Accompany a reading of The Lorax by Dr. Seuss and Tell Me, Tree by Gail Gibbons with an activity packet designed to bring awareness to nature, specifically trees. Scholars take to the outside, draw lines to create trees reminiscent of...

As part of their exploration of the American dream, class members examine primary source materials to compare immigrant experiences of those arriving early in our country's history to those arriving in the US after World War...

The 41 slides in a professional development seminar model how to use close reading techniques to examine the many layers of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby. In addition to passages from the novel, slides provide biographical...

Students explore a migration of people with their surname. As a class, they define key vocabulary and identify the different types of movementbs of people in history. They examine the reasons for the migration and use the internet to...

Great information, images, and wonderful higher-order thinking questions await your class. They'll discuss, consider, and examine multiple factors related to the Dust Bowl. A cross-media comparison is made between the historical events...

Young scholars use information gathered by satellites to explore the migration of the Swainson's hawk from the western border of Minnesota to the southern portion of South America.

Excerpts from John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath and from John Fante's Ask the Dust, as well as a variety of primary source documents provide the background for an examination of the migrant experience from 1920-1945.

Students explore the changes in American farming practices. Through several days of reading and research, students write an essay explaining the changes that have led to the need for migrant workers. Students discuss how workers are...

Describe, analyze, compare and contrast poets from the Harlem Renaissance. Critical thinkers analyze the imagery, characterization, tone, symbolism, and historical context of Jacob Lawrence, Helene Johnson, and Paul Laurence Dunbar. A...

Students investigate the history of America with the help of children's literature. The story is structured as a timeline that begins at the time of Columbus and progresses to the present. The teacher reads the story with the class and...

The gradual evolution of the earliest settlers in North America from nomads to farmers is the subject of a reading comprehension instructional activity that asks kids to answer a series of questions using information provided in the...

Fourth graders read Witch on Blackbird Pond and understand the difficulties of traveling to America during the colonial period.  In this Witch on Blackbird Pond lesson, 4th graders compare the choices we have in...

Through the journey of four stories of immigration, scholars complete graphic organizers and apply knowledge to create a visual representation of their findings on a large poster. Third and fourth readers write a letter to their...

The students create a personal narrative on their experiences with immigration. In this lesson, students are asked to read and understand examples of narrative writing as well as evaluate lyrics from Ben Folds Five to determine elements...

Young scholars, in groups, create a student book for an assigned group of immigrants to the Colonial United States (Huguenots, Scots, Irish, Africans.) They create drawings for the book and rhyming text that depicts three struggles that...

Fifth graders examine migration by tracing animal migration routes on a map.  In this animal life lesson plan, 5th graders observe a map of North America and read about the migration patterns of geese.  Students trace the path...

Fifth graders explore U.S. geography by reading assigned text about American Indians. In this migration lesson, 5th graders identify the differences between Native Americans and European settlers who traveled through middle America in...

Students study the westward movement through examining stamps. In this westward movement lesson plan, students draw conclusions, determine cause and effect relationships and examine the westward movement of the United States by...

Students examine the life of bats in Illinois. Using the internet, they research the history of the bat in Illinois and describe the way they find prey by using echolocation. They report their findings to the class and answer any...

In this ESL worksheet, students read a news article about bird flu spreading to Europe. Students complete all or chose from 100 activities and exercises pertaining to the text. Included are vocabulary, grammar, comprehension and...

Eleventh graders listen to a brief history lesson about the 40's and 50's mid-West America and the Migrant workers that worked the fields. Next, learners will read a short story written by Tomas Rivera (both in Spanish and English)....

Fourth graders read Letters from Rifka and discuss the feelings of people forced to leave their homes and countries.  In this migration lesson, 4th graders relate their feelings about moving from their home forever. Students trace...

Fifth graders research life in Alaska and compare life there to their lives in this lesson. They read "Julie of the Wolves." They research through the novel and other reference books facts about the Alaskan climate and geography. They...

Learners explore the trials and tribulations early colonial life and note its successes. Through literature, Internet research, and interactive software, they engage in various activities to evaluate early social and cultural development.