Media Smarts
Bias in News Sources
As young consumers of media, it is important for high schoolers to explore concepts of bias and prejudice, and how they may be present in media. After discussing ideological messages that media can contain, individuals complete a warm-up...
Curated OER
U.S. Mint Releases New Jefferson Nickel
Students share their knowledge of Lewis and Clark, then read a news article about the redesign on the U.S. nickel to commemorate Lewis and Clark's expedition. Introduce the article with a discussion and vocabulary activity, then students...
Curated OER
Winter Olympic Torch Traveling Across Italy
Students react to statements about the 2006 Winter Olympics, then read a news article about the Olympic torch's journey through Italy. For this current events lesson (written prior to the 2006 Winter Olympics), the teacher introduces the...
Curated OER
Good Sportsmanship Leads to Home Run
Pupils share examples of good sportsmanship, then read a news article about a team helping an injured player score a home run. The teacher introduces the article with a discussion and vocabulary activity, then students read the news...
Curated OER
Colossal Squid Caught in Antarctic
Students define the word colossal, then read a news article about an enormous squid caught off Antarctica. In this animal studies and current events lesson plan, the teacher introduces the article with dictionary and vocabulary...
Visa
Financial Forces: Understanding Taxes and Inflation
Take the opportunity to offer your young adults some important financial wisdom on the way taxes and inflation will affect their lives in the future. Through discussion and review of different real-world scenarios provided in this...
Curated OER
Taming the Wild Wiki
Take a look at the credibility of online sources such as Wikipedia. Discussion points and handouts are included to facilitate a meaningful and informative dialogue. Tips are given on how to determine if a Wikipedia article is reliable...
Visa
Privacy Please: Protecting Your Identity
What are the different ways we are susceptible to identity theft? Impress the importance of protecting personal information and privacy with this resource, which includes an excellent video clip, discussion prompts, and worksheets for...
Curated OER
Baby Elephant Orphans Get New Home, Families
Students react to a series of statements about elephants, then read a news article about how workers at an elephant orphanage are working to return the animals to the wild. In the animal studies and current events lesson, the teacher...
Curated OER
Hopi Tribal Council
Focusing on the differences between traditional Hopi government and the Hopi Tribal Council, this resource is a good addition to your unit on Native American culture. Learners conduct Internet research, analyze primary source photos, and...
Curated OER
Activism or Slacktivism? The "Stop Kony" Campaign as a Teachable Moment
Engage your learners in global events. The makers of the film Invisible Children began the Kony 2012 Campaign to bring awareness to the Lord's Resistance Army. You can show your class the video Kony 2012 and spark discussion with the...
Curated OER
Brown v. Board of Education
Students examine school segregation and equal protection laws. In this Supreme Court instructional activity, students examine primary documents from Brown v. Board of Education and discuss the implications of the decision.
Curated OER
Bat Quest
Students research bats. In this bat lesson, students read the story of Sellaluna to spark interest in bats. Students use graphic organizers to collect information from the story. Students scan and post their notes on a discussion board...
Curated OER
Learning Skills
Second graders role-play in a variety of different academic and social situations. In this social skills lesson, 2nd graders identify specific skills needed to succeed at home, in school, and out in the community.
Curated OER
"We Came to Free the Slaves": John Brown on Trial
Students explore the plight of John Brown to fight slavery. In this Brown vs. Board of Education lesson, students listen to a lecture regarding Brown's work to free slaves through rebellion. Students participate in classroom discussion...
Curated OER
Oral Presentation
Practice your speaking skills! Using a chosen visual aid, pupils present a previously written essay to the class. During the oral presentation, the listeners identify and write down the author's purpose and a question for the author. At...
Teach Engineering
Energy Choices Game
Here's a fun game on a very serious matter. Scholars play a board game to learn about personal energy use and consumption. They see how various choices affect their energy use and costs, and then apply this knowledge to brainstorm ways...
Curated OER
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer: Before Reading Strategy
Spark interest in Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer with an anticipatory exercise that begins with a brainstorm around the words heroic and good boy. Pupils then complete an anticipation guide, discuss the results in groups, and...
Curated OER
Picture This
Give your littlest learners the opportunity to learn how to discuss, observe, and visualize. First, they determine if the image they are looking at is a photograph or a painting. Then they work together to brainstorm words that describe...
Curated OER
The Metamorphosis: DR-TA
Guide class members through Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis with a series of questions designed for before, during, and after reading. Readers consider Gregor's situation and his options. In addition, they consider how they might rewrite...
Roald Dahl
The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me
Follow up a reading of The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me by Roald Dahl with this collaborative lesson on teamwork. Starting with a fun team game, learners go on to investigate examples of teamwork in the story before working in small...
Maine Content Literacy Project
The Process of Reading vocabulary, literary elements
Cover Freytag's Triangle and examine Anton Chekhov's "The Bet" in this third lesson plan in a series of fourteen based around short stories. Learners take a quiz and discuss Freytag's triangle. They apply the triangle to "The Bet" and...
Curated OER
Ordinary People: Anticipation Guide
Activate your pupils' thinking before reading chapter five of Ordinary People. Learners decide whether they agree or disagree with six statements and discuss their ideas in small groups. They then read chapter five and determine if a...
Florida Center for Reading Research
Multiple Meaning Words in Context
Multiple meaning words is the focus of a lesson designed to reinforce the use of context clues. Scholars listen carefully to a variety of sentences using the words pool and cast to decide which definition best fits the context. Then,...