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Writing
Curated OER

What Do You Think of Obama's Oval Office Speech on the Oil Spill?

For Students 7th - 12th
Kids age 13 and older are asked to read the provided Times article and background information in order to construct a thoughtful blog response to Obama's first Oval Office speech. They work to address each of the related critical...
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Writing
Curated OER

When Is It O.K. to Replace Human Limbs With Technology?

For Students 7th - 12th
Today's blog topic is robotic limb replacement for amputees. Upper graders read the related article and argument, then compose a blog response that addresses the questions provided. This is a great way to get kids thinking about ethics,...
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Writing
Curated OER

What Famous Landmarks Have You Visited?

For Students 8th - 12th
Responding to blog posts can increase written communication skills, critical thinking skills, and the use of social media as a means for discussion. Kids will compose a blog post in response to the provided article related to famous...
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Are Antismoking Ads Effective?

For Students 9th - 12th
Are the anti-smoking ads put out by the federal government effective? This question is posed to your critical thinkers. They'll read excerpts from a New York Times article and then compose thoughtful blog responses to four related...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Oklahoma! The Cultural Myth of America

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners explore cultural myths in America by collecting images and characteristics of stereotypical Americans. They read a primary source document, discussing the views of the author in class. Next, they compare the terms used to...
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Unknown Type
Polk Brothers Foundation Center for Urban Education at DePaul University

De Paul University: Center for Urban Education: Reading Constructed Response Organizer [Pdf]

For Students 5th - 8th
This exercise provides guiding questions that will help students develop constructed responses.
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Handout
Brown University

Brown University: One Minute Paper

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Learn the procedures how to use a written response activity to an open question any time during a class.