Curated OER
The Power of Speech
Students prepare and deliver a speech on equal rights. They explore equal rights issues as they practice the skills necessary for public speaking.
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Persuasion and Political Debate by PBS
Students examine rhetorical strategies. In this political debate lesson plan, students research issues of presidential campaigns and deliver persuasive speeches about the issues they research. Students then participate in debates based...
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A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words
Seventh graders create a multimedia, image only ad campaign on a contemporary controversial issue. They base their public service announcement, Powerpoint presentation, Web page, or video on methods used by Martin Luther during the...
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Here's to Your Health!
Studets research a health issue. They write an essay about the health issue. The create a public service announcement.
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Let Us Do Your Selling
Sixth graders analyze several types of propaganda techniques and create a book cover using the techniques. In this propaganda techniques lesson, 6th graders analyze the propaganda techniques used in various ads. Students analyze the...
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Writing Persuasive Letters
Students explore how to write persuasive letters. They work in small groups to brainstorm ideas and organize them into a cohesive argument to be presented to the class. Students explore the concept of persuasion and how it is a strategy...
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Equaino
Learners describe and discuss reasons that slaves were treated with indignity. While reading passages from the author Olaudah Equiano, students stop periodically to discuss major points about The Middle Passage. They investigate...
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Cyber Safety
Students explore internet safety. In this cyber safety lesson plan, students gain information on how to choose safe websites. Students get tips on what types of information is safe to share on the internet and things to be aware of.
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Author's Purpose
In this activity on determining the purpose of writing, students read 3 short paragraphs and choose whether they were written to persuade, inform or entertain.
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Your Next Class Trip
Young scholars write a persuasive argument to their principal to take their class trip to a destination of their choice. They must transfer the written argument into a website. They also focus on what it takes to plan a trip.
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The Persuasive Message
Eighth graders engage in a study of persuasive writing. They conduct research looking at a variety of media resources looking for persuasive techniques that are used like advertising. The language of the advertising is examined for how...
Teach-nology
Author’s Purpose
What is the author's purpose in writing a joke book? What about a book about the digestive system? Explore author's purpose with a instructional activity that challenges kids to identify whether ten books are meant to entertain, inform,...
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Information from Posters
Budding journalists examine and evaluate an informative poster advertising a public meeting to discuss city park issues. They write a paragraph explaining what they found to be effective and ineffective about the poster, then imagine...
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Tobacco in North Carolina
Fourth graders examine the depiction of North Carolina tobacco farms in several photographs. They work in small groups to prepare an argument for a class debate and create promotional signs to advertise their point of view about tobacco...
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Media Literacy Analyzed
Fourth and fifth graders define the term media literacy, then come up with examples that they share with the class. The types of media studied are auditory, visual, and written. Learners get together in pairs and perform a media...
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Creatively Creating Expository Essays
Students, after reading Fahrenheit 451, brainstorm inventions that could have been in the novel. They present their invention to the class and writing an expository essay about their creation.
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The Declaration of Independence
Learners analyze the Declaration of Independence. They identify and describe various sections of the document then discuss how the colonists responded to it. As a culminating activity, they write their own declarations of independence as...
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Brown vs. the Board of Education: Still Opening Eyes
When we use our collective voices to help others, we all benefit.
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Understanding Stereotypes
Pupils confront age-related stereotypes, explore how stereotyping impacts their lives, and discuss how they can make changes to reduce over-generalizations, unfair assumptions, and critical judgments about people groups. They use a...
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Pizza! Pizza!
Third graders tally, sort, and organize pizza orders from monthly school sales. They create an advertising campaign to promote the School Pizza Sale, record the data in graph form, compare and contrast the tallies throughout the year,...
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Can You Build a Better Mousetrap?
Students use a variety of linked sites to research information about student inventions and contests that are available for them. They research an invention they would like to see become available. They communicate their results to their...
Museum of the Moving Image
AdMaker, Obama vs. McCain, “Fundamentals” (2008)
Truth is often left on the cutting room floor when political ads are produced. After viewing the 2012 backfire ad, "Fundamentals" that takes John McCain's comments on the US economy out of context, class groups edit the audio and video...
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Art for Protest or Persuasion
Students examine Chicana/o and earlier prints made for protest and persuasion. They compare characteristics of different processes and distinguish multiple original prints from mass-produced reproductions of artworks.
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How I Spent My Summer Vacation
Students hear the story How I Spent My Summer Vacation by Wallace Bleef and share their own summer experiences. They write a tale about one event that happened during their summer using exaggeration.