Curated OER
Comparing Two Fantasies by J.R.R. Tolkien
Students explore fantasy through The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien. For this literature lesson, students investigate character analysis through book comparisons. Students read The Hobbit and one other book by J.R.R. Tolkien and write a...
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"Tree of Peace": Critical Thinking About Revolution to Global Conflict
Tenth graders explore the importance of peace in society. In this Global History lesson, 10th graders create a common vocabulary for the different elements that exist in a peaceful society. Students discover the connections between...
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Twelfth Night Act 3 Sc 1
Students read, act, and write about an act from the play Twelfth Night. In this play analysis lesson, students read a summary of the act and discuss various segments of the play. Students identify literary and vocabulary points and...
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The Group Essay
Students write an essay of comparison between two works they have studied but have not yet compared. They recognize similarities of themes between two very different works. They submit a group evaluation form.
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Out of the Dust
Seventh graders read a book of poems called "Out of the Dust". In groups, they research the Dust Bowl and how it affected people living through the Great Depression. Using the text, they identify the theme and key turning points and...
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The Cold War in Popular Music
Learners analyze pop culture songs to identify cold war themes and chart. They comprehend and explain why the Cold War took place and ended and assess its significance as a 20th century event. Students conduct a song analysis of the...
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How Would You Spend a Million Dollars?
Students plan and organize a theme to spend one million dollars. They select a theme, research prices of items on the Internet, organize the information into a spreadsheet, write an introductory paragraph, and create a final project.
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The Mark Twain Project at the Principia School
Students read and write an analysis of The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn and write a paper on another Twain literary piece. For this Mark Twain lesson, students select a Mark Twain literary piece to write an analysis paper for the work....
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Book Club Discussion: Things Fall Apart
Students read and discuss Chinua Achebe's novel Things Fall Apart. Students are guided to analyze the text through consideration of the author's use of 6 literary devices. Students also evaluate the text according to their personal...
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Up Close and Personal with Black Bayou Lake
Middle schoolers get up close and personal with Black Bayou Lake. Visiting web sites and taking virtual tours, they write multi-paragraph essays using descriptive words and literary devices.
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The Rainbow Fish
Students listen to The Rainbow Fish and select the correct meaning of the story from three examples presented by the teacher. They use a paper sclae to write three descriptive words about themselves.
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Exploring the Self
High schoolers use different pieces of music and writings to explore the theme of self-reliance and individuality. After viewing a video clip, they discuss how the images made them feel. They keep a writing journal to evaluate their...
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Harriet The Spy
Fourth graders investigate the style of diary writing as its own genre of literature. They read Harriet The Spy in order to have a text for this literature study. Students use the skill of prediction to preview the story, and then...
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Race and Genetics: An Integrated Approach
Students analyze racial issues related to the Human Genome Project. They participate in a mock symposium and write a reflection/position paper based on specific ethical principals.
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Chronology: Visual Timeline
Pupils begin their timelines with the first narrative that they read and add to the timeline as they go. They create a list of history topics and themes that are important to the story. Students add these as sub-headings to the...
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Find the Epicenter
Eighth graders visit the Virtual Earthquake Web site and complete activities that demonstrate how geologists locate the epicenters of earthquakes. The site uses actual data from historic earthquakes.
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What's Cooking
Third graders practice following and writing directions through the use of simple recipes. First they write directions for creating an ice cream sundae. Then they make the sundaes using the recipe written by their classmates.
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Wordsworth's Poetry
Students read Wordsworth sonnet, "The World is Too Much With Us," and complete reader response criticsm worksheets. They examine the poet's ideas and techniques then write a letter to Mr. Wordsworth and explain how he might feel about...
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Travels With Charley
Fifth graders engage in a literature study that uses a variety of texts in order to maximize their exposure to different reading situations. They examine each book in order to practice skills of reading comprehension. They recognize the...
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In A Station Of The Metro And A Pact
Students are exposed to two different works of poetry in order to complete a task of comparing and contrasting them. They analyze the poem and identify the juxtaposition. The analysis is compiled by them to make a class report of it.
National First Ladies' Library
Mark Twain's America
Young scholars read Huckleberry Finn, analyze text for historical contexts, and write book report emphasizing historical elements, type report comparing and contrasting events in book to events of today, create Powerpoint presentation...
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Science: Criminalistics - A New Look at Crime
Students examine the world of forensic science, focusing on fingerprint analysis. In the lesson, they implement a method by which fingerprints of class members are categorized and identified. Elementary students study classification...
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Transpiration
Students interactively explore the term transpiration. In this science/ecology instructional activity, students discuss what they would do if they were thirsty while conducting research in Brazil. Additionally, students write descriptive...
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Blending with Frog and Toad
Students apply word analysis and vocabulary skills to comprehend selections by reading and interpreting a variety of literary words. They then make predictions about the story and identify blends within the English language.