Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Filtration Investigation
Scholars build a simple filtration system to remove impurities from muddy water and rate the filtered water to a grade of clarity scale. The focus is on teamwork and problem solving. This instructional activity would be effective in your...
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Exploring at the Nanoscale
Nano-nano! Nanotechnology can seem like it's from another planet! After learning about this tiny technology, collaborative groups experiment with how smaller particles affect chemical reactions. They do this by immersing a whole and a...
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Working with Watermills
In collaborative groups, emerging engineers or environmental scientists plan and construct a water wheel or watermill that rotates for a total of three minutes. Everything you need to carry out this instructional activity is included:...
Student Achievement Partners
Laura Hillenbrand's "Unbroken" and Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston and James D. Houston's "Farewell to Manzanar"
Passages from Unbroken and Farewell to Manzanar provide the context for a study of the historical themes of experiencing war, resilience during war, and understanding the lasting trauma of war. Appendices include extension activities,...
Curated OER
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass
Imagine what it was like to be a slave in the United States in 1845. Eighth graders are given an opportunity to experience life from the point of view of Frederick Douglass as they read and discuss an annotated passage from Narrative of...
Curated OER
Persuasion as Text: Organizational, Grammatical, and Lexical Moves in Barbara Jordan’s "All Together Now"
A thorough instructional activity on persuasive writing takes middle schoolers through several activities, including group discussion, collaborative posters, and independent writing. They compare historical speeches and analyze the...
Curated OER
Agriculture: It Doesn't Just Happen
After reading an informational text on the Agricultural Research Service, learners research the role of the ARS in Oklahoma. Using reputable online sources, they label a map of the state with relevant areas. Researchers focus on one of...
Curated OER
Short But Sweet
After analyzing and evaluating news summaries found in the New York Times "Week in Review" section, middle schoolers study the steps for summarizing a news article briefly and accurately. They write two news summaries: one on a newspaper...
Curated OER
Youth Obesity: Schools Fight Back
Kids fight obesity by comparing the USDA food intake suggestions to what they personally consume throughout the day. They watch a video, read texts, and explore related vocabulary which they use as they compose an oral presentation.
Curated OER
Putting it Together: Analyzing and Producing Persuasive Text
Young orators demonstrate what they have learned about persuasion and persuasive devices throughout the unit by analyzing a persuasive speech and then crafting their persuasive essays. Class members engage in a role-play exercise, use...
Curated OER
How Will We Create a Future without Waste?
Many young people act globally by reducing, reusing, and recycling, Now they take it to the next level by upcycling. Middle schoolers design a proposal to eliminate waste by exploring the new material cycle and applying their knowledge...
Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation
Conditions in China: Why Might One Leave Home Forever?
Primary source texts provide scholars with the background information they need to understand why Chinese peasant farmers were driven to emigrate. After underlining keywords, phrases, and/or lines in the texts, individuals craft a...
Humane Education Advocates Reaching Teachers
Justice for All - Educating Youth for Social Responsibility: Grades 6-8
Teach middle schoolers how to develop healthy relationships with activities and lessons designed to create a kind and inclusive
classroom. Pupils create guidelines to develop a safe and civil learning environment. They learn how to...
National Woman's History Museum
Breaking Through Gender Roles: The Women of NASA
Whether recognized or not, extraordinary women were integral to breaking gender barriers and putting Americans into space. For Women's History Month, explore a series of video clips and biographical information that profile these...
Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media
The Revolutionary Times as Seen Through the Eyes of Women
The role of women before and during the American Revolution changed dramatically. To gain an understanding of these changes, middle schoolers analyze primary source documents, including letters from women that supported the patriot cause...
J. Paul Getty Trust
Exhibiting Common Threads
Artists working in different media often explore the same themes—to model how these same themes weave their way through different forms of artistic expression, scholars analyze images by Dorothea Lange, identifying key themes in her...
Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary
Let’s Throw an Electric Science Party!
Are you looking for a shockingly good lesson? Check out one that has middle schoolers recreate four of Benjamin Franklin's experiments. Groups investigate, observe, and draw conclusions about static electricity and electrical current....
EngageNY
Reading for the Gist and Answering Text Dependent Questions: Hunter-Gatherer Food Chain
Readers use sticky notes and a close reading guide to identify the gist of "My Pig" on pages 240–245 of The Omnivore's Dilemma. After reviewing their thoughts with peers, they answer text-dependent questions about the section.
EngageNY
Reading for Gist and Answering Text-Dependent Questions: Local Sustainable Food Chain
Readers use sticky notes and a Reading Closely: Guiding Questions handout to record the gist of a different section (pages 161-166) in The Omnivore’s Dilemma. They then pair up and share their ideas. To end the lesson, readers complete...
EngageNY
Reading for Gist, Answering Text-Dependent Questions, and Determining Author’s Purpose: Industrial Organic Food Chain
After re-reading The Omnivore’s Dilemma using a Reading Closely: Guiding Questions handout, class members use sticky notes to annotate and determine the gist of the text. Finally, they use an Author’s Purpose graphic organizer to...
EngageNY
Reading for Gist, Answering Text-Dependent Questions, and Determining Author’s Purpose: Industrial Food Chain
A Reading Closely: Guiding Questions handout leads readers to discover the gist of The Omnivore’s Dilemma. While reading, pupils look closely at the words in the text and discuss their meaning. They use dictionaries when needed to answer...
EngageNY
Reading for Gist and Answering Text-Dependent Questions: Industrial Food Chain
Where do humans fall on the food chain? Scholars read about the Industrial Food Chain in The Omnivore’s Dilemma sections. They use word catchers to record unfamiliar words as they read and place sticky notes in the margins to annotate...
EngageNY
Building Background Knowledge: What IS the Omnivore’s Dilemma Anyway?
What's the best thing on the menu? Scholars enter the room, complete a gallery walk of menus to choose a food to pretend to order, and then discuss how they made the decision. Next, they read The Omnivore's Dilemma and relate their...
EngageNY
Analyzing an Author’s Craft: Carlotta’s Journey to Justice
Find your voice. Readers look at a passage from A Mighty Long Way and discuss what it means for Carlotta to find her voice. After discussing figurative language and idioms, learners listen to the song "This Little Light of Mine" and...