Ensure that your kids don't even consider saying "Not me!" when it comes time to read by engaging them in this set of lesson plans based around "The Little Red Hen." The class reads the story together before starting in on additional...

Get the scoop with a fun, engaging newspaper project. After analyzing the parts of a newspaper, including the headline, subtitles, and pictures or images, young journalists get to work by writing their own stories in a newspaper article...

Imagine children working long hours in factories, coal mines, and in the fields. Class members examine a series of pictures and read about early attempts to regulate child labor and current child labor laws.

Make all the ratio representations fit together. The 15th segment in a series of 29 presents ratio problems to solve. Scholars use a variety of representations to respond to the questions. The problem set has pupils show how the...

What energy conversions occur in the operation of a device? Small groups investigate devices and the energy conversions that occur. The groups create energy flow diagrams with added conversion processes for each of the devices...

Individuals or groups select an environmental issue, then spend time researching and creating a presentation to share in class. By allowing learners to choose the issue that matters most to them, you will motivate them to do...

Action is the heart of change. Encourage class members to not only identify critical social justice issues in their school or community but to take action as well. As individuals or as groups, they research a situation, develop a...

Words, words, words. The function of words in persuasive writing is the focus of a group activity that asks members to analyze how words advertisers use are designed to influence targeted audiences.

As a review of persuasive techniques, groups develop a one-sentence slogan designed to entice others to purchase a produce or adopt a point of view. The group then craft a storyboard for a commercial for their product.

Class members investigate the Jim Crow Laws, Executive Order 9066, the Chinese Exclusion Act, and the Indian Removal Act to gather information about not only the challenges encountered by diverse groups of Americans, but their...

Workout buddies aren't just for adults! Learners discuss the benefits of 60 minutes of physical activity each day and generate ideas for how they can accomplish this by working toward a goal with friends.

Class members create a timeline of actions by both the British parliament and the colonists that led to the outbreak of the American Revolution. Groups use the provided Primary Source Analysis Tool to examine and...

To appreciate the value of seeing and hearing a poetry performance, groups prepare readings of selected poems and then compare and critique their interpretations and videotaped versions of the same poem. Included in the resource are...

The Little Red Hen is a wonderful story to teach youngsters about the value of teamwork and sharing responsibilities. As you read through the story, ask comprehension questions to check for and enhance understanding in your class. Kids...

In this mind-bending activity, young engineers explore this question of whether or not light actually bends. Using holographic diffraction gratings, groups design and build a spectrograph. The groups then move on research a problem...

Whether you are an art teacher or a teacher looking for a great project to finish off a unit on the rainforest, this instructional activity is for you. Here are some great teaching tips and instructional practices that can help you and...

Twisting and turning through the sky, roller coasters are popular attractions at amusement parks around the world, but how exactly do they work? Explore the physics behind these thrilling rides with an engineering design activity....

Explore the measures of central tendency through a challenging task. Given values for the mean, median, mode, and range, collaborative groups create a set of data that would produce those values. They then critique other answers and...

Travel back to 1787 as young scholars investigate the creation of the US Constitution. After first working in small groups to create sets of classroom rules, students go on to read a summary of the Constitution and watch a short video...

Young historians examine the work of Martin Luther King Jr. by reading and answering questions about the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the Albany Movement, the Birmingham and Chicago campaigns, and the Memphis Sanitation Worker's Strike....

But enough about me....Help youngsters develop a fundamental social skill in recognizing what others enjoy talking about. Learners draw pictures and write words to describe their interests and what they enjoy discussing, and wear their...

Our teacher told us the formula had one-third, but why? Using manipulatives, classmates try to explain the volume formula for a pyramid. After constructing a cube with six congruent pyramids, pupils use scaling principles from...

There are so many things to discover about the sun! Pupils discuss their knowledge of the sun, explore its features, apply their knowledge by labeling photographs, and then reflect on their learning by working in groups to draw and label...

How much power is too much power for the federal government? Scholars use primary documents and constitutional research in groups to analyze the creation of the Second National Bank under James Madison. This is the second lesson of a...