Curated OER
The Roots of Prohibition: Examining the Effort to Prohibit Alcohol in America
Five segements from Ken Burns' documentary series Prohibition, easily accessed on the PBS website, are at the center of a terrific short unit on the roots of America's ambivalent relationship with alcohol. Engage your secondary class...
Shakespeare in American Life
Performing Modernized Shakespeare
“All the world’s a stage…” What do Leonardo DiCaprio, Heath Ledger, and Kenneth Branagh have in common? They have all starred in modern adaptations of Shakespeare’s plays. After viewing a series clips from modern Shakespeare videos,...
Tennessee Technical University
Carousel Brainstorm
A variation of the Walkabout Review process, carousel brainstorming directs groups to rotate through a series of stations posting ideas on the topic or question posted at each stop.
Curated OER
Old Hobbits Are Hard to Break
Explore film adaptation of literature with this lesson, which focuses on the world of film advertisements. Middle schoolers discuss various films (including The Lord of the Rings) and create advertisements for a pretend film based on a...
PBS
The Goals of the March on Washington
Who else had a dream other than Martin Luther King, Jr.? Pupils explore civil rights leaders in a fourth lesson out of a series of five about people who paved the way to freedom for African Americans. The inquiry-based unit has your...
Curated OER
Soda to be Absent from Schools
Should schools serve soda to students? Learners read an artlcle that argues against the sale of soda in schools and engage in a class discussion. They then complete a short assessment to check for comprehension and reflect on the...
Creative Educator
Fantastic Fractions
Groups of learners create an animation illustrating fractions using common objects. They choose everyday objects that they can divide into fractions. They take pictures of the objects dividing into fractions and create an animation with...
Historical Thinking Matters
Spanish-American War: 1 Day Lesson
After analyzing newspaper articles portraying different perspectives of the explosion of the Battleship USS Maine, your young historians will take a stand on which position is the most believable in both discussion and writing.
Curated OER
The Editing Process
Students read a sample essay and evaluate them in groups. They write their own essay on a topic of their choice and use peer editing. They share their essays with the class.
Curated OER
Magazine Production
Analyze magazines as a class, looking carefully for the target audience, advertisements, and topics presented. Small groups then work as a publication team and receive a magazine that they have to "sell." Each individual has a different...
Odell Education
Reading Closely For Textual Details: Grade 8
Only a thorough understanding of history can save us from repeating it. Practice close reading skills with an eighth grade unit that focuses on 19th century America, including European immigration into Ellis Island and Frederick...
Curated OER
Understanding Points of View
Investigate the importance of author's point of view. Young linguists study primary source documents related to the Treaty of Casco Bay. The first source is authored by the Native American Chiefs, the second by an English...
Curated OER
Student News And Weather Channel
Fabulous! Your 5th graders should love this project. As an ongoing lesson throughout the year students use temperature probes to record outside temperature and then document their data using spreadsheets. They use their weather data and...
Physics Classroom
A Critical Lab
Physics lab groups finagle with laser lights to determine the critical angle of refraction for both water and Lucite. Because there are no detailed steps or an answer key for this enlightening exercise, an inexperienced physics...
Annenberg Foundation
Utopian Promise
Scholars learn all about the Puritans in the third installment of a 16-part lesson series. After watching a video, they read and discuss biographies of Puritans and Quakers from American history, write journal entries and poetry, and...
Curated OER
Using Environmental Models to Determine the Effect of Acid Rain on an Ecosystem
Demonstrate to your middle school science learners how chalk breaks down in a weak acid. Discuss what affects acidic rain might have on ecosystems. Lab groups then choose one of two questions: "How does acid precipitation affect an...
Curated OER
The War of the Worlds
Read The War of the Worlds with your class. Then you can enhance the reading experience through the use of these worksheets. Keeping track of reading, recording reader response, and various activities pertaining to the book are included....
Waunakee Community School District
Identifying Themes in Literature
If your language arts learners have a hard time determining the universal theme of a written work, use a straightforward worksheet to help them find it. After reviewing a list of common themes, kids note the title, character, plot, point...
US Department of State
Reader's Theater: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
The opening chapters of Mark Twain's masterpiece, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, can be daunting for some readers. A reader's theater assignment divides the second chapter of the novel into a seven-role script, allowing readers to work...
Curated OER
“Everyone Else Does It!” Ethics Project
Do you have good ethics? How about good morals? Scholars investigate the role business ethics, morals, and values play in society. Through role play, group work, and readings, they uncover the basis behind the importance of being...
Curated OER
Glaciers: Then and Now
A large data table is given to your elementary earth scientists in which they record observations that they make while viewing pictures of Alaskan glaciers. They compare and contrast recent photos with older photos. Hold a discussion...
Curated OER
"The Wind" by James Reeves
Inntroduce primary learners to essential critical reading strategies with an activity based on James Reeves' poem, "The Wind." Learners listen as the poem is read, first as a riddle, and then re-read with the title visible. The class...
Digital Forsyth
Parts of a Whole
High school artists create a collaborative piece based on a historical image. Each member of the class is given two days to draw one part of the whole image, when the two days are up; they put their pieces together and discuss the...
EngageNY
Researching Digital Sources, Part 2: Guided WebQuest
Go surfing for the facts. Scholars continue their work using their Digital Resources on DDT sheet to find information by searching websites. After collecting information, they mix and mingle to hear information discovered by classmates.