Curated OER
Thornton Wilder's Our Town: The Reader as Writer
Students read a play and create their own play using Thornton Wilder's Our Townas a resource. In this play activity, students analyze how theatrical elements contribute to a play's meanings and effects. Students recognize differences...
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Telling Time Timeline
Use the Internet and library resources to compose a telling time timeline -- a visual history of time. Students will develop research skills and gain perspective about telling time by discovering the history of clocks and time.
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Regions of the United States
Fifth graders collect data about regions of the United States using the Internet, library books, and encyclopedias. They write an essay persuading people to visit their state.
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Design a Paper Airplane
Students study examples of paper airplanes and then create their own paper airplane models.
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The People of Kansas: Where did they come from and why did they come?
Students review census data to correlate to emigration in Kansas. In this Westward Expansion instructional activity, students analyze a painting and create definitions for emigration and discuss why people emigrate. Students read and...
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Put the NEW in NEWBERY
Students read Newbery award books. In this Newbery book lesson, students look online to find all the books that have received this award and look through online reviews to find one they would like to read. After finishing the book, they...
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Trees, Logging, and Washington
Eighth graders explore how the Forestry Industry and Washington State history are related. In this forestry lesson, 8th graders research research a specific topic related to the forestry industry. Students write notes on note cards.
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The Immigrant Experience: Down the Rabbit Hole
Young scholars relate the immigrant experience to Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. In this immigration experience lesson, students read Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and relate it to the immigrant...
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Mixed Media Landscape Design
Seventh graders create mixed media representations of landscape designs in Africa and Asia. The lesson plan is great for cross-curricular projects with the Social Sciences and/or Literature, or can be used as a self-contained project. ...
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Reducing the Impact of Drought
Students study the impact of drought and improve their writing skills. For this reducing the impact of drought lesson, students investigate various matters pertaining to drought. They share their findings and build knowledge about ways...
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Civil War Photojournalism: A Record of War
Students view photographs of the Civil War. In this photojournalism lesson, students look at Mathew Brady's photographs of the Civil War. They discover the evolution of photographic equipment and analyze Civil War photographs.
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The U.S. Constitution:Continuity and Change in the Governing of the United States
Students interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary resources. In this U.S. Constitution lesson, students examine and analyze primary sources regarding the plan for U.S. government.
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Readers Who Struggle Can Learn From Wonderful Teacher/Student Created On-Level Reading Projects
Learners create their own books. In this book making lesson, students pick a subject and take photographs of it. They use these photographs to write their own story using their sight words.
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Character Education Podcasts
Students study character traits. In this character education lesson, students create podcasts highlighting a particular character trait. Students broadcast one podcast per week.
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The Great Gatsby: Primary Sources from the Roaring Twenties
Students research the Roaring Twenties. In this 1920's America lesson, students analyze primary sources to develop an understanding of lifestyles and values of the era as they read F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby.
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Labor Unions and Working Conditions:United We Stand
Students examine primary documents about the establishment of labor unions. For this organized labor lesson, students research the working conditions that contributed to the growth of the labor union movement. Students make classroom...
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Paving the Road to the Constitution
Eighth graders argue for or against the ratification of the U.S. Constitution. In this U.S. government lesson, 8th graders complete four activities that encourage them to examine the strengths and weaknesses of the Articles of...
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Sunlight and Warm Air
Students examine the different ways heat can be felt. In this radiation and conduction lesson, students recognize that the sun radiates heat. Students conduct three experiments to find how the sun warms the Earth and how that heat is...
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Is All Well in Welfare?
Students explore current welfare reform issues and create plans of action to improve welfare reform laws in the United States. They predict what President Bush's "Working Towards Independence" welfare reform program might entail and...
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Animating a Historic Event
Research a historic event using textbooks, primary source documents, the Internet, and other library and media resources. Young historians will take the research they have gathered and write an attention-grabbing, historically accurate...
National First Ladies' Library
The Education of Abigail Adams
Learners read the biography of Abigail Smith Adams from the First Ladies Library web site. They work in small groups to write a description of her education. Students discuss their findings, and extend this to the education of girls in...
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Class Book Awards
Students create a class book award. In this book award lesson, students review the book awards already created (Caldecott or Newbery) and look at books that have received these awards. They come up with their own award and nominate new...
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Autism – What Is It?
Students create a poster about expected development versus observed behavior of a child with autism. In this health lesson, students describe the signs of ASD. They read and analyze a simulated case study.
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Land Marked
Students explore proposed plans for land redistribution in Zimbabwe. They research the history of European colonization in Zimbabwe, focusing on the roles and views of various groups within the country. Based on these perspectives, s