Candide is a dense text. To assist in analyzing Voltaire's satire, groups employ a cubing strategy based on Bloom's taxonomy. Complete directions for the strategy, a template for the cube, a worksheet, and a topic list are included. 

Considering an examination of point of view? Use visual arts to engage learners in of this element of art and literature. Class members select a portrait from the Renaissance Connection and, guided by a series of brainstorming...

As an introductory activity to Mississippi Trial, 1955, class members use color-coded dots to respond anonymously to a series of statements about prejudice and responsibility to their fellow-man that are posted about the room. The...

“. . . one man in his time plays many parts,/His acts being seven ages.” Jaques famous speech from Act II, scene vii of As you Like It sets the stage for an examination of the roles people play. Class members not only consider the roles...

This instructional activity is hilarious! To understand how to investigate a topic, collect data, and evaluate the results, learners research the effects of laughter on health. Each group is assigned a research task, which they will turn...

No one will be saying "Not I" with a lesson that combines The Little Red Hen with the life cycle of a wheat stem! After reading the story in your class, pass out wheat stems to your learners and have them examine the plants closely,...

The phonemic awareness activities in this packet are designed to help kids develop skills in rhyming, syllabication, blending onsets and rimes, and beginning and ending sounds. Well worth a place in your curriculum library.

Philip Pullman's The Golden Compass serves as the anchor text for a instructional activity on symbolism. Readers use the provided worksheets to examine the symbols in the novel as well as in the world around them.

Cinderella is a classic love story when Cinderella is the protagonist—but what happens if a stepsister tells the story? Focus on point of view with a instructional activity about fairy tales and story elements. After reading a few...

As part of a study of Juliet Marillier's Wildwood Dancing, class members create vocabulary squares for words drawn from the story.

Why did Henry Ford want to invent a car for the masses? Why did Henry Ford locate his factory in Detroit? Why did Henry Ford encourage the idea of a 5-day work week? Young innovators find the answers to these and other question in a unit...

For this fraction lesson, students manipulate paper by folding it to create different shapes and sizes, they explore the concept of fractions, and discuss their observations as a class. This is a great lesson for getting students...

Fifth graders role play the position of an explorer traveling to the new world. They research the explorers journey and create their own explorer's notebook. They complete different activities and then present their evidence to the class.

Students journey with Lewis and Clark. In this literature lesson, students read The Journal of Augustus Pellitier-The Lewis and Clark Expedition 1804. Students keep a journal in the persona of a member of the expedition crew.

Students discuss language, meanings and ideas in a range of texts related to the sea. They write instructions, explanations, arguments and factual accounts, express personal viewpoints on topics related to the sea.

Fifth graders apply basic Internet navigation and computer skills to complete a scavenger hunt about the Everglades, after reading the book, Everglades, by Jean Craighead George.

Students role-play the jobs of space shuttle astronauts, conduct experiments, and research space using the Internet and offline experiments. Student-astronauts hold a "press conference" to share their information with others in a...

Pupils investigate and measure using the metric and customary units. In this math lesson, students investigate which method is used most worldwide, the metric or the customary. They convert from unit to the other.  

Students design and create an experimental film to express a theme or concept regarding heroism. They establish shots of locations, write dialogue, create montages and subjective footage.

Students create step books to illustrate important events. They discuss how to do things "step by step" and prepare pages to illustrate steps. They select a conquistador and create a step book to illustrate his biographical...

Students examine the use of the Hindu Kush mountains by explorers and traders. Using Afghanistan as an example, they research how different events can effect human settlerment patterns. They discuss how the physical characteristics of...

Eleventh graders discover the importance of the fortune teller in Shakespeare's Macbeth. After watching two interpretations of the play, they examine and compare the portrayal of the character. They create their own modern adaptation of...

Tenth graders define the term slang, explaining its various social, historical, and racial contexts, so as to articulate when it can be appropriately used as a means of effective communication. They use their own personal slang lexicon,...

Eighth graders identify and explain the connections between new ideas and information and their previous beliefs, values, and experiences. They understand that certain themes are relevant to their lives. They realize the harm of clicks...