Building Background

Family and friendship are two very important themes of the historical fiction novel The Orphan of Ellis Island by Elvira Woodruff. From video clips and writing prompts to reader's theater and family interviews, this resource provides...

Help your class transition as the setting in the novel Esperanza Rising, by Pam Muñoz Ryan, moves from Mexico to California. Beginning with prior knowledge, and moving into jigsaw research groups, class members add to and create posters...

Before continuing to read the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, learners need to understand why and how this document was written. First, show and discuss a video from UNICEF to demonstrate the need for such a document. Then have...

Make connections between Esperanza Rising and human rights with the activities outlined here. The instructional activity starts out with a brief quiz and review of the novel. After that, pupils circulate and share quote strips that you...

Even the most thrilling sports career can end in an asterisk if the player uses performance-enhancing drugs. Focused on the topic of doping in sports, a seventh grade unit breaks down the arguments for and against steroids in five...

What makes an effective fort, and why might a city feel that they need such a structure? Your young historians will explore the purpose and design for Fort McHenry, and build their own models of a fort based on the information they have...

Set up your class to read Esperanza Rising, by Pam Munoz Ryan, through a class read-aloud and exploration of the setting. The detailed lesson outlines each step. First, class members read over the first few pages and focus on the...

  Build background knowledge for The Book Thief by Markus Zusak while teaching your pupils how to determine the credibility of online sources. The plan is designed to take place over the course of two days. On the first day, model how...

Students engage in a roleplaying game n order to experience what it is like to encounter people of a different culture. In this lesson on building cultural connections, students will participate in a cultural simulation which will help...

What's it like to be the new kid in town? A short activity, 15th in a series of 17 character-building lessons, focuses on the challenges new pupils face. After viewing a clip from the film The Sandlot, discussion groups talk about ways...