori's Shizuko's Daughter with an anticipation guide. Kids read statements about respect, abandonment, and love, and mark their agreement or disagreement before beginning the novel. After they...

Imagine waking up to find a giant bug staring back at you in the mirror! Think about the plight of Franz Kafka's Gregor in The Metamorphosis with a group discussion activity. Class members reflect on what it would be...

Introduce young historians to the US Constitution with this upper-elementary social studies lesson plan. Beginning with a general discussion about the role of government in society, students go on to work in small...

We must remember the past in order to avoid its mistakes. Young historians analyze the importance of historical remembrance using primary and secondary documents, as well as video clips. They then study the creation of a World War...

Is love the strongest force in the world? Delve into the themes of The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas with an anticipation guide that introduces the main points of discussion. Kids mark their agreement or disagreement with...

Individuals read a series of passages from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, rank the statements from the least to the most racist or stereotypical, and share their rankings and rationales in small groups before a whole class...

How do you think the parrot in "The Ghost" chapter of Matilda feels in the chimney? Put a class member in the hot seat and have the class ask questions relating to how they might have felt if they were the parrot in the chimney....

Pique your pupils' interest before reading Peter and the Starcatchers with an anticipation guide. Given a list of 10 statements, learners choose true or false based on what they think the book is about. They then discuss in small...

There are so many fascinating topics and concepts to learn about in the world. But where do you start? Begin formulating questions for an argumentative research paper with a guided practice lesson. After coming up with three questions...

Use the accompanying assessment to determine your class's prior knowledge on Martin Luther King, Jr. before beginning a instructional activity on the famous civil rights movement leader. The resource has young historians thinking about...

Learning to craft quality questions is a skill that can be taught. Class members use the Question Formulation Technique to learn how to create and refine both closed-ended and open-ended questions. They then view West of the West's...

Thinking about designing a project for your social studies or environmental science classes? Use an overview of a project that prompts class groups to research an environmental issue.

Begin your unit on Ernest Hemingway's The Old Man and The Sea with an anticipation guide. As kids read 12 statements that relate to the novel's themes, they decide whether each is true or false in their own opinion.

What do you do if someone you like wants you to do something you don't want to do? A series of activities, including discussion, videos, role-play, and poster projects, demonstrate the most effective ways to withstand peer pressure online.

This activity may have writers evaluate short compositions, but their subjects are quite tall: great Americans. Pupils read one another's compositions and closely examine how specific phrases and diction contribute to shaping American...

What influences the way you dress, or celebrate holidays, or connect with your friends? Explore the cultural traits that are not easily seen with an engaging discussion. Using the model of an iceberg, learners place features of culture...

Seventh graders create and perform a skit that demonstrates their conflict resolution skills. They begin by examining the process of crafting a performance and review what they have learned about conflict resolution. Next, they...

Walt Whitman's poem "As I Walk These Broad Majestic Days" offers scholars an opportunity to practice their noticing skills. They first examine a postcard of the Newport News Shipyard listing things they notice about the image and how...

On your mark, get set, GO! The class sprints toward the conclusions in a race analysis activity. The staggered start of the 400-m foot race is taken apart in detail, and then learners step back and develop some overall race strategy...

An essential skill for 21st-century learners is to know how to find reliable sources of information. Two activities help high schoolers learn how to determine the reliability of health-related news from websites, TV, magazines, or...

What makes an event newsworthy, worth a reference in a news magazine or textbook? Who decides? These are questions Marilyn Nelson asks readers of her poem "Making History" to consider. To begin, class members list details they notice in...

Lots of questions arise when reading Cold Sassy Tree. As your class encounters the twentieth chapter, encourage a rich discussion with some of the questions provided here. Then, either independently, or for homework, ask your readers to...