Students examine the use of imagery to hold a reader's attention in an excerpt from John Deever's memoir "Mr. John and the Day of Knowledge". They are introduced to background information about the Ukraine and create original imagery.

Young explorers study the scarcity and importance of a continuous supply of fresh water in Cape Verde. They research the five main ways that fresh water is obtained in these countries. Each research group prepares a presentation, and...

Students seek scientific and technological solutions to envrionmental problems. They record class activities in a journal. They identify relationships among living things and their environments.

Learners react to statements about the 2006 Winter Olympics, then read a news article about the Olympic torch's journey through Italy. For this current events lesson (written prior to the 2006 Winter Olympics), the teacher introduces the...

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...

Students use included links to research the lives of people living in a small village in India.

Students define the word colossal, then read a news article about an enormous squid caught off Antarctica. In this animal studies and current events lesson, the teacher introduces the article with dictionary and vocabulary activities,...

Students map local places and learn to use scale and distance.  In this mapping instructional activity, students map their school and a favorite place.  Students recreate their maps showing distance and scale sizes. Students...

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...

While these worksheets are specific for use while visiting the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, they could be used to guide nearly any museum trip. Questions focus on human activity, symbolism, culture, religion, and society as...

The video clip that comprises the warm up is not available, but the related article from The New York Times and the movie trailer for Aliens of the Deep are, leaving enough material to make this a fascinating lesson on deep-sea...

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...

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...

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 activity, the teacher introduces the article with a discussion and...

Currently, only 2.1% of global warming is felt on continents, while over 93% is felt in the oceans. The fourth lesson in the series of 21 on global warming is composed of three activities that build off one another. In the first...

Many people think they can't observe plate tectonics, but thanks to GPS, we know that Australia moves at a rate of 2.7 inches per year, North America at 1 inches per year, and the Pacific plate at more than 3 inches per year! Scholars...

Need a quick way to administer and grade a multiple choice quiz? Keep this bubble sheet as a staple of your curriculum toolkit! It can be used for assessments with up to 30 multiple choice or true/false questions.

The Pilgrims may have arrived in North America by way of the Mayflower, but chances are, your class members' ancestors came to the United States in another way. Guide them through an exploration of their own heritage, countries of...

Students explore the relationship between names and certain cultures and locations. In this identity lesson, students create family migration or immigration maps. Students read excerpts from When My Name was Keoko and Lost Names: Scenes...

Japanese tea gatherings are the inspiration for a great lesson. Learners are provided with an image of a tea caddy made for thick tea and asked to describe what they notice and what that might mean. This leads into a larger lesson about...

Students explore different countries, their locations, and their cultures. Using an encyclopedia, they locate the information, then write a report. Ultimately, they create a paper doll to represent their chosen country.

Examine the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Learners research the 50 Years War and analyze the conflict through the point of view of both sides They attempt to develop a plan to bring peace to the region of Israel.

Young scholars examine the culture of the Maasai pastoralist. They identify traditional aspects of their culture and describe how the roles of men and women vary in their society.

Fifth graders record any earthquake activity throughout the school year on various maps. In groups, they identify a map locating the points given to them by their teacher. To end the lesson, they add the date, strength and damage to each...