Students are introduced to the concept of thermodynamics. In groups, they participate in experiments in which they discover how potential energy converts into kinetic energy. They use the internet to research the components of a...

Sixth graders create a slide show presentation of a popular children's storybook. The story will be retold by the "villain" in an effort to explain his side of the story. This activity is based on "The True Story of The Three Little...

Third graders practice dictionary skills. They use a digital camera and insert pictures from a floppy disk into a document. They play a game in which they are handed an anonymous definition of each other and must find each other in class.

Writing teaches us so much. One can identify the many characteristics of a newspaper, use the Internet to gather information, and communicate with others. Primary students create a class newspaper for publishing and dispersal.

Leave no student behind with this differentiated geometry unit on perimeter and area. Over the course of five lessons, young mathematicians explore these foundational concepts through a series of self-selected hands-on activities and...

What better way for young biologists to learn about invertebrates than by creating their very own? Here, students are assigned a set of invertebrate characteristics and are asked to invent an imaginary ocean animal...

Put your students' map skills to the test with this engaging cross-curricular project. Given the task of developing new hiking trails for their local community, young cartographers must map out beginner and intermediate...

Students work in a cooperative groups to create a free standing tower of straws and pins in ten minutes. They watch a video of the cooperative groups working, discuss the process and list the things they could do to improve the cooperation.

Learn about the concept of specialization of labor with your class. In this specialization of labor lesson, 3rd graders work in teams to produce a product. They work in either a division of labor or independent production method. They...

Guide your readers to explore character traits. As a class, discuss and record the traits of a commonly-known fairy tale character. Then do the same with the main character in the class novel. Finally, have learners use magazines...

Students work in a group to prepare a poster about a new number system. They research a variety of number systems, create new symbols for their original number system and develop a tutorial for the class.

Here is an outstanding series of lessons on journalism, writing newspaper articles, and writing editorials. This type of writing has long-been neglected in our schools, so this collection of writing activities is most-valuable. Along...

It's alive! Turn young biologists into mad scientists with this engaging genetics activity. Using their knowledge of chromosomes and genes, high schoolers create dragons with unique sets of traits,...

Students, working in small groups construct scale models of the planets and solar system. They examine images of Mars and discuss what might have caused the features. They record facts about their planetary research in their journals and...

Students explore various careers in science. In this science and society instructional activity, the teacher leads a discussion on science careers and duties and responsibilities related to the careers, then students work together to...

Students write a topic sentence to a paragraph and explain that it introduces the main idea. After a whole-class demonstration, students write a complete paragraph with their topic sentence and supporting sentences. There are some...

Students examine where water is found in the world, how we use it, and the various forms it takes. They observe the refraction of light through a prism, record the day and night sky over a week's time, and create a topographic model of...

Youngsters improve their measuring and counting skills using sunflowers. They view pictures painted by Van Gogh. Everyone works in groups to measure sunflowers and record their findings, and they all use sunflower seeds to create...

Learners complete a character study using a database to compile information from a novel. They design a five slide presentation highlighting the character's reaction to different situations in the book. They write an acrostic poem using...

Students work in groups to prepare a brief broadcast or print news report from one of five possible viewpoints about an environmental contamination scenario. Students are given basic information about a chemical spill in a small town and...

Here is an app version of a powerful tool that allows you and your students to have one place where you can capture, organize, and share items in multiple media formats.  The different uses for this app are as varied as your ideas...

Study heat transfer with activities that focus on how heat energy works. Using a solar cooker, ice cubes, and heat transfer bracelets, kids experiment and record what they find by keeping ice cubes cold and vegetables hot.

Students read the story A Day's Work and complete discussions questions as they read the story. In this comprehension lesson plan, students also learn Spanish numbers, and write and illustrate a job they would like to have.

Young scholars use quilt patterns to illustrate ratios. In this fractions lesson, students color quilt patterns using given fractions and ratios of colors. A finished "quilt" is assembled from the work of the young scholars. This is an...