Annenberg Foundation
Mapping Initial Encounters
Picture someone's excitement of seeing a horse for the first time. How about a cow? The Columbian Exchange changed life for not only Native Americans, but also for Europeans and the entire world. The second lesson of a 22-part series...
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Nature: Friend and Foe: English Language Development Lessons (Theme 6)
If readers don't understand key portions of a text, it may seem more like a foe than a friend. The second resource in a series of three ESL lessons designed to accompany the texts in Nature: Friend or Foe makes the texts easier to...
California Department of Education
Safe at Work
From minimum wage to minimizing injuries, young workers need to know their rights! The sixth and final instructional activity in a series of college and career readiness activities gets eighth graders thinking about safety and labor laws.
Annenberg Foundation
Colonial Designs
The adventures of the New World came at a cost for Native Americans. Scholars investigate the economic side of settling the European colonies. Using video clips, statistical evidence, and primary sources, they create hypotheses and...
Alabama Wildlife Federation
Birds are Everywhere
Wildlife includes all animals that have not been domesticated, both big and small. Young scientists search for all types of wildlife and more importantly for evidence that wildlife is present. As they venture in an outdoor space, they...
Thoughtful Learning
Setting and Reaching Goals
An activity boosts self-management through goal setting and reflection. Scholars choose one goal they wish to obtain by the end of the week. Participants brainstorm ways to make their goal a reality then reflect on whether or not their...
Missouri Department of Elementary
The Many Roles I Play in My Community
Small groups brainstorm their roles in the community. Then, individually, complete a community roles web worksheet. Peers share their completed product and extend the conversation to include the feelings and character traits that go...
Missouri Department of Elementary
Think Positive!
Following an attention-grabbing read-aloud, scholars brainstorm ways they can change negative thoughts into positive thoughts. Small groups plan and perform a skit that showcases one of the new ideas to uplift one's feelings....
Missouri Department of Elementary
I’m Thumbody!
Positive and negative thinking is the focus of a lesson that boost self-awareness. Beginning with a whole-class discussion, scholars brainstorm what positive thinking looks and sounds like then compares and contrast the two types of...
Missouri Department of Elementary
Are You Balanced?
Balance scales create a strong visual of how an individual prioritizes one's self alongside their commitments to the community, school, and home. Scholars complete a graphic organizer then discuss their findings with their peers. A...
Missouri Department of Elementary
Sally’s Super Day
After having a bad day, Sally took scholars' suggestions and had a super day. Pupils listen to her newest short story then discuss the events that occurred. They sort each event by what was in her control and what was not. Participants...
Missouri Department of Elementary
Don’t Tease Me!
A whole-class discussion sheds light on school bullying and ways to prevent it. Scholars share a moment when they observed or experienced some sort of teasing. Pupils brainstorm ways such behavior can be stopped or prevented.
Nemours KidsHealth
Self-Esteem: Grades 6-8
It would be lovely if we all had mirrors that told us were were fabulous. Alas, such devices designed to boost self-esteem have yet to be invented. However, there are activities that can prove effective. Two activities in a four-page...
Missouri Department of Elementary
“Re-Solutioning”: Practice Brings Out Our Best
Seventh graders create and perform a skit that demonstrates their conflict resolution skills. They begin by examining the process of crafting a performance and review what they have learned about conflict resolution. Next, they...
Nemours KidsHealth
Germs: Grades 9-12
Beware the bugs! Two activities engage high schoolers in the study of germs, what they are, what they do to the body, and what can be done to prevent them from spreading. After reading a series of related articles, groups create a...
Teaching Tolerance
Parallels Between Mass Incarceration and Jim Crow
Is history repeating itself? A riveting lesson examines the parallels between mass incarceration in the U.S. and the Jim Crow Laws of the past. Academics review Jim Crow Laws and compare them to mass incarcerations of African Americans....
Bowland
Taxi Cabs
Determine the cheapest way to the airport. Pupils read a scenario about trying to get 75 people to the airport using two different sizes of taxis. Learners calculate the number of smaller taxis needed given a number of large taxis and...
Tean Truth
4 Ways Leaders Approach Tasks: Leaders Motivation
Attitude is everything when approaching a task. That's the takeaway from a worksheet that asks teens to consider the four ways leaders approach tasks.
Academy of American Poets
Teach This Poem: "The Shapes of Leaves" by Arthur Sze
Arthur Sze's poem, "The Shapes of Leaves," encourages young scholars to notice and speak for others who "do not speak." The lesson begins with pupils writing about a tree that they really like. The class then examines an image of...
EngageNY
Summarizing Notes: Planning a Graphic Novelette, Part III: The Invention of Television
How did the television change people's lives? Learners consider the question as they complete their storyboards about the invention of the TV, adding visual elements along the way. Then, they participate in a peer review to offer and...
PBS
Color Code
Don't let your brain play tricks on you! Learners test brain reaction rates while it is receiving multiple stimuli. They time each other reading a set of color words written in different colors and again when they are written in black....
NASA
Build a Light Detector Inspired by Space Communications
Data can travel on light waves ... who knew!?! Pupils explore the idea of using light waves to transmit data through space. They then build their own boards that detect a specific wavelength of light.
Bonneville
Making the Standard Solar Heater
Heat up a lesson on solar energy. The first of three parts in the Experimenting with Solar Heaters unit has scholars construct solar heaters. They then use them to heat up a container of water and calculate the amount of heat energy...
Personal Genetics Education Project
Using Primary Sources to Examine the History of Eugenics
Eugenics philosophy takes survival of the fittest to a whole new level. With a research-focused lesson, young scientists examine the history of the eugenics movement and its impact on society. Pupils engage with a video clip, primary...