Choosing a poet or a theme, eighth graders conduct research in the world of poetry. They conduct Internet research and select five poems that fit their poet or theme, and create a seven slide PowerPoint presentation on their selected...

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...

What happens next? Work on story sequence with a lesson that prompts kids to put a story back in order. Additionally, they discuss what would happen if one event was missing from the sequence.

The Apaches: People of the Southwest offers readers a chance to employ the “Ready-Set-Go-Whoa!” strategy (an adaptation of the KWL) to test what they know and summarize what they learn as they read Jennifer Fleischner’s nonfiction...

Eighth grades can master the ELA Common Core standards! Show your learners the connection between classroom activities and assignments and the standards with this set of "I Can" statement posters. Each standard has been rewritten as an...

There are so many authors of short stories, and your class can have the chance to study quite a few. This seventh lesson in a series of fourteen continues the decision-making process for the final assessment: a short story author study....

Class members create literary mandalas for two characters from Maus, Art Spiegelman’s graphic novel about his father’s experiences with the Holocaust. After finding quotes that reveal three good traits and three bad traits of each...

Middle and high schoolers study significant people who shaped the 20th-century history and are introduced to database tools. Researchers use the Internet to research five 20th century history makers. They write a short biography of five...

Middle Schoolers produce a class newspaper about the American cowboy and the times in which he lived with illustrations, feature stories and advertisements typical of the times. This is an ambitious, yet worthwhile project for youngsters...

Who was Walt Whitman, and what link does he have to president Abraham Lincoln?  After Lincoln's assassination, Whitman wrote "O Captain! My Captain!" This poem and "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd" are the focus of...

Vladek's attitudes are difficult for many young learners to understand. Prepare your class for the events represented in Art Speigelman's graphic novel with a pre-reading activity that has them read articles about and interviews with...

After a study of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and the impact his death had on the country and on Reconstruction policy, class groups analyze primary sources that recount the writer’s response to Lincoln’s death. As guided...

How much does your class know about World War II? Before reading Art Spiegelman's Maus I, lead your class in creating a KWL chart. Knowing the background and setting of the novel are extremely important in understanding this survivor's...

First graders engage in a literature study that helps them to focus on the concepts of goods and services. They describe the various skills people may need at home, school, and work. Students create a map of businesses found in the city.

Students study the work of Rodgers and Hammerstein in an historical context of the development of American musical theatre as an art form. Students explore "roots" of the genre as it evolves in last half of the 19th and first two decades...

Watching Great Performances’ Eric Clapton Crossroads Guitar Festival Chicago launches an investigation into and discussion of how the electric guitar and guitarists have changed the sound of the blues over time. An engaging way to...

Second graders listen to the story, Bruno the Baker, where some parts seem real and some seem fake. They must identify the parts of the story as realism or fantasy. An interesting way to teach young readers these two concepts.

Students complete internet based research on pet care in order to prepare a written and oral presentation for the class. They examine the life span, environment, food and grooming of the pet they chose to research. They complete the...

Fourth graders research different endangered animals in media center as part of unit on Earth Day, animals, and environment, create project based around multiple intelligence related to an endangered animal, and produce Powerpoint...

Learners undertake a similar (but not quite as drastic) adventure as that of Frontier House as they explore the day-to-day realities of frontier life through a Laura Ingalls Wilder story, and reflect on which time period suits them...

Eighth graders work in collaborative groups to research a country of their choosing. Groups use the internet to their country and plan a trip to that location. Students complete a multi-media presentation of their country, following a...

Students research the American Revolution. In this Revolutionary War lesson plan, students research facts about the American Revolution, write an expository essay, and peer edit for good content. The paper is suggested to be written...

Fifth graders describe the changes in King George III's policy toward the American colonies by sequencing key events between the French and Indian War and the American Revolution. They explain the colonial reactions to command decisions...