Do your young readers know that poems can be performed as a team? They listen to a few examples from Paul Fleischman's book Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices, paying attention to how the how readers work together....

Second in a pair of activities, young ecologists continue to examine the food pyramid of a freshwater ecosystem. They take a look at the food pyramid drawn in Activity A and consider what would happen if a reservoir was created on the...

Learn how to display data. Young data analysts watch a video to review how to create cumulative frequency histograms and box plots. They work on a set of questions to practice producing these data displays.  

Unsuspecting George McFlys are presented into the craft workings of the science fiction genre of literature. Speculations are developed through teacher-led dialogs about how science fiction impacts science, technology, and comments on...

How many people really recycle recyclables and how do they feel about it? High schoolers create a survey to find out. Once they agree on what questions to include, they each interview four people outside of the classroom....

Students identify marine animals that could become stranded due to coastal features and currents. They plot data on worksheets for locations of sea turtles actually beached or stranded. After plotting their points, they hypothesize...

Students read about the life and work of John and Mary Jones. Using primary source documents, they draw conclusions about their role in the abolistionist movement. They also examine artifacts from their lives and analyze their portrait...

Students conduct research on issues and interests by generating ideas and questions and by posing problems and gather, evaluate and synthesize data from a variety of sources to communicate their discoveries in ways that suit their...

Here's a formal plan for what many effective teachers already do: Provide a week's worth of aphorisms and have learners choose one to write about in their journals each day. They reflect on the meaning of each aphorism and project how it...

Students will investigate the concept of transformations using virtual manipulatives that are available on the internet. The core of the lesson is technology based. The learners will also perform the skills with the production of written...

Ninth graders research burial practices that originated in West Africa and then migrated to the South Carolina and Ohio. They compare and contrast burial practices in both places. As students collect information and data, they organize...

If your upper elementary or middle school marine biology learners are going to visit an aquarium, then here is a field trip activity guide for you. It is written specifically for The Maritime Aquarium, but the idea can be adapted to...

Have you ever considered why the number 10 is so important to us? That's what learners do here. They explore patterns formed by powers of ten and by decimals, convert units of measure within the metric system, and express these in the...

Complete an in-depth study of the works or a specific author. Working in pairs, learners read at least four works by the same author. After completing the reading, they create an essay comparing and contrasting the works and create an...

Learners examine the experience of the middle passage of slaves. They review slave songs and discuss their common themes. They develop a monologue in which they integrate a fragment of an actual slave song into a poem they have written.

Students, while in the computer lab, visit a variety of web sites and read about the life and work of Langston Hughes. They create an author's brochure on Mr. Hughes from the data they collect from the various web sites. Each student...

Students research how the capture of a German submarine by the Allies affected the outcome of WWII. In this WWII instructional activity, students complete a KWL chart. Students research primary source documents online and answer...

The first thing to note is that this lesson was written for use in a parochial school. Even if you are in a non-religious setting, however, the website exploration of galaxies and the accompanying worksheet make for an engaging...

After reading a text written by James Joyce, middle and high schoolers find examples of passive voice. They share their findings with the class. Use this lesson to emphasize the effect of passive voice in writing.

This 15-question online quiz tests readers' comprehension of Marion Zimmer Bradley's The Mists of Avalon. Questions focus on basic plot elements and do not require any critical thinking or analysis.

Role play community members who are both for and against the construction of a dam. Research the pros and cons and then hold a classroom debate. This activity ideally follows a series of stream studies, links to which are included. Use...

Ninth graders investigate the concept of an inequality. They begin the lesson by covering relevant vocabulary. They write an inequality for each word problem given. Then they translate problems from words to algebraic inequalities.

Students explore the contributions of women to the war effort. In this World War I lesson, students examine posters from the era that their instructor has gathered and analyze the message in each of the posters. Students then share their...

Students examine primary sources regarding American movement to the west. In this westward expansion lesson, students create broadside posters based on the Homestead Act primary sources they research.