Students engage in a role-playing situation to illustrate the kinds of compromised that were made a teh Constitutional Convention. They write three short 1-2 paragraph arguments and then present their arguments to the class at the...

What are the effects of an air quality alert? Expert groups receive one component of air quality information resources to study. Pupils then jigsaw into new groups and share their knowledge. Finally, they draft a statement of what they...

Investigate weather facts and figures to determine what has caused particular climate conditions. Research air pressure, temperature, wind, and humidity. Conduct online research to determine what air pressure, wind, temperature, and...

Why do athletes load up on carbohydrates the evening before a competition? The instructional activity helps answer this question as it relates the type of food to the amount of energy it contains. After a discussion, scholars...

Young voyagers face the challenge of the wide dark sea, travel with Yunmi and Halmoni, and even get trapped by the ice as they explore the reading selections offered in these enrichment activities designed for the Houghton...

Upper elementary and middle schoolers study the case of the ivory-billed woodpecker, a bird that was once-thought to be extinct. Learners explore the responsibility of people to preserve habitats, and take care of the animals who live in...

Everyone wants to be part of a royal family. Let your pupils experience the privilege of royalty by rewriting the story The Frog Prince from the point of view of the princess. While the story line remains the same, perspective is bound...

Sixth graders pretend to be the oracle warning Caesar about March 15th. They write a letter to Julius Caesar warning him of the consequences of going to the Senate building on March 15th. Students identify three causes and effects that...

This unit introduces book clubs/literature circles to lower elementary classes, but could be adapted to higher grades. It outlines the anticipatory activity that includes a WebQuest, a discussion to clarify questions about the unit,...

Class members create a PowerPoint presentation showing artifacts they would include in a time capsule. The artifacts and explanations reflect personal hobbies, grooming choices, school life, etc. A great way for class members to...

The details in the new Common Core standard for producing informative/explanatory texts is different from what you have in your current curriculum, and now you are confused on what to do. Keep calm and carry on, because not only does...

Learners research space and gravity and understand the difficulties humans have while on the International Space Station. In this space lesson plan, students listen to personal accounts of astronauts on videos and present designs to...

Collections of data represented in stem and leaf plots are organized by young statisticians as they embark some math engaging activities.

Fourth graders recognize that the Tejanas were Texas women of Spanish-Mexican origin who contributed to the history of Texas. Students read and research the Tejanas women, complete an essay about a day in the life of a Tejanas woman ,and...

Bully, bullied, or bystander? Paul Langan's The Bully is the anchor text in a unit that examines bullying and violence. After a close reading of the text, readers imagine themselves as the characters and consider how they would react in...

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...

Students, after reading Fahrenheit 451, brainstorm inventions that could have been in the novel. They present their invention to the class and writing an expository essay about their creation.

Examine the behavior of energy as water freezes and melts. An engaging activity provides a hands-on experience to learners. Collaborative groups collect data and analyze the graphs of the temperature of water as it freezes and then...

Young scholars map and describe small area of the schoolyard and discuss habitats.

Role-play to learn. Writers pretend to be a team of news writers. They research information about genetically engineered corn and the impact of biotech food products. Then create a video, Powerpoint, or oral presentation to present their...

A lot of writers don't like creating an outline before writing the first draft of their paper. Introduce them to what an effective and organized outline looks like with this presentation. Designed for higher education, you could easily...

Students journey with Lewis and Clark. In this literature lesson, students read The Journal of Augustus Pellitier-The Lewis and Clark Expedition 1804. Students keep a journal in the persona of a member of the expedition crew.

Pupils research information about the Florida Everglades and discuss why conservation efforts are important in its preservation.