Curated OER
Outstanding Women
Research the lives of famous women in this social studies lesson. Middle schoolers use various sources to research a famous woman and create a presentation about the accomplishments of the woman. They can find the central idea throughout...
Curated OER
Why A Bill of Rights?
Examine conflicting viewpoints in this lesson, in which middle schoolers write their own proposal for including a Bill of Rights in the Constitution. As a class, they discover how the Bill of Rights was not a planned document to be...
Curated OER
Learning From World War II and Connecting It to the Present
Compare and contrast World War II to the modern Iraq war with this instructional activity. After watching a film, learners use supporting evidence to support their point of view of the conflicts. Using the internet, they create a...
Curated OER
Identify Purposes of Text
Set a purpose for reading informational texts with this reading lesson. To find the central idea of a text, young readers turn titles and subtitles into questions to help them understand the text. They complete a T-chart for the lesson,...
Curated OER
An Introduction to Counting in Swahili
Create and illustrate individual books that aid young learners in learning to count 1-10 in Swahili. They discuss and appreciate a different culture, and find out about Africa through illustrating individual books.
Student Handouts
War and Neutral Rights
Teach your class about neutral rights with a brief reading selection and related questions. Pupils read the passage and answer the four questions on the bottom half of the page. Useful for a homework assignment or a quick warm-up, this...
Polk Bros Foundation
Meet the Nonfiction Main Idea Challenge
Help your class develop the ability to determine a main idea with a packet of materials that you can introduce and use over a period of time. The packet includes some information for the teacher and rationale for the exercises. There are...
Polk Bros Foundation
I Can Identify and Support the Main Idea in Non-Ficiton
Analyze a historical or scientific informational text by determining the main idea and supporting details. This graphic organizer allows pupils to write down the main idea and four details.
Polk Bros Foundation
I Can Identify a Nonfiction Writer's Main Idea and Supporting Examples
Use this page to quickly identify the central idea of a text and organize ideas for writing an informational or explanatory text. The worksheet is split into two parts. In the first part, pupils note down the main idea and supporting...
Curated OER
Seeds in Flight Information Sheet
Seeds in flight are amazing things. Hand out a great information sheet for learners to read. They'll discover facts about seeds, why they spread, and examples of how different seeds get from here to there.
Curated OER
Anticipation Guides Improve Reading Comprehension
Beginning with anticipation guide strategies is a powerful method for improving reading comprehension. First, list initial ideas for a topic the class will be reading about. These ideas are formulated into statements, some of which are...
Curated OER
Finding Your Way in the World Wide Web
Researchers practice grouping items to explore the concept of a database. They apply these concepts to the WWW search engine format and consider why it is important to enter the most specific information.
Curated OER
Mini Biography of Queen Victoria
Queen Victoria ruled Great Britain until her death in 1901. Here are four slides describing the life and times of Queen Victoria in a bulleted format. The last slide sums up the information as a timeline of her life.
Curated OER
News Quiz | Dec. 5, 2011
The New York Times December 5, 2011 edition, is ready to read. Kids plunge head-long into the paper and then use what they know to take a five question quiz. The quiz can be printed or taken online.
Curated OER
News Quiz | Feb. 9, 2012
Buddy up to the stories in the February 9, 2012 edition of the New York Times. Kids get to know top headlines as they read or scan each article. When they are ready the take the five-question multiple choice quiz.
Curated OER
News Quiz | Sep. 20, 2011
Reading the paper is like eating oatmeal, it's a great way to start the day! Kids dig into the September 20, 2011 edition of the New York Times and then take a short multiple choice quiz. The quiz can be completed in print or online.
Curated OER
News Quiz | Jan. 4, 2012
What does your class know about the stories in today's paper? They read the articles and top headlines in the January 4, 2012 edition of the New York Times and then take a short quiz. The quiz contains five questions and can be done...
Curated OER
News Quiz | May 10, 2012
Get the class online so they can check out the May 10, 2012 edition of the New York Times. They'll read or scan each article and then take a five-question quiz. A great way to start the day. Note: The quiz can be printed!
Curated OER
News Quiz | Dec. 8, 2011
Kids take a five question multiple choice quiz to see what they know about December 8, 2011. They read the New York Times from that day and then take an online quiz.
Curated OER
News Quiz | April 30, 2012
You can't take this online quiz until after you've read the April 30, 2012 edition of the New York Times. After scanning the articles from the paper, your class can answer each of the five questions. A good way to stay informed on what's...
Curated OER
News Quiz | June 1, 2011
Have the class read the New York Times before talking about the event that made headlines on June 1, 2011. They read or scan that day's paper and then take a five question quiz. A good way to sneak in a bit of recent history.
Curated OER
News Quiz | Dec. 14, 2011
Kids take an online quiz to see how much they know about the events featured in the December 14, 2011 issue of the New York Times. They scan each article and then take the five-question quiz. A quick way to see who's reading and who's not.
Curated OER
News Quiz | Sep. 29, 2011
Hand your class a digital copy of the New York Times from September 29, 2011. They can scan the articles and then take a five-question multiple choice quiz.
Curated OER
News Quiz | March 30, 2012
Introduce the class to the New York Times. They'll read articles posted on March 30, 2012 and then take a five question quiz. A great way to make daily news readers out of any learner.