Lesson Plan
MENSA Education & Research Foundation

Quotation Station: Using Quotes in the Classroom

For Teachers 3rd - 12th Standards
An informative list compiled with quotes, authors, and discussion questions, along with 20 out-of-the-box application ideas, make up the collection of lessons geared to spark dialogue and creative thinking about quotations. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Spider Watching

For Teachers 1st - 2nd
Spiders are creepy, crawly - and interesting! Young entomologists learn about parts of a spider's body, their habitats, ways spiders catch their prey, and what they most like to eat. Some excellent art activities are included in the plan...
Unit Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

What Happens in the White House?

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Young historians complete a unit of lessons on the functions of the White House. They conduct Internet research, develop a list of activities that take place at the White House, and create a chronological timeline of events at the White...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Quilt Squares-Literature Reporting

For Teachers 2nd - 6th
Differentiate instruction with this crafty approach to demonstrating comprehension. Learners choose a fictional book at their reading level, and afterward create a quilt square. The square is "decorated" with words, illustrations, and...
Worksheet
Worksheet Web

Let it Snow

For Teachers 3rd - 4th Standards
After reading an informational text detailing the ins and outs of snowflakes, scholars draw their own special design then work cooperatively to role play a snowman building scenario. 
Lesson Plan
Sargent Art

Kandinsky - Inspired by Music

For Teachers K - 4th
Who is Wassily Kandinsky? Introduce your young artists to the wonders of abstract nonobjective art through music. They'll listen to music as they cut, paste, and paint emotional works of art. The activity suggests the use of soothing...
Unit Plan
Broadway GPS

ALADDIN: Broadway's New Musical Comedy

For Parents 5th - 9th Standards
Aladdin, Disney's Broadway musical comedy, is a magic carpet ride. Prepare your class for a field trip to the show with a study guide that is a treasure trove of activities, cultural connections, and background information.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Literature and Art Through Our Eyes: African-American Artists

For Teachers 3rd - Higher Ed
Examine the contributions of African-Americans in the worlds of art and literature. Over the course of a few days, young scholars will read and analyze a poem, a short story, and a piece of art. They complete a range of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Oh, What A Day

For Teachers K - 3rd
Students listen as the teacher reads A Country Far Away. They predict what they will do and what they think their partner student will be doing. Students create a KWL chart for Japan. They collect information about their activities on an...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Genocides of the 20th Century

For Teachers 9th
Ninth graders research the causes of the major genocides of the 20th century. They participate in a jigsaw activity and complete a concept map of different genocides, watch and discuss excerpts from the movies "Hotel Rwanda," "The...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Outsiders

For Teachers 10th
Tenth graders complete a variety of activities related to the first two chapters of the book The Outsiders. They define metaphor, simile, idiom, and hyperbole, and take a vocabulary pre-quiz. In small groups, they write a character...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Those Fabulous Fables

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
A video leads off this activity on fables, introducing the class to this important form of traditional storytelling. The group defines fable and hears an explanation of the origin of this type of folk tale. They summarize the story they...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Keepers

For Teachers 1st - 4th
What are some things you think are special enough to keep? Discussing special things launches young learners into reading Keepers. They investigate related vocabulary and practice before, during, and after reading comprehension...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Elizabeti's Series--Classroom Guide

For Teachers 2nd
Second graders explore the books in the Elizabeti Series. In this reading comprehension lesson plan, young readers discuss pre-reading focus questions about their feelings on the first day of school. They investigate the book and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

My Teacher Can Teach Anyone!

For Teachers 1st - 2nd
Begin the school year with enthusiasm using the book entitled My Teacher Can Teach Anyone! In this reading for meaning lesson, primary readers listen to the story and discuss what is happening and why the boy in the story might be...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Exploring Geometric Figures

For Teachers 10th
Tenth graders explore mathematics by participating in hands-on daily activities. Learners identify a list of different shapes and classify them by shape, size, sides and vertices. They utilize tangrams and geometric pieces to gain...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Travis the Train Learns Colors

For Students K - 6th
Reinforce color words, word recognition, and color identification with this train-themed color book. Each page contains an image of a colored train and a sentence describing that train. Additional pages show the same trains but ask,...
PPT
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Curated OER

Six Degrees of Lord of the Rings

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Here's a fascinating take on a three-year honors, AP language, and AP literature course. Designed for teachers, the presentation suggests how to connect Tolkien's classic to the AP English canon. Very thought-provoking and definitely...
Lesson Plan
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August House

Anansi And Turtle Go To Dinner

For Teachers Pre-K - K Standards
That tricky Anansi! Join him and Turtle in the story Anansi and Turtle Go to Dinner by Bobby and Sherry Norfolk, based on the African folktale. Kids answer comprehension questions and sing songs about spiders before creating spider...
Lesson Plan
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Asian Art Museum

Japanese Architecture for Elementary School Students

For Teachers 1st - 5th Standards
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...
Lesson Plan
Film English

Be Happy

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
What makes your pupils happy? Find out with a lesson centered around this theme. Class members come up with things that make them happy and write about them in preparation for quick group project. Learners watch and discuss a short film...
Lesson Plan
NOAA

To Explore Strange New Worlds

For Teachers 5th - 12th
It's time to boldly go where your class has not gone before! The introductory lesson in a five-part series takes young oceanographers aboard the NOAA Ship Okeanos to begin a study of ocean exploration. The lesson includes a comparison of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Introduction to Greek Theater and Antigone

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students produce a bulleted list of five facts about Greek Theater, complete the comparison graphic of Greek Theater Web sites, and create a bulleted list of four major themes.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Roxaboxen

For Teachers 1st - 9th
Young scholars explore the book Roxaboxen including its theme and characters.  In this reading lesson students complete several group activities about the book.