Core Knowledge Foundation
Columbus Sailed the Ocean Blue
Young adventurers embark on a journey, setting sail along the blue ocean with Christopher Columbus. Teachers will find that this unit makes their lesson planning smooth sailing!
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Proverbs of One World
Bring your class to the computer lab, and have them use the library and online resources to select proverbs related to specified themes. They create a book or bulletin board of proverbs that offer lessons connected to themes of freedom,...
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Transportation
Engage in an 8-day study of different modes of transportation. Your students explore the concept of location and define the physical characteristics of places, such as, land forms, bodies of water, natural resources, and weather.
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Identifying Continents and Oceans
Students locate and identify the four major oceans and the seven continents on a world map. They use an unlabeled world map and compass rose to describe relative locations of the continents and oceans.
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Tropical Regions/Mapping Biodiversity
Students use a world map to locate the country of Puerto Rico. In groups, they identify the various types of vegetation found on the island. They compare and contrast the biodiversity of the country to the United States. To end the...
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The Ethics of Outsourcing to China
After viewing clips from a documentary on factory work in China and US outsourcing, learners have a fishbowl discussion. They work in groups to build both personal points of view and strong arguments on the effects of outsourcing in...
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Plotting Plates
Learners investigate plate tectonics and their correlation with natural phenomena like earthquakes and volcanoes. They use the internet to see real-time data about earthquakes and volcanoes. Students plot latitude and longitude points on...
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Winter Olympic Torch Traveling Across Italy
Students react to statements about the 2006 Winter Olympics, then read a news article about the Olympic torch's journey through Italy. In this current events lesson (written prior to the 2006 Winter Olympics), the teacher introduces the...
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Did You Feel That? Earthquake Data Chart
Students plot earthquakes on the world map using coordinates of longitude and latitude. They designate the earthquakes magnitude with a symbol which they include in the map key.
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War and the Animal
Middle schoolers analyze the spatial organization of people, places, and environments in a spatial context. They gain personal insight into the horrors of war and the importance of ethnicity. Students define all key terms, analyze a...
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Exploring Explorers
Ninth graders illustrate the routes taken by different explorers on a world map. They explain the need for the different exploration voyages. Students explore the web for information that may contain different points of view or...
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AT YOUR FINGERTIPS
The student will locate countries on a world map from which we import foods that our climate prevents us from growing locally.1. Discuss the term "export." Divide middle schoolers into groups of four. Give the groups
five minutes to...
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The New Californians
Students identify the groups of immigrants who came to California. They trace the route they possibly took to American on a world map. They discuss the reasons why they left their homeland and what challenges they faced once they arrived.
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Tracing Our Own Family Pilgrimages
Students observe a world map and are introduced to vocabulary like: cities, continents, rivers, lakes, and oceans. They discuss the names of the cities they live in and locate them on the map; then using a colored pushpin indicate: the...
US Mint
Absolutely and Relatively: The Puerto Rico Quarter Reverse
How much does your class know about Puerto RIco? How much can they learn from the back of a 2009 quarter? Use the coin, part of a series of quarters that depict US territories, to teach learners about the geography, culture, and history...
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Making Regolith
You may not be able to take a field trip to the moon, but that doesn't mean your class can't study moon rocks. Using graham crackers as the moon's bedrock and powdered donuts as micrometeorites, young scientists simulate...
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States and Mates
Discuss and reflect on the concept of allies and alliances. The class examines the competition between the United States and Venezuela. Using the New York Times, they search for examples of geopolitical alliances. In addition, they write...
Global Oneness Project
The Value of Ancient Traditions
Imagine having to give up cell phones, computers, and TV? What would be lost? What gained? An examination of the Drokpa, a nomadic people who live in the grasslands of Tibet, provides class members an opportunity to consider how access...
Global Oneness Project
Exploring Cultural Sustainability
Small groups learn about a present-day nomadic culture in Mongolia and the threats to its existence by exploring a photo essay. The resource includes thoughtful discussion and writing prompts about cultural sustainability, the...
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The Three Major Monotheistic Religions
This activity gives students an opportunity to learn about the three major monotheistic religions in a fun and challenging way, while also allowing them to hone their library research skills. Students research one of the three religions....
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Oprah Winfrey Opens New School in Africa
Students locate Africa and share their knowledge of the continent, then read a news article about Oprah Winfrey building a school in South Africa. In this current events lesson, the teacher introduces the article with a discussion and...
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Settlement Exploration: Then and Now
NASA has crafted an imaginative and memorable series of lessons, "NASA and Jamestown Education Module." This lesson is one of the five components. In it, middle schoolers connect history and science by comparing the settlement of...
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Making Sense of the Reformation in 1 Day
Ninth graders explore the events of the Protestant Reformation. in this religious denominations lesson, 9th graders use the provided graphic organizer to take notes on a PowerPoint presentation about the different beliefs withing...
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India and Pakistan: Rivals from Birth
Seventh graders, after being divided into two groups, are assigned either Pakistan or India. They conduct research using the Internet, reference books, and magazines. The class compares and contrasts the two countries to find sources of...