Curated OER
Hair a disruption or personal expression?
When does hair (or clothing) disrupt the school process? This question is the topic of the argumentative paper your class with write. They read and react to an article about a boy who was expelled from school for sporting a Mohawk, then...
Curated OER
Family Sues Over Discipline That Stinks
Students read a brief explanation of a situation in which a family is suing a school district because a teacher made a child spray himself with Lysol in front of the class, saying this would take care of his body odor. Students write a...
Curated OER
The death penalty; What is your view?
Students write a persuasive essay about the death penalty. Students respond to students at St. Ignatius Catholic High School in Cleveland protesting the death of Adremy Dennis. Students research both sides of the debate, before writing...
Curated OER
Author's Purpose
Sixth graders brainstorm the reasons authors write, and they list their responses on the board. Students discuss each purpose they have listed.Students work independently to read the selection "Tarantulas and Typhoid" by Stephanie Moss....
Curated OER
Rosa Parks: Mother of Civil Rights Movement
Learners read an article from Time and react to the article based upon what they have studied about Rosa Parks. They find that even though Rosa is no longer alive, she still has an impact today. They focus on that impact she has and...
Curated OER
Hip-Hop: A Journalist's View
Young scholars watch a CNN television news special about hip-hop and write a review. Using the internet, they investigate the pros and cons of the music while interviewing students on their opinions. They examine the growth of this type...
Curated OER
Identifying Author’s Purpose and Viewpoint in Nonfiction Text
Why do people write books? Pupils discover how to identify the author's viewpoint. They read non-fiction passages their instructor selects (the plan has the class look at nonfiction children's picture books), and then identify the...
Foreign Policy Research Institute
Propaganda - 9/11 and the War on Terrorism
Propaganda is an important topic that most high school social studies teachers address. Here, students compare and contrast methods of public persuasion during WWII with those used in the contemporary War on Terror. Research, discussion,...
Curated OER
Thinking About Hate
This lesson starts out with a guided discussion about the statement "Birds fly in the sky; airplanes fly in the sky; therefore, airplanes are birds" and goes on to cover logical fallacies and reliable sources, relating these to the topic...
Curated OER
Looting and its Punishment
Students research the concepts of looting and possible punishments. The outcomes of students research is important for this instructional activity. They write an article that publishes the results of new knowledge.
Curated OER
Mass Manipulation
Students make a chart of the media's manipulation techniques and examples of them while watching and listening to a video tape of past news events.
Curated OER
The Education of Shelby Knox Lesson Plan: The History of Teaching About Sex
Students examine the current debate over sex education. They examine a variety of sex education approaches and determine which one is use in thier school district.
Curated OER
The Trial of the Bloody Sucker
A blood sucking what? Grade schoolers identify the characteristics of blood sucking parasites. They organize their information, identify their arguments, and present them to the class in persuasive arguments. They participate in a debate...
Channel Islands Film
Magic Isle: Lesson Plan 1
What are the factors that limit growth and expansion? As part of their study of Catalina Island, class members view the West of the West's documentary Magic Isle and research William Wrigley and the Santa Catalina Island Company. After...
Curated OER
Author's Purpose
For this assessing the author's purpose worksheet, students determine whether the author wrote to entertain, persuade, or inform by checking yes and no boxes, identifying the purpose, and listing clues that helped determine the purpose....
Curated OER
Cheetah Challenges
Students research the problems that cheetahs are facing in the wild. For this biology lesson, students discuss how animal rehabilitation works. They write blogs about it and comment on everyone's post.
Curated OER
Teaching with Primary Sources Across Tennessee
Young scholars examine Gee's Bend Alabama. In this resettlement lesson, students view a series of photographs taken of Gee's Bend Alabama. Young scholars will write a series of newspaper articles based on the images, that exemplify the...
Curated OER
Fearing the Fear Factor
Students write a reaction paper on the topic: "Reality shows like 'Fear Factor' are dangerous/nothing to worry about because...." Students respond to the situation Akron, Ohio's First Energy Corporation being labeled irresponsible after...
Curated OER
Learning About Evaluation
Middle schoolers evaluate the essays of their classmates. In this evaluation instructional activity, students write two non-fiction essays on two different topics that they may choose. After a lecture on the aspects of the paper that...
Jen London
Julius Caesar Funeral Speech Essay Assignment
"Romans, countrymen, and lovers! Hear me for my cause." "Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears!" As part of a study of William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, individuals as asked to compare the funeral speeches of Brutus and Mark...
Curated OER
Emotion or Reason?
Students use persuasive devices to construct oral or written arguments. In this arguments activity, students discuss the types of persuasive devices used in arguments and form groups to select a topic to research. Students create a...
Curated OER
Delivering a Persuasive Speech
Young scholars demonstrate the appropriate classroom public speaking and listening skills that would be necessary to influence or change someone's mind or way of thinking about a topic. They define the elements of persuasion and...
Curated OER
Know Yourself!
Deaf students view segments about autobiographies. They are to answer questions about themselves and write their own autobiography.
Curated OER
Impromptu and Extemporaneous Speeches
High schoolers brainstorm and agree on a topic that is interesting to both the speaker and the audience and research it with both tradition and non-traditional sources. They write and outline the body of the speech and translate the...