Science Matters
Ring of Fire
Over a period of 35 years, earthquakes and volcanoes combined only accounted for 1.5 percent of the deaths from natural disasters in the United States. The 15th lesson in a 20-part series connects the locations of earthquakes and...
Kenan Fellows
Impacting the Risk of Falling: How Do Accelerometers Work?
Young engineers consider how to apply accelerometers and sensors to help prevent falls in elderly people. They consider forces of motion and gravity as part of the engineering design process.
Facing History and Ourselves
Taking Ownership of the Law
The work of building and maintaining a democracy is, in the words of Justice William Hastie, "never finished." To better understand what Hastie sees as an ongoing building process, class members listen to a seven-minute podcast about two...
Indiana University
Literature of Asia and the Middle East: "A Sound of Hammering" by Dazai Osamu
Dazai Osamu’s short story, “A Sound of Hammering” is the focus of a three-day investigation of modern Japanese literature and life in post-World War II Japan. The events in Osamu’s story mirror those in his own life, and give a...
Main Memory Network
Longfellow's "The Village Blacksmith" and Whitman's "Song of Myself"
Although the work Americans do has changed over time, the plight of the American worker has largely remained the same. Facilitate a class discussion aboutAmerican workers using Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "The Village Blacksmith" and...
Anti-Defamation League
The Hate U Give
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas became a quick hit in the young adult literature genre before its adaptation in the 2018 film of the same name. Use a thorough lesson, discussion guide, and series of activities to discuss the social...
Curated OER
The Selection of Judges
Students analyze documents to determine the steps taken in the selection of judges.
National Endowment for the Humanities
The World of Haiku
Middle schoolers complete a study of Japanese culture through haiku. They read and interpret haiku poetry and write haiku of their own.
Facing History and Ourselves
Becoming Ourselves
Here's a great way to build community during the first days of the new school year. Participants read personal narratives, then craft and share their stories with others.
Anti-Defamation League
Lonnie Chavis of 'This Is Us' Writes about Racism
Scholars read and discuss an essay by 12-year-old actor Lonnie Chaves about racism, paying close attention to how racism presents itself in interpersonal and institutional ways. Learners reflect on how they experience or witness racism...
Curated OER
The Birth of the Ancient Games: The Olympics
This exercise includes a lengthy article on the history of the Olympics as well as a map of Ancient Greece. The last page includes 15 reading comprehension questions about the passage. A fairly thorough look at this topic - geared toward...
Curated OER
It's Time to Wrap-Up the School Year!
As the school year rapidly comes to a close, don’t forget to collect feedback to improve your teaching.
Curated OER
Nuremberg Verdicts: Sixty-Seven Years Later
It’s courtroom drama at its best! Let the power of this historic event propel a study that will have your kids glued to the history screen.
National Endowment for the Humanities
“Twelve Years a Slave”: Analyzing Slave Narratives
Readers of Solomon Northup's brutally frank slave narrative Twelve Years a Slave examine passages that support the argument that slavery "undermined and corrupted" the institution of marriage. Background information is...
Curated OER
"Golden" Years?
The Golden Years? Upper graders may think retirement is a long way off, but in life everything is just around the corner. They consider what it means to retire and the current trend of parents working for their Students. They research...
Curated OER
Rosa Parks
Rosa Parks is a great book for studying the Civil Rights Movement. Use this packet of worksheets to track reading, elicit responses, and promote book-related activities. Character analysis, prediction and short essay skills will be...
Curated OER
"The Necklace" by Guy de Maupassant
After reading the short story "The Necklace" by Guy de Maupassant, give your readers this two-page packet to assess their reading comprehension. These are not your typical recall questions-instead, readers focus on the climax, types of...
Curated OER
The Fabric of History
African-American history is an integral part of what America is. Learners examine important events, read informational texts, and create quilts depicting specific eras in African-American history. Each image created for the quilt will be...
Curated OER
A Lesson on Atmosphere & Symbolism screams a study of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" on Halloween
Students normally "scared" of poetry welcome "The Raven" lesson plans at Halloween.
Curated OER
Find the Meaning of Christmas with Charlie Brown
The spirit of the holidays can shine through with an exploration of A Charlie Brown Christmas and activities that focus on giving.
Curated OER
Exploring the Theme of Forgiveness
Help teens explore complex emotions through the true stories of historic and contemporary people.
Curated OER
Cats: Reading Comprehension
In this reading comprehension worksheet, 2nd graders will read a paragraph about cats and answer four multiple choice questions about the passage.
Curated OER
Open Cloze Worksheet 15
In this ESL cloze learning exercise, students read and analyze 8 sentences that have a missing word. Students choose one word that they think would best complete each sentence.
Curated OER
ESL Advanced Level- English Grammar Cloze Worksheet
In this ESL open cloze worksheet, students fill in the blanks in 8 sentences. They use words related to English grammar, not vocabulary words, to fill each blank.