PBS
The Impact of Genetically Modified Seeds
What is all the fuss about genetically modified foods? PBS provides this resource designed to supplement the documentary Food, Inc. to help learners investigate the benefits and controversies of genetically modified foods for individuals...
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Exploration of the Americas
Third graders demonstrate knowledge of exploration by naming and describing accomplishments of explorers. They use the internet to find corresponding information on the explorer and fill in a chart that is provided. Students also...
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Compare Two Versions: Folk Tales, Sequencing, and Summary
Compare two versions of "The Three Little Pigs" (traditional and Jon Scieszka's The True Story of the Three Little Pigs, told from the wolf's point of view). As your 4th graders recount the familiar version of the story, emphasize the...
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The Statue of Liberty: Bringing the 'New Colossus' to America
Learners discuss meaning of symbols associated with Statue of Liberty, read and analyze Emma Lazarus' sonnet, "The New Colossus," and write persuasive letter to a nineteenth-century audience to gain support for bringing statue to America.
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Portraits, Pears, And Perfect Landscapes: Investigating Genre in the Visual Arts
Differentiate between the various genres in the visual arts world, particularly in Western painting. Your class can view and discuss, in small groups, paintings published on the National Galleries website. Then each student individually...
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Marvellous Mosaics
Introduce your class to the beauty found in Muslim mosques by engaging them in a culturally inspired mosaic art project. They view and discuss the nature of the mosaics found in mosques and then they use scraps of colored paper and black...
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Freedom by the Fireside: The Legacy of FDR's "Four Freedoms" Speech
Students read and analyze Franklin Delano Roosevelt's 1941 State of the Union Address. They listen to recordings of speeches by F.D.R., answer discussion questions, and participate in a debate.
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Slimy Advertising and a Wicked Resume
Students compare and contrast a classic fairy tale with a fractured one. They write an advertisement that would entice a witch and a resume for a frog prince who is hiring. They publish their completed work.
Facing History and Ourselves
Tactics of Nonviolence
Students analyze the direct action tactics of nonviolence. As a class, they distinguish between a strategy and a tactic and identify tactics used during the civil rights movement. They relate these tactics and how they might be used to...
Facing History and Ourselves
Kristallnacht: Decision-Making in Times of Injustice
Have you ever been singled out in a crowd before? Pupils investigate and analyze the events of the Holocaust. They dive into the life of a middle school student, as well as the diary entries of those in Kristallnacht during World War II.
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Chocolate Chip Cookie Mining
To understand the impact coal mining has on the environment, pupils will extract chocolate chips from a cookie. Imagine the cookie is the environment and the chips are the coal. Instruct them to mine as many chips as they can, then have...
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The Dewey Decimal System -- Cataloging Collections
Middle schoolers categorize their private book collections as a precursor to learning the principles of the Dewey Decimal System. They use the Internet to gain a better understanding of the Dewey Decimal System.
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Philanthropy in Michigan? Civil War Lesson 3: Why Should I Do Philanthropy?
Students investigate the personal benefits a person can attain from performing philanthropic acts. They think about opposing viewpoints regarding choices, decision-making and consequences. They interview a person regarding their...
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Phone Calls
Students generate a list of 5-7 questions that they use to call a volunteer or service organization. They practice their phone calls with a partner.
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Spooky Story
Second graders write a Halloween story. In this combined technology and writing instructional activity, 2nd graders create a Halloween picture using KidPix, insert it into Microsoft Word, and then write a story to correspond with the...
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Volunteering As Good Work
Students generate questions to ask volunteers. They conduct interviews to determine volunteer's motivation. They write thank you letters to volunteers.
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Homelessness:Key Terms
Students explore the concept of homelessness. In this social issues lesson, students research homelessness through key terms, in order explore the concept in more depth.
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My Birthday Connection
Focus on famous women using this lesson. Learners choose a famous woman to research, complete a fact sheet, and discuss their results. While incomplete, this lesson could be used as an outline for a more in-depth exploration.
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Analyzing Poetic Devices: Robert Hayden's "Those Winter Sundays" and Theodore Roethke's "My Papa's Waltz"
Analyze the poetic devices used in Robert Hayden's "Those Winter Sundays" to those found in Theodore Roethke's "My Papa's Waltz." Critical analysts discuss poetic meter and rhythm and its relationship to theme. They compare and contrast...
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Alphabet
Primary learners will make posters, trace letters, and eat letter cereal, all to learn about the alphabet. They will also go on a scavenger hunt around the room looking for letters. This resources has lots of ideas for bringing about...
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Crane, London, and Literary Naturalism
High schoolers read London's "To Build a Fire" and Crane's "The Open Boat" and compare and contrast the authors' style as they explore the genre known as American literary naturalism.
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The Language Bank
Students work on the Internet to listen, read, and practice writing in a foreign language. They focus on the use of idiom and humor in other languages.
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ReReading America Lesson Three: Hands-on Practice
Learners research, using a variety of sources, a topic that has been previously chosen. They evaluate their information for the value, relevance, and accuracy. Students identify problems in their research and writing to get assistance as...
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The Powers of Government
Explore the powers of the federal and state government. Learners use a Venn Diagram to classify tasks as belonging to the states, the federal government, or both. This activity provides a quick way to review these concepts.