Smithsonian Institution
A Ticket to Philly—In 1769: Thinking about Cities, Then and Now
While cities had only a small fraction of the population in colonial America, they played a significant role in pre-revolutionary years, and this was certainly true for the largest city in the North American colonies: Philadelphia. Your...
Federal Reserve Bank
Messy Bessey's Holidays
Teach your class some fairly complex terms—factors of production, human resources, capital resources, natural resources, and intermediate goods—with a storybook (Messy Bessey's Holidays), plenty of visuals and handouts, and related...
Curated OER
Project Whistlestop:Missouri Vacation Learning Unit
Fourth graders reserach the state of Missouri. For this Missouri History lesson, 4th graders plan a vacation to a region of Missouri. Students work in collaborative groups to determine all aspects of the trip. Students use math skills...
Curated OER
People Change the Landscape
Young scholars examine ways in which humans have brought change to the natural environment. In this ecology and literacy instructional activity, students listen to the book Island Boy by Barbara Cooney. Young scholars observe and define...
Curated OER
NUMB3RS Activity: Riding the Waves
High schoolers use the TI-Navigator system to explore vector fields and make predictions. They also identify what a vector field is and that it represents the movement of water. Pupils try to determine where a bottle floating might have...
Education World
The African American Population in US History
How has the African American population changed over the years? Learners use charts, statistical data, and maps to see how populations in African American communities have changed since the 1860s. Activity modifications are included to...
Curated OER
Listening Comprehension: Retell Main Events of a Story
Story retell is a very important skill. Little learners use a story map and a previously heard story to walk through the retell and story sequencing process. They complete this activity as a whole class and then on their own.
Curated OER
Map Your Favorite Sports Team's Next Road Trip
Students track a sports team across the country. They use a map scale to calculate the number of miles traveled by their sports team on a trip, conduct Internet research, and calculate how much it would cost them to go along on the trip.
National Park Service
Leave it to Beavers
Many people know cats mark their territories by rubbing the back of their necks to leave a scent, but not many people know beavers also leave a scent to mark their territories. During the first activity of two, scholars use their noses...
Curated OER
Forest Fun
Young scholars explore orienteering and how to use a compass. They explore the importance of forests and identify some of the trees in a local forest.
Curated OER
Christopher Columbus: The Man, the Myth, the Legend
Learn more about maps by examining Christopher Columbus's voyage to the New World. Kindergartners will learn about basic map skills and how to identify the compass rose, oceans, and land masses. They will also discover the purpose of...
Curated OER
Amos and Boris: Text Study
Twenty insightful questions follow a read aloud of the story, Amos and Boris by William Steig. Scholars then show what they know through completion of a cause and effect chart, reading fluency assessment, and a written explanatory or...
Macmillan Education
White Fang
Jack London's adventurous novel White Fang may seem removed from students' everyday lives, but with an engaging set of reading activities, learners can relate to the story's themes. A three-page assignment delves into the novel before,...
New York Historical Society
The Vietnam War: 1945-1975
Do pupils know that the Vietnam War spanned a period of 30 years? A war that long is bound to leave devastating effects. Help young historians develop a comprehensive understanding of the war through multiple units on the subject that...
Curated OER
Food on the Map
Students work together to examine the tastiest towns in the United States. After discovering the names of the equipment, they identify the seven continents. They take a survey and locate the cities and states of the foods mentioned.
Curated OER
Around the Town
Learners explore reading maps. In this map reading lesson, students compare distances fom place to place. Learners work in groups and predict the distance then find the actual distance using string or rulers.
Curated OER
Mapmaking
Students examine the craft of cartography and how the Lewis and Clark expedition created and used maps. They analyze maps, read a handout, create a map, participate in a mini expedition and map out a route based on travel directions,...
Curated OER
Using a Concept Definition Map
Students define "natural disaster" by offering examples and charting them to discover what a concept definition map is. Then students create their own maps using the word "city".
Curated OER
Mapmaker, Mapmaker, Make Me a Map!
Students evaluate the different types of historical and geographical information that one can gather through close study of historical maps from the 16th through the 19th centuries. They create their own maps.
Curated OER
Waldseemuller's Map: World 1507
Students investigate the 1507 word map. In this world geography lesson plan, students examine the details of each section of the map and then draw conclusions about how the people of 1507 understood the world. Students are evalated on...
Curated OER
Mexico: One Land, Many Cultures
Students, through a variety of activities, discover the geography and culture of Mexico. They make maps, read folktales, write a journal, create pinatas and other artistic pieces, and review the history of Mexico.
Curated OER
Is the Hudson River Too Salty to Drink?
Students explore reasons for varied salinity in bodies of water. In this geographical inquiry lesson, students use a variety of visual and written information including maps, data tables, and graphs, to form a hypothesis as to why the...
Mary Pope Osborne, Classroom Adventures Program
Mummies in the Morning Egyptian pyramids, hieroglyphics
Visit the Magic Treehouse and take your class on a trip through time with a reading of the children's book Mummies in the Morning. Using the story to spark an investigation into Egyptian culture, this literature unit engages...
National Geographic
The Monsoon
Few things are as fascinating as the challenge of climbing Mount Everest. This lesson investigates how monsoon weather impacts climbers. To begin, you are instructed to show various video clips. The only one directly provided, however,...