Middle schoolers create holiday story while working in cooperative learning groups, using Chris Van Allsburg's Polar Express as a writing prompt.

Fourth graders study Chaucer as a master of details. Then, they create a short story linking unrelated details into a logical plot with a clear setting and established characters. This lesson has some excellent worksheets attached!

High schoolers select a theme-related essay topic from Night, by Elie Wiesel, or The Metamorphosis, by Franz Kafka, and develop an essay that relates the theme to modern-day personal experiences. The essay follows a preset rubric...

Students view a video clip about unemployment. They research data and create a scatter plot graph. They discover the importance of graphs and what they can tell us. They create their own publication on unemployment.

Students write and contribute one page for a class picture dictionary. They discuss how to alphabetize words, and examine both regular and picture dictionaries and how they are organized. Next they create a page for the class dictionary...

Students explore different types of simple machines and research the concepts of force, effort, and work. They conduct Internet research and complete a worksheet about examples of simple machines used in everyday life. Students also...

Students compare the life of Gandhi and other nonviolent leaders. They identify qualities and behaviors of nonviolence. They synthesize the information they research about world leaders and the impact they had.

Students make discoveries about the child laborer through a selection of readings. They make connections between the website readings of the child laborers' personal stories and the images that they saw in the previous lesson.

Students use digital resources to learn about the life of Ann M. Martin, her writing process, and how she develops story ideas. They record notes and observations that might be useful in developing characters and a storyline for a...

Students make their own puzzle grid that illustrates the number of sit-ups students in a gym class did in one minute, then they make a histogram for this same data. Then they title their graph and label the scales and axes and graph the...

Learners explore the purpose of the Lecompton Constitution.  In this United States History lesson, students read several articles then complete several activities to reinforce their reading, such as a cause and effect worksheet,...

Students study practical data analysis within the constraints of the scientific method.  In this data lesson students collect and enter data into a computer spreadsheet then create graphs.

Students research various methods for preparing food and analyze energy sources. They explain that radiation, light, and heat are forms of energy used to cook food, treat diseases, and provide energy.

Students locate and print samples of two different business letter formats. They write rough drafts of business letters inquiring when, where, and how math is used.

Students compare and contrast the American system of government with that of Brazil. They research how the Brazilian govenment functions.

Students examine and interpret conflicting primary sources.

Students visit appropriate websites to discover quotes from Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanac. Working in pairs, they choose three quotes on which to elaborate and then write two original quotes.

Students complete autobiographical writing assignments throughout the school year that they save and rewrite to put into a published book during the last month of class. They include photographs, drawings and mementos of their lives in...

Fourth graders read a selection describing 13 virtues from "The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin." They keep track of their behavior and whether or not they can keep up with 5 chosen virtues. They write a 5 paragraph essay on their...

Fifth graders portray one of the actual framers of the Constitution. They summarize each class period with a journal entry and culminate the experience with the actual framing and signing (or not signing) of the Constitution.

Ninth graders, in groups, create and videotape a news broadcast. Each group researches, develops and writes a weather forecast, a commentary on an environmental concern, a school activity and a commercial.

Students examine migration patterns in Africa and China. They watch excerpts from a documentary, define key vocabulary words, complete various student organizers, and create a poster.

Fifth graders select information from a variety of sources. They complete an outline. They identify different perspectives of early settlers and natives. They create headings, subheadings and bibliographies. They produce a slide show of...

Students participate in a technology project. This instructional activity is a hands-on spreadsheet project where students are responsible for keeping track of their grades for class. The students learn to enter data into a...