Pupils work in cooperative groups to explore communication needs of our world. They are assigned a demographic area and asked to create ways to solve communication problems with innovative ideas. They also explore areas that can help...

Students construct a paper glider. In this physics of gliding lesson plan, students first learn about Borneo and it's rainforest habitat. After students discover the way animals in Borneo glide from tree to tree, they use their newly...

Students understand how they can incorporate dietary guidelines in their daily life.  In this investigative lesson students set dietary goals and incorporate an activity to learn how to create a new seed variety while studying...

From British accents to Texan drawls, a character's dialect can be an important part of the reading experience. A Six-Trait writing activity guides learners through the analysis of a character's dialect (Daniel Keyes's Flowers for...

The fascinating video "Changing Planet: Fresh Water in the Arctic," introduces your oceanographers to the world's gyres. They learn that melting sea ice is making the gyres larger, and that the changes could, in turn, contribute even...

Students compare paper making by hand and by assembly line. In this manufacturing activity, students compare and contrast the two main ways to make paper, by hand or by machine.  Students research paper making and have a class...

Did Scopes violate the Butler Act? Why did so many Americans follow the Scopes trial? See analytical reading in action with a fantastic five-day lesson plan in which class members consider the historical context that provoked public...

Give learners a chance to understand the practices and beliefs associated with witchcraft through an anthropological lens. Like any other belief system, witchcraft stems from specific sociological needs. This practice is well-defined in...

What kinds of foods include corn? Corn syrup? Start by viewing a clip of Food Inc. with your middle or high schoolers. Then, study a list of corn-derived ingredients, encouraging your class to see how many food products contain corn. A...

Do “memories need to be shared?" Are “memories…forever?" Would you give up memory to live in a perfect world? Introduce a unit centered on Lois Lowry’s utopian/dystopian novel The Giver with a series of activities that has groups...

Narrative essay writing is the focus of a series of exercises that model for learners how to not only read a narrative, but how to also examine the techniques fiction writers use to create a setting, develop their characters, represent...

Creating buildings that reach hundreds of feet into the sky is no easy task. The third instructional activity in this series begins with four activities that engage young architects in exploring the major challenges that are faced when...

Art and architecture go hand-in-hand. Kids watch clips from the Hayo Miyazaki film Spirited Away to better understand Japanese customs and architecture. The discussion questions included are very good, and will help you lead the class in...

Just like a painting or the symbols on a flag, quilts can express ideas that reflect a cultural context, space, and time. The class discusses the history of quilt making throughout US history and what different types of quilts mean. They...

Point out the Gulf of Mexico and tell your class about the 2010 oil spill. Give each emerging ecologist a large bird feather. Have them make observations about it and then predict what would happen if it were to be placed in oil. Have...

Elementary magnetologists investigate magnetic shields using a variety of materials in a "shielding sandwich." While the activity isn't novel, it is engaging, and this particular resource includes a brief explanation of the phenomena...

How do all the lessons and activities you have planned for your class align to Common Core State Standards? This can feel like a very daunting question. Help ease the process by referencing a template that not only lists and...

Are you effectively integrating technology into your classroom activities? Based on the SAMR model, here is a rubric that will help you consider important standards by which you can measure your instructional practice, such...

Young historians practice in-depth, quality analysis of primary source texts in this three-lesson unit, which examines excerpts from the slave narratives of Frederick Douglass, Harriet Jacobs, and Caleb...

Designed for a Christian Sunday school class, this unit includes eight lessons for introducing youngsters to the Easter season and its connection to Jesus Christ. 

Help learners with special needs recognize the interests of their family members and build a foundation for conversation practice using worksheet activities and social prompts. 

The Grapes of Wrath. The Jungle. Native Son. The Things They Carried. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian. To address a current social, political, economic, or environmental issue, class groups pair the reading of a...

Pupils identify simple machines found in different environments. In this matching lesson, students match the machine with the place it belongs.