High schoolers make two T charts, one for Sparta and one for Athens, showing pros and cons for living in either city-state. They use the physical information from the map and the cultural captions given for Athens and Sparts to come to...

Model for emergent readers how to write a story by interpreting picture clues. For guided practice a second book is used, and then pupils work independently or with an adult to write their own stories based on illustrations.

Show your class that there is more than one way to communicate an idea. Pupils note down their ideas and then brainstorm a few things they want to include in their pictures. Then, in the box provided, they sketch and describe their...

Students examine World War I poetry for historical context, poetic devices, and participate in a class discussion. They write an analysis of the poetry's form and its content.

Students conduct online research regarding the origins of the city of Timbuktu and discover why it became such an important place. Students write about the city's origins until it became a part of Mali.

High schoolers examine the First Great Awakening and how it affected religious belief in colonial America. They read and analyze primary source documents, explore various websites, and write a five-paragraph essay examining the beliefs...

Young scholars examine how religion affected arguments justifying American independence. They read and analyze primary source documents, and write an essay analyzing how Americans used religious arguments to justify revolution against a...

Included in this resource are a variety of activities to do while reading Willa Cather's My Antonia. The activities, which range from mapping out Nebraska to writing activities about pioneer living, are all designed with one...

Learners complete a unit of lessons examining the cultural context of the novel, 'The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.' They write a critique of the novel, compare/contrast two published critiques, and explore various websites.

Students role play as Marco Polo to detail his travels. They include the terrains, foods, religions, people and cultures that were encountered. They write a journal entry as if they were Marco Polo detailing one aspect of his travels.

Students examine plot and setting of Cinderella, and how it changes as it is translated into different cultures, discuss universal literary elements of the Cinderella story, and write narratives with original settings and plots...

Students investigate and explore the poems of Robert Frost. They read and discuss poems by Frost, define narrative and personal, write narratives in a journal, and present a dramatic reading of a poem to the class.

Students discuss meaning of symbols associated with Statue of Liberty, read and analyze Emma Lazarus' sonnet, "The New Colossus," and write persuasive letter to a nineteenth-century audience to gain support for bringing statue to America.

Students complete a unit of lessons that examine the Holocaust from the point of view of those who actively resisted the Nazis. They analyze a timeline, participate in a class debate, explore various websites, and write a letter.

Have your class explore Buddhist Jataka Tales to compare and contrast them to European fables. After defining fables, Jataka tales, and the elements of each, learners identify themes and patterns for both types of narratives and the...

Fifth graders explore historical fiction. In this genre study instructional activity, 5th graders go on a text feature scavenger hunt to identify the parts of a historical fiction text. Additionally, students read the book, My Secret War...

Upper graders examine the clichés that accompany this political cartoon, depicting how various people handle the national debt. They review several clichés quoted in recent times and write a 1-2 paragraph analysis of each. 

It's an economic Catch-22! Expose your scholars to the hiring/unemployment paradox using this political cartoon analysis activity. The cartoon shows corporations explaining to a job seeker that they cannot hire him due to the unstable...

Writing poetry in ancient China was the modern equivalent of sending a greeting card. Scholars learn about the ancient Chinese poetic form called the lu shih. They read about the context of poetry during the T'ang Dynasty and complete a...

Second graders read and predict content and purpose for table of contents, index, headings, captions, illustrations, and major words from their science or social studies textbooks. They use books' elements to summarize what they can find...

Students study Civil War photography and write captions for each picture based on context. In this Civil War photography lesson, students match photographs with their original captions. Students read included short biographies of the...

Students examine the process of writing a photo essay. They examine and select a personal photo or photo from a magazine, and brainstorm a story that can go with the photo. They identify an emotion to go with their picture, then write...

Third graders create a map of France. They use computers to view an "in flight" movie about Paris. They research Paris using books and the internet. Students practice using the program "Comic Life." They import illustrations for each of...

Students create 'Wanted' posters based around their state testing activities. In this state technology integration lesson plan, students take pictures of themselves in sepia tone in an Old West pose. Students write captions for the...