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Ambassadors of Art
Have your class create their own art exhibit. Learners study the exchange of artwork between the Louvre in Paris and two American art museums, and create an introductory exhibit featuring European and American art from the Renaissance...
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The War of the Words
“Who’s This Guy Dylan Who’s Borrowing Lines From Henry Timrod?” The basic question in this lesson from the New York Time’s Learning Network is whether artists and authors who use the words of others are stealing from that artist or...
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Hey, Teacher, Leave My Kids Alone
What are the differences between homeschooling, traditional schooling, and unschooling? Middle and high schoolers examine the opinions of their peers on these varied types of education. After reading a New York Times article, they...
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A Test of Faith
Secondary schoolers investigate the debate surrounding the current sexual abuse crisis in the Catholic Church with this New York Times lesson. Through discussions and written reflection, they explore their own thoughts and opinions on...
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Second Sun
Explore the elements of newspaper from the view of the front page. Young analysts create a front page of a newspaper geared toward teen readers. They use their inference skills to determine why some front pages are more eye-catching than...
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Twisted Tales
Experience how a story can drastically change when the point of view is altered. Young scholars first read a review of Disney's film Tarzan, focusing on how the point of view in the classic story is important. They then select another...
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Casting a Wary Eye?
Help learners examine racial profiling of Arab-Americans and Middle Eastern Americans in the wake of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. They will be asked to look at beliefs, actions, and behavior towards this group of people...
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Gaining Perspective
Discuss race in the United States. Start by having each learner read a copy of Martin Luther King Jr's famous speech, "I Have a Dream." Then, have them read the article "Shared Prayers, Mixed Blessings" about a church in Atlanta,...
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Short and Sweet Science
Readers learn how to summarize scientific text and evaluate the advantages, disadvantages, and challenges in writing summaries. They select science-related articles you've pulled and collected from the New York Times and, with a partner,...
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News or Propaganda?
What is considered news vs. propaganda? Learners will discuss objectivity and press responsibility while exploring these two concepts. They work in small groups to explore the article in-depth, guided by reading comprehension and...
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Where Do You Stand?
Scholars assess a government's ability to intervene in personal health decisions. They research basic facts about euthanasia and describe their opinions about new legislation passed in the United States Congress about an individual's...
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Fighting for Control
Engage your class in a class discussion examining and defend different sides of an argument about whether the Environmental Protection Agency should have the legal authority to regulate carbon dioxide emissions. They will have to...
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Is That a Fact?
Investigate popular scientific claims and gather evidence to defend or argue against an author's stance. Writers synthesize information and compose their own "Really?" columns modeled after those found in the weekly "Science Times"...
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Rave Reviews
A fun instructional activity that utilizes toys and persuasion! After reading the article, which was written in 2005, pull some advertisements for toys currently being sold. These will be more relevant to your middle and high schoolers....
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Active Reading with American History
Explore connections within and between informational texts with this lesson about encyclopedia articles. Middle schoolers write encyclopedia articles focusing on topics in American history. They discuss how to determine credibility...
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A Duck's Bill on Capitol Hill?
Use a list of environmentally related words to engage learners in a discussion about ecosystem conservation legislation. As a class, read "Aware of Political Ecosystem, Property Rights Advocate Embraces Conservation Plan." Then, present...
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Hic-Hic-Hooray!
What is really the best way to get rid of hiccups? Investigate some old wives' tales and folk remedies related to health. Middle schoolers explore the science behind why people might believe these myths to be true and find the real...
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Take Your Time
Your class examines the ways that they spend time by evaluating their own schedules. They create a peer research survey to gather information about their various habits. They analyze the data and compare/contrast the activities of...
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Whose Feat?
Play a vocabulary game with words from an article about Savion Glover's contribution to the film "Happy Feet." Then, small groups of students design and create original movie advertisements using vivid vocabulary to give Glover the...
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Denial on Trial
What is the "Faurisson Affair”? What is “Holocaust Revisionism”? What does freedom of speech entail? Do revisionists have a right to voice their ideas? Such questions are at the heart of a richly detailed, thought provoking lesson...
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Tasty Topics
Students analyze a graphic from an article and predict what the article might be about. After reading an article, they discover a journalist's experience of traveling across the United States to compare fast food restaurants. They...
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Truth Be Told
Encourage your middle and high schoolers to share their memories of a recent event. After reading a New York Times article, they discuss Elie Wiesel's memoir, Night. They write their own memoir about a significant event that affected...
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It's Getting Hot in Here
Discover the environmental and economic impact of global warming. After reading an article, emerging environmentalists identify how different countries are responding to the Kyoto Protocol. They research emission laws and write a news...
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Smart Design
Share pupil responses to an interactive slide show about a design initiative intended to help the world's poor. The class works in groups to brainstorm ideas, and then prepares sketches of their own design solutions. Each rendering...