Using primary source materials including radio broadcasts, films, and interview transcripts, history students gain a better understanding of the Dust Bowl, relief efforts for farmers, and the nation's agricultural past. It includes...

Hook your scholars by drawing a large f on the board; do they know what letter this is? Once you've demonstrated the sound it makes, use these tips to help them make the same sound. Although the audio function is neat, it may not be...

The best way to get your scholars familiar with the alphabet is to expose them to each letter in multiple contexts. This strategy incorporates letter recognition, sound, word examples, and pronunciation, and emerging readers will feel...

What letter is this? As you introduce pre-readers to letter sounds, keep them entertained with this fun game. Start by drawing the letter s on the board, large enough for all to see. Once you've demonstrated the sound it makes, use...

As your scholars begin learning letters of the alphabet, help them connect sound, pronunciation, word examples, and letter recognition using these strategies. Focusing on the letter i, begin by drawing it on the board. Can scholars...

There are many words that begin with the /o/ sound; scholars study this letter in multiple contexts including intial phoneme examples, pronunciation, and letter recognition. Write the letter on the board to see if learners can identify...

Explore the letter h using these strategies combining pronunciation, recognition, letter sound, and word examples. Scholars examine the letter shape and listen to you pronounce the /h/ sound. As you explain how this sound is...

Connect letter recognition, pronunciation, sound, and word examples to give scholars a solid grasp on the letter l. They watch you draw a large l on the board and make the /lll/ sound. Using your tips, they try the sound on...

Writing a summary is much easier once you've laid out the sequence of events. Show readers how these two skills are intertwined using this graphic organizer. Review the meaning of sequencing first, presenting the chart and possibly...

Kevin Henkes' sweet story Chrysanthemum is the perfect way to teach vocabulary to budding readers in context. Present the new terms they will hear so pupils are ready to raise their hands when they come up in the story....

Beautiful illustrations and tender memories of cultural identity make Kam Mak's story My Chinatown an ideal resource for budding readers learning four vocabulary words in context: fortune, scraps,...

Do any of your budding readers have parents who work the night shift? Eileen Spinelli's book Night Shift Daddy, which can be found on YouTube if you don't have it, examines this family dynamic in a positive light and is an...

Puff the Magic Dragon remains a childhood landmark for budding readers (and singers), but did you know it also makes an excellent vocabulary study? By focusing on several in-text words (in this case: billow, cease, fearless,...

As a more personal part of a unit on brain chemistry, your class discusses stressful situations and the body's response to them. They talk about how, while the reactions are initially helpful, some can be harmful to your health. Finally,...

If you have implemented this fabulous brain chemistry unit in its entirety, you should have saved the pre-assessment quizzes from day one. In this assignment, individual learners go back over their original answers, and correct any...

What better way to study the structures of organisms than by creating a new being? After considering different types of skeletal supports (exoskeleton and endoskeleton), budding biogeneticists work together to create their own animals -...

Discuss homophobia and bullying with a collaborative and supportive lesson. Class members engage in a series of activities focused on the ways bullies use physical, verbal, mental and emotional, sexual, and cyber tactics to spread...

High schoolers explain why rain forests have great biodiversity, and list each layer of a rain forest and tell an organism that lives in each. They identify the cause of acid rain and its affect on a rain forest. Students hypothesize the...

Students conduct an experiment to examine the effects of six different antibiotics on two different types of bacteria. They monitor Petri dishes with bacterial cultures and antibiotic soaked disks. They relate the bacteria growth...

Students explore and can explain genetic diseases, and how the central dogma plays a key role in genetic diseases. They comprehend what DNA probe is and how it is created and that there is an ethical component to biotechnology.

Seventh graders are introduced to Earth day--- what is it and why do we care, ease into topic of pollution, where have they seen pollution in their community, steer conversation in the direction of the Anacostia. They are reintroduced...

Kids keep score as they take on the roles of buyers and sellers in an agribusiness introduction. They play the game for five rounds, each round is made different by having a new economic element added, a discussion follows. Everything...

What does it take to work in agribusiness? Conduct and explorative investigation which describes where our food dollars go, who makes money on what we buy, and jobs related to agriculture. The class plays an interactive game, analyzes a...

Draw a large letter f on the board to begin this letter recognition and sounds activity, asking kids to identify it if they can. Demonstrate the /fff/ sound and explain how you are making it as learners try it out. What words can...