Social Media Toolbox
Social Media Messages
What are the elements of a good social media post? The 13th activity in the 16-part Social Media Toolbox incorporates all of the typical components found in a Facebook or Twitter post. Scholars work together to create great posts based...
Social Media Toolbox
Twitter Time
Tweet all about it! Junior journalists explore the Twittersphere to determine its effectiveness as a news broadcasting tool in the 12th installment of the 16-part Social Media Toolbox. Participants follow and record their observations of...
Social Media Toolbox
About Facebook
If everyone is on Facebook, should the school's news publication be as well? Scholars study a social media giant in the 11th lesson from The Social Media Toolbox's 16-part series. The activity combines individual study and collaboration...
Social Media Toolbox
Cyberbullying
What can we do to make our school community more aware of cyberbullying? From The Social Media Toolbox, instructional activity 10 of 16 takes on the tough topic of bullying. Learners research cyberbullying through online research, then...
Social Media Toolbox
Social Media Usage
Is there a difference in the way organizations present news via social media and in print? The third in a series of 16 lessons from The Social Media Toolbox explores news outlets and their delivery methods. Groups follow a story for a...
Social Media Toolbox
Why Social Media?
Is social media the best way to convey news in your school? Young journalists dig deep into the social media question in the second of 16 lessons from The Social Media Toolbox. After learning about the relationship between social media...
Social Media Toolbox
Ethical Decision Making
When faced with a dilemma, how do journalists decide how much news to use? Social media scholars explore the philosophies of ethical resolution in the first of a 16-part Social Media Toolbox series. Partnered pupils use a Potter Box to...
Peter Bunzl
Cogheart and Moonlocket
Peter Bunzi takes readers to the Victorian era with two stories, Coghaert and Moonlocket. Accompany the literary time warp with a companion packet that offers a plethora of exercises. Learning opportunities include activities for before,...
University of North Carolina
Quotations
According to A.A. Milne, "[A] quotation is a handy thing to have about, saving one the trouble of thinking for oneself." However, as part of a larger series of handouts discusses, quotations also have the ability to enhance a piece of...
University of North Carolina
Citation Builder
Does the publication date come before or after the title? Should there be a comma between the location and year? The answer depends on whether you're using the MLA, APA, Chicago,4or CSE/CBE style guide. A citation builder clears up...
California Department of Education
What’s the Plan?
What classes should pupils take to achieve their college and career goals? Explore the options through a lesson designed with the future in mind. Fifth in a series of six college and career readiness lesson plans, the activity challenges...
Boston University
South African Short Stories: Apartheid, Civil Rights, and You
How are short stories from South Africa connected to issues of civil rights in the United States? A unit plan uses South African short stories to discuss issues such as apartheid, colonization, and civil rights. Questions and activities...
University of North Carolina
Evidence
You can claim that soda rots people's teeth or that dinosaurs were actually birds, but your claim will not stand up if it is not backed by evidence. A handout from UNC Writing Center, the seventh in the Writing the Paper series of 24,...
University of North Carolina
Statistics
Let's see you back it up! As shown in the 18th handout in the Writing the Paper series of 24 lessons from UNC, statistics help form an effective argument. The handout discusses how to analyze a source and break down the data to ensure it...
University of North Carolina
Figures and Charts
Sometimes words aren't the best way to get information across to the reader. The eighth handout in the 24-part Writing the Paper series describes different type of figures and charts to display complex information in a paper....
University of North Carolina
Evaluating Print Sources
Not all sources are created equal, so how do you evaluate them? Writers learn how to evaluate print sources based on elements such as audience, tone, and argument in the sixth handout of 24 in the Writing the Paper series from the...
University of North Carolina
Fallacies
All teacher workrooms contain a coffee maker, therefore all teachers must be addicted to coffee. That sentence represents a logical fallacy (although it may be true from some), a topic the seventh installment in the 24-part Writing the...
Learning to Live
Attributes of a Civil Society
What makes a society civil? High school freshmen search for examples of justice, kindness, peace, and tolerance in news media and brainstorm how they can promote these attributes in their schools, communities, and world. The well-rounded...
The New York Times
I Don’t Think So: Writing Effective Counterarguments
When it comes to writing effective arguments, writers must do more than simply make a claim, counterarguments must be considered. Aspiring writers analyze counterarguments in editorials, and then learn how to write counterarguments in...
Henry Ford Museum
Sustainability: Environmental Management and Responsible Manufacturing
When you think about environmental sustainability, the Ford Motor Company probably isn't the first company to come to mind. A four-lesson unit introduces learners to the idea of sustainability and environmental stewardship. It describes...
Library of Congress
Thomas Jefferson's Library: Making the Case for a National Library
The United States Library of Congress, the largest library in the world. But such was not always the case. The library was destroyed during the War of 1812. In a persuasive letter to Samuel H. Smith, Thomas Jefferson offered to sell his...
Theodore Roosevelt Association
Interpreting the Past; Assessing Its Impact on the Present
Even though the presidency of Theodore Roosevelt ended over 100 years ago, we can still learn something from his stances and policies that is applicable today. Class members first look over a list of prevalent political issues from the...
Candace Fleming
Ben Franklin’s Almanac: Being a True Account of the Good Gentleman’s Life
Candace Fleming's award winning Ben Franklin's Almanac is the anchor text for a classroom guide that provides teachers with a cache of pre, during, and post-reading activities.
Library of Virginia
You are Clever Enough to Examine a Historical Source!
Your students are obviously clever, but now they can be C-L-E-V-E-R! Enhance a research project with an exercise that prompts learners to identify the creator, location, era, and value of the information source, as well as provide an...