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We Like to Imagine - Animals
Students describe a pretend animal. They read "The After School Monster." Students read other books and discuss whether or not the characters are real. Students make a drawing of a pretend animal and of a real animal. They make up a...
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Push or Pull
Young scholars discover that one way to change how something is moving is to give it a push or a pull. They design their own boats and work with 'The Great Boat Push' worksheet to compare how their boats move when they are pushed or...
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Making Connections: I Know Why Caged Birds Sing
Students discuss equality and fairness by reading a Maya Angelo poem. In this U.S. history lesson, students read the poem I Know Why Caged Birds Sing, and discuss how the era it was written in affected the words. Students identify the...
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Language Arts: Twinning At-Risk Students
Students at-risk in high school and primary grades pair up to read and write together. They create books modeled after authors and illustrators. They hold a parents' day to display their completed books.
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When My Name Was Keoko
Learners construct a book banquet to help us to recall and enjoy food eaten in Korea during the 1940's. The class is to read When My Name Was Keoko and then create a book banquet that the students invite their parents to. Learners cook...
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Poetry
Tenth graders write a poem. In this poetry lesson, 10th graders read the poem The Road Not Taken written by Robert Frost, answer discussion questions, add new stanzas to the poem and share them with the class.
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Force And Motion With Cars
Students discover that different things move at different speeds. They compare the distance a car travels on a ramp with and without a push. They
push the car with one finger the first time, let it move without a
push the next time (no...
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Symbolism
Students engage in a lesson about symbolism while reviewing the work of Edgar Allen Poe. They review the definition of symbolism and use it to list the symbols in his work. They write a journal about how the author uses many literary...
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Our Five Senses
Students use their five senses to describe what's in a mystery bag. In this senses lesson, students use a graphic organizer to collect words for a sensory poem.
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Argumentation and Logic
Students recognize inductive and deductive reasoning and analyze common fallacies in critical thinking. In this argumentation and logic lesson, students use role playing activities and specific instances of inductive and deductive...
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Book Project Lesson Plans
Long term book projects can help engage students and enhance their critical thinking skills .
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Encouraging Cooperative Learning Among Gifted and Talented Students
Literature circles, and other similar methods, provide cooperative learning opportunities.
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A Journey To Japan Through Poetry
Third graders gain an appreciation for writing, analyzing, reading and listening to poetry, viewing poems as a motivation for studying Japanese culture and tradition. They study and create their own haiku and tanka poems with illustrations.
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To Kill a Mockingbird - Introductory Role Play and Historical Background
Students participate in role-play activities to explain that emotional and social effects of prejudice discussed in the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird.
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19th Century Women's Suffrage - Sheltered Activities
Students reenact The USA v. Susan B. Anthony and discuss women's suffrage and the 19th Amendment.
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...If Your Name Was Changed At Ellis Island
Fourth graders investigate the concept of and reasons for immigration. They report on an immigrant group that moved to Illinois since 1700.
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Design a Book Cover
Students explore character, plot, setting, symbolism, and conflict for a book that they are reading. Sample book covers are provided and students apply what they have learned by designing a book cover.
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Holocaust Theme
Learners complete a unit of lessons on the events of the Holocaust during WWII. They write daily journal entries, create a collage, view and discuss videos, read and analyze novels and poetry, and complete a novel project.
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Debunking the Myth of the American West
Students participate in a close reading. They examine the text closely for implied and hidden meaning, dissect the story to understand the text as a written craft, and discuss significant details and overall meaning of story. They...
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What Is Courage?
Students brainstorm definitions of the word "courage." They work in cooperative groups to complete tasks related to critical lense statements. Students write an essay of critical analysis. They write a first draft, and peer edit . Essays...
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Food Chains
Students study food chains by creating their own slide show using KidPix. They compare information after sharing their slide shows as a whole group. As the children are watching the slide shows of their peers, they tally every time...
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Social Sstudies: Change in Space and Time
Students examine the dynamics of change and compare and contrast it with other cultures. They cite examples of how people change over time and explain why it is necessary. Students organize a skit, Webpage, or Powerpoint presentation...
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Creating Dramatic Monologues from The Grapes of Wrath
The characters in The Grapes of Wrath come to life through an activity that asks groups to craft a dramatic monologue for a character in John Steinbeck's National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize winning novel. Writers are challenged to...
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Story vs. Plot
Students, after reading and discussing the two texts by Flannery O'Connor, "Good Country People" and "Greenleaf," analyze the plot, tone, characters, themes and setting in each story. They write their own short stories dealing with a...