A lesson plan involves high school students in examining incidents in U.S. history as acts of political behavior, including an examination of the resources the participants possessed and the political techniques they employed. A list of 25 issues/events to investigate is presented. (AM)

Activities to stimulate interest in and knowledge about economics among seventh graders are described in this paper. Major activities include: (1) initiating a round of student team interviews with parents and other working adults, (2) presenting a case-study simulation whereby a panel of community experts evaluates student decision-making and…

As a lesson in responsibility and parenting, junior high school students were given eggs as their "children" and told to care for them for two weeks. Students also participated in various small group projects studying the characteristics and needs of three year olds. (SJL)

Presented are two visual aids, the Lesson Plan Tree and the Interdisciplinary Planning Wheel, which can serve as a framework and reference for student and teacher cooperative planning of an interdisciplinary studies unit. Both planning aids are illustrated with sample learning activities on pioneer life in Ohio. (SJL)

Identifies World Wide Web (Internet) sites useful for teachers. These include sites for locating lesson plans, conducting research or locating information sources, Web scavenger hunts, lesson enhancements, virtual field trips and explorations, sites that enhance collaboration, and sites for student research and for information about college…

The Civil War was the first American war thoroughly caught on film. Mathew Brady and his crew of photographers captured many images of this divisive war, ranging from portraits to battle scenes. These photographs--over 1,000--are in the American Memory Collection's "Selected Civil War Photographs, 1861-1865." This lesson plan asks…

In this lesson, students compare imagined travel experiences of their own with the actual experiences of 19th-century pioneers. To learn about the experiences of the emigrants who traveled the Oregon Trial, the lesson asks students to create, as a class, oral stories about contemporary cross-country journeys; they then create works of historical…

This book contains multicultural "treasure hunts" designed for use by teachers and librarians working with grades five through eight to: develop students' awareness of cultures other than their own; promote student research that requires using books other than an encyclopedia; provide students with annotated reference lists that may be used for…

As a lesson in responsibility and parenting, seventh graders were given eggs as their "children" and told to give them 24-hour care. Since this was part of a unit on world families, students also investigated child rearing customs in five cultures. (SJL)

Many factors must be considered when a company decides to market its product in another country. It must research the targeted country to determine if there is a demand for the product, decide on product modifications needed to match the new market, and develop a plan to market and distribute the product in this new business environment. In this…

In Jacob Abbott's book, "Marco Paul's Travels on the Erie Canal," Marco's cousin Forester explains to Marco that there are two modes of acquiring knowledge--through books and through observation. Students obtain more complete and meaningful understanding of a topic when provided with experiences that use both primary and secondary…

This unit seeks to teach Shakespeare's "Hamlet" in a way that the students will have a full understanding of the play. The unit's introduction is designed to get the students acquainted with Shakespeare's language, to motivate them to read the play, and to make them feel confident about approaching the play. Lessons in the unit are fun,…

This article discusses how Magnetic Levitation (Maglev) can be taught to gifted students in grades 4-9 using hands-on activities that align to the National Science Standards. Principles of magnetic levitation, advantages of magnetic levitation, construction of a Maglev project, testing and evaluation of vehicles, and presentation of the unit are…

Addressing the need for world geography classes to consider demography and other cultures, this paper presents a teaching unit to be included in seventh grade world geography courses. The primary focus of this unit is an individual project in which each student chooses a country and uses basic geographical skills and knowledge to analyze the…

This book offers educators proven guidelines for using the World Wide Web to enhance an existing curriculum, as well as practical implementation plans and an assessment tool for determining the appropriateness of the Web for specific educational goals. The book is divided into two sections with eight chapters. Part 1 establishes the theoretical…