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Essay Exchange Unit - George Cassutto
Grades
9 to 12
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This unit plan gives students the opportunity to get feedback on their writing from a totally impartial source. Students research and write position papers on a variety of topics, working...more
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This unit plan gives students the opportunity to get feedback on their writing from a totally impartial source. Students research and write position papers on a variety of topics, working step by step from to thesis statement to writing. The students then email their papers via e-mail to other schools and students for feedback. The students' final papers are posted to the school's web site for global access.
While this site does give a template of lessons for students to follow as a guide, teachers have a wide range of flexibility with it. Topics can be about anything of your choosing; the length of time given to the lesson and the type and amount of feedback is controlled. While this project started within the subject of Social Studies, this unit can be used in conjunction with any subject.
While this site does give a template of lessons for students to follow as a guide, teachers have a wide range of flexibility with it. Topics can be about anything of your choosing; the length of time given to the lesson and the type and amount of feedback is controlled. While this project started within the subject of Social Studies, this unit can be used in conjunction with any subject.
In the Classroom
Teachers can adapt the assignment to use other genres of expression to evaluate student performance. All subject area teachers can integrate the procedures listed to develop on-line projects for their students. The ideal places to post papers for feedback and final publication would be on a blog (for comments) or wiki (for collaborative editing and additions).You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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Neoclassicism/Romanticism Unit - Jay Horschak
Grades
10 to 12
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This site offers the map that guides students to use Internet resources to conduct research on Neoclassicism and Romanticism (N/R), two periods in history, each with distinctive components,...more
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This site offers the map that guides students to use Internet resources to conduct research on Neoclassicism and Romanticism (N/R), two periods in history, each with distinctive components, such as literature, architecture, and music. This project site is ideal for working with Humanities or interdisciplinary students. It is also not limited to these two "-isms," but can be adapted using any two contrasting styles. The format of the in-depth project is up to the student (and teacher-given guidelines), so long as it makes use of critical thinking skills and Internet resources.
In the Classroom
Try the unit as is or adapt for your needs. Students may also post information about their projects to the N/R e-mail discussion list(s) they have joined and request feedback-- be sure to get parent permission if you have students share anything online. Completed projects can be posted, where possible, to a class Web page or wiki to serve as a resource for students in the school and for participants in the discussion lists who provided feedback on the projects.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Video Teleconference Survey - Gerry Del Monico
Grades
7 to 10
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Geared to upper middle- lower high school classes, this site offers you a template for students to collect research on a topic ("Violence in the Media and How It Affects ...more
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Geared to upper middle- lower high school classes, this site offers you a template for students to collect research on a topic ("Violence in the Media and How It Affects Teenagers"). Using Internet search engines, they compose survey questions that they invite classes in other schools to answer. Students invite classes that respond to the survey to participate in a CU-SeeMe video teleconference on the survey topic.
In the Classroom
The contemporary topic and the hands-on experience of making and doing a survey is quite appealing to students. This site, which does include lesson plans, maps out how to do this step-by-step with students and have the culminating project actually be interactive with students somewhere else. This is a great site to get your feet wet is you have not done either surveys or video-conferencing before.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Proverbia.net - Vicent Jorda
Grades
3 to 12
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Finally, a rich resource of proverbs to use for classroom bulletin boards, quotes of the day, and, most importantly: teaching figurative language and idioms. Find proverbs alphabetically,...more
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Finally, a rich resource of proverbs to use for classroom bulletin boards, quotes of the day, and, most importantly: teaching figurative language and idioms. Find proverbs alphabetically, by topic, or by author. Click for the Spanish version of the site, as well. Spanish teachers will love this way of teaching the nuances of the language. If you teach about Ben Franklin, you could spend a full class on his proverbial sayings found here. ESL/ELL students will benefit from exposure to the idioms included in the proverbs, as well.
In the Classroom
Ask students to find three proverbs unknown to them and explain them visually on a PowerPoint slide (can easily be printed into a big book or poster). Feature a proverb a week in your classroom or on a bulletin board to build analogous thinking, cultural literacy, and inferencing skills as you ask students to explain what it means. This will gently ease your concrete thinkers into broader understanding.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Pearl S. Buck Birthplace - Michael Condon
Grades
9 to 12
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If you teach The Good Earth or any other book/story by Pearl Buck, you will find this website a good one for students to explore. An intriguing woman, Buck has ...more
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If you teach The Good Earth or any other book/story by Pearl Buck, you will find this website a good one for students to explore. An intriguing woman, Buck has several places in the eastern United States that are dedicated to her-- one of which is her birthplace in Hillsboro, West Virginia. The links at the bottom of the page take you around the site easily. (You might want to turn off the music that plays on each page by going to the music control at the bottom of the page and clicking the off button!) The site includes a short biographical sketch as well as many pictures and links to other sites with pictures. Students seem very curious about Buck, and this website has a little bit of everything about her. It is not an in-depth site, but rather an overview, which gives most students all they want to know. For those students who want more, the links will take them further onto the web to investigate more information about the author and her personal life.
In the Classroom
Spend part of a class or a homework assignment for students to find at least three tidbits about Buck that they find interesting in connection with the literature they are reading.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Putting George on Trial: Taking Of Mice and Men Into the Courtroom - Sharon B. Jenkins and Jennifer H. Slinger
Grades
9 to 11
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This unique webquest takes students to different sites to research their parts in the trial. They learn law definitions and even investigate the motivation of the character of George...more
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This unique webquest takes students to different sites to research their parts in the trial. They learn law definitions and even investigate the motivation of the character of George in the novel "Of Mice and Men." Especially good for lower level students, this site broadens the students' look beyond just the novel, bringing it into the contemporary world of students who believe they are "law savvy."
Students love to debate, and this gives them opportunity to do it within a specific format similar to the US justice system. Learning what a bailiff and a court reporter do, as well as a judge, public defender, etc. will be an eye-opening experience for many students. They likely will remember the project much better for having been active participants.
Students love to debate, and this gives them opportunity to do it within a specific format similar to the US justice system. Learning what a bailiff and a court reporter do, as well as a judge, public defender, etc. will be an eye-opening experience for many students. They likely will remember the project much better for having been active participants.
In the Classroom
As you plan to teach the novel, set aside the time to do this webquest, or intersperse the steps during the time spent reading. Students will have more of a purpose in their reading. If you do not teach "Of Mice and Men," consider using some of the links from this webquest to make a similar activity for a "trial" of a character from another book. Most of the work has been done here. Simply create a word processing document with your own directions and the links for students to use or put your new webquest in the form of a PowerPoint show with links from there so students can navigate the task.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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ESL Lessons and Help - Karin M. Cintron
Grades
4 to 12
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Originally written for ESL students to practice language skills, these interactive quizzes are very useful for allowing all levels of students to test their skills online in a nonthreatening...more
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Originally written for ESL students to practice language skills, these interactive quizzes are very useful for allowing all levels of students to test their skills online in a nonthreatening way. These interactive quizzes seem to touch on all bases from business English to grammar to vocabulary (including idioms), making them great for either pretesting, practice or review. They also allow the teacher to individualize what students need from a variety of choices.
In the Classroom
Assign individual or mini-lesson practice on laptops or a computer cluster in your classroom after grading writing assignments or while studying grammar. Learning support and ESL teachers will also like the extra practice options to help students with grammar skills and idioms. Since there is no "scoring" function, you may want students to raise hands and SHOW you how they did as they complete activities.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Radio Days: A Webquest - Tori Kenel
Grades
6 to 10
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This is a simple webquest to introduce students to many of the techniques used in radio that are still used in film production today. It also familiarizes students with the ...more
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This is a simple webquest to introduce students to many of the techniques used in radio that are still used in film production today. It also familiarizes students with the era of radio -- an important experience for those trying to understand history of the first half of the twentieth century. The webquest is almost deceptively simple. The age of your students and the sophistication with which they approach the task can determine the level you want to teach. It includes the elements of typical webquests from introduction through evaluation in an easy, step-by-step manner.
In the Classroom
Although this was written for 6-8th graders, it is a lesson easily adaptable to older students. The list of resources is very good, and the kinds of embellishments you can make on the tasks are limitless. It is a great project for students to work on in small groups, allowing students of all abilities an opportunity for success.If you ever considered podcasting, this webquest is the perfect lead-in. Your social studies(or language arts) students will love actually producing their scripts for "broadcast" on the web. Bring the 1930s to life in your classroom!
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Women in Poetry - Carolyn Kohli/The Academy of American Poets
Grades
9 to 12
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This unit (an extensive set of lesson plans) uses both critical writing and the Internet to explore women in poetry. It helps to make students familiar with the work of ...more
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This unit (an extensive set of lesson plans) uses both critical writing and the Internet to explore women in poetry. It helps to make students familiar with the work of women poets and confident in understanding poetry. Students get practice reading poems critically, learn technical poetry vocabulary, do research on the web, write responses, and more. Examples of themes explored in the unit include "Entering the Darkness Out of Childhood," "Voices of the Mothers," and "The Body Electric." The culminating project is creating a webpage. The lesson plans are very detailed, so that even teachers reluctant about teaching poetry will engage their students with this literary form.
In the Classroom
Choose the lesson options that best meet your needs and time limits or simply use the research and project portions. Although the site suggests making a web page on your school server, a wiki would be an easy place to create the culminating projects.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Frankenstein - Shmoop
Grades
9 to 12
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This lesson site for the novel Frankenstein offers a variety of activities, themes, a summary, discussion questions, and a lot more for this story. Monster stories are popular...more
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This lesson site for the novel Frankenstein offers a variety of activities, themes, a summary, discussion questions, and a lot more for this story. Monster stories are popular with teenagers, and Shelley's Frankenstein is not what they expect it to be. However, this website provides motivation for students to delve into and discuss the meaning of true "monsters."
In the Classroom
This site includes standards, procedures, and extensions for studying Frankenstein as well as an intersting way to approach a trial for student discussion. Certainly worth a look for anyone who teaches this novel. The link to the "Penetrating the Secrets of Nature" site would be a great one to share on a projector or interactive whiteboard as an anticipatory set or activator as you start this novel unit.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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1984: Study Guide - Shmoop
Grades
9 to 12
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More than ever, 1984 is a book with significance in our world. This site encourages students to discuss many of the issues, such as privacy rights and random drug testing, ...more
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More than ever, 1984 is a book with significance in our world. This site encourages students to discuss many of the issues, such as privacy rights and random drug testing, that interest and concern high school students. Along with lesson plans, there are many direct links for students to click on and further explore these pertinent issues.
In the Classroom
This is a terrific site for a teacher who works with Orwell. With procedures, weblinks, directed discussion questions, adaptations, and extensions, this site offers anything you might want in teaching this book. The related links provide many options for a debate activity, as well.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Bibme - team exibeans
Grades
6 to 12
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BibMe is a one-stop source for all kinds of bibliography needs. It is a great online tool for bibliographies--and more. It even has a function for those students who ...more
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BibMe is a one-stop source for all kinds of bibliography needs. It is a great online tool for bibliographies--and more. It even has a function for those students who don't remember all the information for the source you cited. BibMe allows you to search from a database of millions of entries to find your source and autofill in the information. If you have the source in front of you, you can enter your entries manually. BibMe also offers resources to help you cite your work properly in the 'Citation Guide' section. It offers examples in MLA, APA, and Chicago formatting, making it useful for a wide variety of schools. Set up a free account for yourself so you can "save" bibliographies.
This site includes advertising.
This site includes advertising.
In the Classroom
This is a great tool for students who are both learning to cite correctly and as a helpful tool for those who forget some of the "little" things that count when writing a bibliography. It offers a great example, too, of the difference between what is in a "Works Cited" page and what actually appears in the text as a citation. Teachers can use this on a Smartboard or simply through a computer lab or projector to demonstrate the correct way to cite as well as mistakes to avoid. Be sure to include the link on your teacher web page for students finishing reports in the wee hours of the morning on the due date. Set up a free account for yourself so you can "save" example bibliographies. If you assign independent projects to your gifted students (or any student), be sure to make Bibme part of your instructions so they learn to organize their sources early on. If students are allowed to set up individual accounts, this tool is worth the time! They must be 13 or have parent permission.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Poetryfoundation.org - Poetry Foundation
Grades
3 to 12
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If poetry is your interest, this is the site for you. This is a vast site that takes some mining to find what you want simply because there is so ...more
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If poetry is your interest, this is the site for you. This is a vast site that takes some mining to find what you want simply because there is so much of it. From a poetry search to poetry news, blogs, and podcasts, there is something here for any poetry lover. A smorgasbord of rhyme, about rhyme, and for rhyme, take a look for poem wealth. The Jack Prelutsky audio was especially interesting: hearing the poet reading his own poetry is something special. For older students, podcasts will hold a lot of appeal and can generate great class discussion.
In the Classroom
A caution: the site does contain links to poems that some schools or grade levels may find inappropriate (lesbian poetry, for example). However, the audio portions are excellent so sticking to what is geared specifically for your interests is easy and totally safe. Remember to connect speakers or headphones. Why not try making a poetry podcast with your class after you hear these?
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Teaching That Makes Sense - Steve Peha
Grades
4 to 10
6 Favorites
0 Comments
This is an exciting site for teachers because of the practical worksheets and ideas that absolutely fill it. It is geared to writing, particularly writing about what we read. While...more
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This is an exciting site for teachers because of the practical worksheets and ideas that absolutely fill it. It is geared to writing, particularly writing about what we read. While it may seem geared for intermediate and middle school students, it has a lot to offer to older students as well-- particularly ones who are not good writers and need more engaging, closer work to become better writers. In light of NCLB, this is a great site for working with slow or disabled older students or really just any students who need to become better communicators.
In the Classroom
The PDF files that are downloadable from this site are great! It is divided into 6 sections that you can use to plan, or you can use portions directly with students in a lab or on laptops. Have students do different parts of the same projects, working from the templates provided. A great exercise for older students is to go through the writing samples and evaluate them as a class. Since there are multiple examples posted, it would be an excellent lesson to work with an interactive whiteboard. The ideas are limited only by your imagination!
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Educator's Reference Desk of Lesson Plans - Information Institute of Syracuse
Grades
K to 12
4 Favorites
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Over 2000 lesson plans are at your fingertips when you visit this site. Find lesson plans on these topics: Arts, Computer Science, Foreign Language, Health, Information Literacy,...more
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Over 2000 lesson plans are at your fingertips when you visit this site. Find lesson plans on these topics: Arts, Computer Science, Foreign Language, Health, Information Literacy, Interdisciplinary, Language Arts, Mathematics, Philosophy, Physical Education, Science, Social Studies, and Vocational Education.
In the Classroom
Some of the lesson plans are actually units designed for a week or more of study. The site allows for printer-friendly versions of the plans to make printing them a neat option. When you need quick plans for the substitute--or if you are a substitute-- this site is a must-have.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Bulletin Board Hang Ups - TeachersFirst
Grades
2 to 12
17 Favorites
0 Comments
TeachersFirst provides this collection of printable quotations, ready for your classroom or bulletin board. Inspire, engage, or challenge your students to think with quotes from famous...more
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TeachersFirst provides this collection of printable quotations, ready for your classroom or bulletin board. Inspire, engage, or challenge your students to think with quotes from famous leaders, sports figures, thinkers, and writers.
In the Classroom
They look great printed on brightly colored paper! As an opening day activity, challenge small groups of students to interpret the quote hanging closest to them and predict how it may be important in your course this year. For younger students, ask them to write a paraphrase or to illustrate the quote. Be sure to change the quotes periodically and give a prize to the first student who notices. Or give a pop-quiz during the last week of school, asking students to recall as many of the year's quotes as they can (working in small groups will probably help). If you have classroom blogs, ask students to choose and reflect on a specific quote and its relevance to your class throughout the past year.
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Beacon Learning Center: Student Web Lessons - Beacon Learning Center
Grades
K to 12
8 Favorites
0 Comments
This website, funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education, provides an enormous collection of "web lessons" (interactives) for all grade levels. There are lessons in language...more
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This website, funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education, provides an enormous collection of "web lessons" (interactives) for all grade levels. There are lessons in language arts, math, science, social studies, and health. There are too many lesson plans to count - and all are projector, laptop, or whiteboard-ready. Just to give you an idea of some of these unique lessons, some of the titles include "Where is Japan?", "Walrus World", "Piece of Pie", "Medians", "Fence Me In", and "Critter Craze". On the main page, a brief description is provided for each lesson plan. Click Teacher Solutions > Lesson Plans to search by subject or grade level.
In the Classroom
If you want ready-to-go lessons guaranteed to work well on your interactive whiteboard, this collection is a winner. You simply open the activity on the whiteboard and have students tap and drag their way through as you talk with the class. (Invite your most "active" student to be "Vanna White" for a great behavior management solution). Many lessons would work well on laptops or on a computer cluster center, as well.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Listening to Poetry: Sounds of the Sonnet - National Endowment for the Humanities
Grades
8 to 12
2 Favorites
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If you want to make your students love the SOUND of poetry, this is the site for you. While knowing the terms for rhythms, meters, etc. is important to teachers ...more
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If you want to make your students love the SOUND of poetry, this is the site for you. While knowing the terms for rhythms, meters, etc. is important to teachers and for testing, it seems more important for students to understand the sound that comes from language and appreciate it. The terms can always come later and will be connected to a meaningful experience students can recall. This site provides seven sound experiments to whet your students' appetites for poetry. The site provides step-by-step instructions on the seven "experiments" used to involved students in the music of language. It also provides multiple links to different eras from the early Elizabethan sonnets to the Romantics through Victorian and American poets.
In the Classroom
Conduct these lessons in their "traditional" ways or consider letting students make a podcast of one or more of the experiments so their peers can "hear" the lesson over and over with explanation and commentary from their peers. These podcasts could be the start of a library to accompany the teaching of poetry in your school. If you have never tried podcasting, the relatively simple structure of these "experiments" gives you a structured place to start.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Panoramas.dk
Grades
K to 12
6 Favorites
2 Comments
Have a high speed Internet connection? (Most schools do) Then you MUST visit these 3D virtual tours of beautiful sites all over the world with your students. Read the Welcome ...more
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Have a high speed Internet connection? (Most schools do) Then you MUST visit these 3D virtual tours of beautiful sites all over the world with your students. Read the Welcome message on the home page for directions and details, then explore the current features and several years of archives for 3D virtual tours from major world capitals to true "experiences" such as Times Square and white water rafting. Even the tour of a Banyan tree will amaze you. Bring the world into your classroom for geography, landforms, world cultures, foreign language study, or literary settings. Be in the midst of festivals or atop the Sydney Bridge.
In the Classroom
Use a projector--or better yet, an interactive whiteboard--to take students atop the Eiffel Tower, to the high Sierras, or aboard a Mars explorer. Allow student to navigate on the whiteboard. Nte that Shift and Ctrl keys alow you to zoom, as well. Be sure to click at the top of the 3D view to Read More about the image. These tours will make landforms real, culture come alive, and science a visual art form. As you introduce terms and place, use images! You could even use a tour as a writing prompt for poetry or descriptive writing. Include the link on your teacher web page for students to "tour the world" outside of class or feature one location a week to broaden class horizons on a classroom desktop.Comments
What a GREAT idea! Thank you. I found one with mountain biking and vistas. I'll put it up early in the period and come back to it in the end and have them write their exit cards about it. Then I will revisit it in a week or two when we start talking about metaphorical language.Shirley, CA, Grades: 6 - 12
I plan to use this as a way to start the school year with my sixth grade G/T kids. I will display a panorama on an interactive whiteboard-- one of mountains with peaks and valleys. I will ask, "Why would I show you this and say that this is our classroom this year?" The students will write down an idea on a slip of paper, guessing why I might use this as an introduction to my class. They will most likely introduce all of the classroom conduct and learning environment issues that I want to touch upon that first day: peaks and valleys during the year, some rugged terrain, studying mountains and geography, some amazing views (everyone's opinions), and more. It will also get them thinking in analogies and allow me to see how quickly some of them do this and how literal others are.Thinking, PA, Grades: 5 - 10
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Protopage - Protopage
Grades
K to 12
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This online tool creates a highly visual "home page" that can incorporate multiple elements simply by dragging and dropping them in place. Not unlike Google's personalized homepage,...more
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This online tool creates a highly visual "home page" that can incorporate multiple elements simply by dragging and dropping them in place. Not unlike Google's personalized homepage, the elements look like little sticky notes or boxes, but there is far greater flexibility and a wider variety of content readily available. You can also make the page local (simply use it as the "home" on your classroom computer), shared by a select group (passworded), or completely public. You can easily make a theme or unit page for quick access of resources, complete with directions.
In the Classroom
How would you use this in your teaching? Create a set of RSS feeds for current events or a specific curriculum topic such as weather and make them available for an in-class activity, complete with directions. World language, world cultures, or geography teachers can profile a location on the globe, complete with local weather and news. Make separate tabs for separate activities. Students can access them by password or publicly from outside of class, as well. For primary grades, make simple instructions right on the desktop for a computer center activity. Use color coding of the instructions to differentiate for different children (Sam, I want you to do the yellow one). If your school permits students to set up accounts on web services, have groups make Protopages on an assigned topic, collecting and organizing resources, images, and information: "A Protopage Guide to Cells" or "Shakespeare's Times." Gifted and highly-able students will go crazy!Skills needed: Join (free). Check out the Intro, Overview, and Quickstart to see how it works. Play to your heart's content, including making tabs. Learn about RSS feeds and other Widgets-- including sticky notes. Share the URL with those you wish to have use it. Note: this works on Internet Explorer 6 and higher and on Firefox. If your users are on older web browsers, the developers recommend upgrading. This may be a problem for some. Check with your end-user computers before you spend too much time making the perfect Protopage!
If you allow students to create their own Protopage, you will need to have very specific rules about content, since there are non-educational elements available.
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