Learning sure is in demand! Pupils explore the economic principle of supply and demand with a series of engaging, hands-on activities. They practice comparison shopping for a bottle of soda, conduct research on ticket scalping, and...

Find out the science of how clouds keep Earth cooler on hot days. Using guided discussions, investigators analyze and interpret maps of how much solar energy Earth receives at different times of the year. Participants draw conclusions...

Tweens and teens learn coping skills to help manage strong emotions such as anger, fear, and sadness with a lesson that asks them to generate a list of self-calming strategies they use and to consider the suggestions in a short video and...

Reinforce multiplication strategies with a lesson that examines a word problem and the distributive property. Mathematicians work collaboratively to solve the problem, create a poster with their solution, and share their preferred method...

Scholars discover the contributions Native Americans have given the world. Pupils examine materials and discuss their importance, including American Sign Language. A worksheet carefully organizes examples; groups jigsaw a reading...

Aid your pupils in understanding the terms explicit and inferred while teaching them about colonial farmers. The third activity in the module builds off the previous activity and focuses heavily on inference. Learners analyze a...

How do you balance a set of data? Using a ruler and some coins, learners determine whether the balance point is always in the middle. Through class and small group discussions, they find that the mean is the the best estimate of the...

Data distributions can be compared in terms of center, variability, and shape. Two exploratory challenges present data in two different displays to compare. The displays of histograms and box plots require different comparisons based...

Is there another way to view whether the data is linear or not? Class members work alone and in pairs to create scatter plots in order to determine whether there is a linear pattern or not. The exit ticket provides a quick way to...

A language arts instructional activity helps young writers identify elements that make up historical fiction. First, it guides them through elements of fictional pieces with vocabulary cards. Then, pupils work collaboratively to...

After reading chapter 14 of the story Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis, scholars take part in a read-aloud of the poem If by Rudyard Kipling and compare it to the reading of Bud, Not Buddy. Learners then go deeper into the poem...

Danger! Scholars look closely at two poems, 'TV News' and 'Closed Too Soon.' While reading, learners think about Ha's country's increasing dangers and conflict. They record their thoughts in graphic organizers and discuss what details...

Read. Stop. Think. Scholars use a reading strategy to process the challenging text, "The Vietnam Wars." They read a paragraph and then stop to think about the text and its meaning. Readers then go on to work with partners and make notes...

Scholars complete a close read of To Kill a Mockingbird and determine why characters take a stand. They use text-dependent questions and Note-catchers to help guide their thinking. Readers review the Taking a Stand Anchor chart and...

Time for table discussions. Scholars once again take part in a World Cafe activity. They discuss chapter 10 of To Kill A Mockingbird in groups of four and rotate from table to table. At each table, they select a new leader. Readers then...

Positive or negative? Class members take another look at one of the taking-a-stand photographs from lesson plan one. They talk with partners to connect the picture to the text in To Kill A Mockingbird and discuss to determine when taking...

An informative resource instructs pupils on how to write their essay drafts about the theme of control in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. Next, scholars complete an Exit Ticket, listing their three favorite characters from the...

The focus is on written communication as class members respond to questions about the text Unbroken in their Written Conversation note catchers. They trade note catchers with a partner every two minutes and then share ideas from their...

Learners use a Analyzing Mediums handout to detail the advantages and disadvantages of communicating with mediums such as artwork, photographs, and political cartoons in the Japanese-American Internment during World War II primary...

Readers engage in discussion with partners to answer questions about A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park. Next, they complete exit tickets, writing about how the author creates different points of view for her characters.

How does an author develop and contrast character points of view in a work of literature? Using a graphic organizer, readers continue gathering evidence about character point of view from Linda Sue Park's A Long Walk to Water. Next,...

Is that a true story? Readers work to gather evidence for comparing the historical and fictional text Time Trip: Sudan’s Civil War and A Long Walk to Water. Scholars identify the use of real people and experiences versus the use of...

Show me the evidence. Writers analyze the Command of Evidence row of the rubric for A Long Walk to Water essay. Pupils work in pairs to determine how the writer of a model essay meets the demands of the rubric. They then use a Forming...

Show what you know! Scholars complete a mid-unit assessment using text evidence from Frederick Douglass. The teacher then presents expectations for independent reading assignment. Leaving the class, pupils turn in an exit ticket...