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Grades 1-3 Lesson Plans

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Food Insecurity - Social Studies 3-5

Students will learn about and present a variety of positions on prawn farming, as well as benefits and detriments to various countries, with a focus on Asia and Australia. The inevitable question that students should be able to reflect on is: Should we eat prawns?

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Rights of the Child 1 - A Journey to a New Planet - Social Studies 1-2

Students will begin to differentiate between things that they want and need. Students are introduced to basic human rights as entitlements that everyone holds. Students further examine how their wants and needs are consistent with human rights and more specifically, with the rights of a child.

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Rights of the Child 2 - Polluting Rights - Social Studies, Health 3-8

Students will understand how pollution affects children's rights and health through real life examples; the environmental problems that affect children around the world; how pollution affects children's rights and health through real life examples; the environmental problems that affect children around the world.

Students will develop an appreciation for a healthy environment and how it applies to rights, as well as, an appreciation for a healthy environment and how it applies to rights.

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Common Threads: Weaving Child Rights & Global Education Module 1: Exploring Rights - Social Studies, ELA 3

Students are introduced to basic human rights as entitlements that everyone holds. Students further examine how their wants and needs are consistent with human rights and more specifically, with the rights of a child.

Lesson 1.1: Child Rights are Human Rights

Examine the needs and wants of children and consider the rights of all children; students will address their own wants and needs, begin to comprehend the Convention on the Rights of the Child and create a mind map about the information on child rights.

Lesson 1.2: Child Rights

Students are introduced to child rights and who is responsible for upholding the rights; students will group child rights into the four categories of survival, development, protection or participation. Students will further examine each individual category, determining who within the community is responsible for children's accessibility to these rights.

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Common Threads: Weaving Child Rights & Global Education Module 2: Child Poverty - Social Studies, ELA 3

Students will become aware of the purpose and content of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and how child rights relate to achieving them. Connecting child rights to poverty and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Lesson 2.1: How is Child Poverty Connected to Child Rights?

Students will begin to understand that there are many causes and consequences of child poverty and how they are connected to child rights by grouping statements as either a cause or a consequence of poverty.

Lesson 2.2: Child Rights and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

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Common Threads: Weaving Child Rights & Global Education Module 3: Exploring the CRC - Social Studies, ELA 3

Students will be introduced to the importance of child participation to promote whole-community well-being through reflection and class discussion.

Students are to examine each of the eight child rights individually through inquiry activities and class discussion.

Lesson 3.1: The Right to Shelter

Students engage in a class discussion and inquiry activity in regards to the differences in houses across the world.

Lesson 3.2: The Right to Water

Through video analysis and working with a partner, students will assess the right to water and the consequences of not being able to claim the right.

Lesson 3.3: The Right to Food

Students explore the right to food by considering facts about hunger and synthesizing scenarios with selected child rights.

Lesson 3.4: The Right to Healthcare

Students will begin to understand the difficulties faced by children (specifically children with disabilities), when access to health care is denied through a reading comprehension activity.

Lesson 3.5: The Right to Education

Students consider the right to education through a reading comprehension activity centered on a young girl living in Bangladesh.

Lesson 3.6: The Right to Play

Students will understand that play and recreation are crucial to child development and learning through analysis of written and visual materials.

Lesson 3.7: The Right to Protection

Students will be introduced to child labour and share their opinions through self/group reflection and familiarization of the Fair Labour Standards.

Lesson 3.8: The Right to Participation

Students will be introduced to the importance of child participation to promote whole-community well-being through reflection and class discussion.

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Remember the Land: Global Ecumenical Voices on Mining Community Mapping Activity - Social Studies 6, 7, 8, 9

The Community Mapping Activity is designed to help you better understand the impacts of resource extraction on communities such as those highlighted in the KAIROS video Remember the Land.

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Grades 4-6 Lesson Plans

Diseases of Africa - Social Studies 6

The key feature of this lesson is a research project and multimedia presentation. Students are placed in groups of two to research particular diseases common in Africa. Students first consult reference material for information on what diseases are common and then, as part of an international medical team they prepare a presentation on one particular disease. Presentations are to include information on the spread of the disease, immediate treatments, and long range solutions, problems associated with short range treatments, costs, ethical considerations, religious beliefs, and current medical practices.

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Students are to first story-board their presentations and then develop a multimedia presentation for the class. Note: While the lesson plan refers to Hyperstudio, the presentations could take any form.

Malaria - Social Studies 6

This lesson is from the Global Nomads Group, a New York based non-profit founded in 1998. The lesson starts off by asking what the students know about malaria. From there it proceeds to the story of Kofi, a five year old boy whose parents discover he has the disease. The story details the parents' struggle to obtain medical help, and the difficulties faced by others in their village. The lesson goes on to describe how mosquitoes transmit malaria, the life cycle of mosquitoes, and methods that have been used to lessen the effects of these insects.

Although this site provides some good, basic information, it was designed as background information for a teleconference with members of Global Nomads so no student tasks are outlined. However, student activities can easily flow from the information. For example, students could undertake further research into the control efforts outlined, investigate other disease spreading parasites, or research organizations working to provide assistance in malaria prone areas.

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Food Insecurity - Social Studies 3-5

Students will learn about and present a variety of positions on prawn farming, as well as benefits and detriments to various countries, with a focus on Asia and Australia. The inevitable question that students should be able to reflect on is: Should we eat prawns?

Download Lesson Plans
Lesson- Food Insecurity (Food Security)
Child Labour in Developing Countries - Social Studies 6-8

This activity looks at the interdependent nature of the world using industry in China as an example. It explores the idea of global citizenship using the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child as a values framework. This is a lesson plan that can be used as part of UNICEF's National Non-Uniform Day that raises money for getting children in Bangladesh and Brazil out of labour and into school.

Learning aims

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Giving Voice to Child Labourers Through Monologues - Social Studies 6-8

Students learn about child labour, as it occurred in England and the United States during the Industrial Revolution and as it continues around the world today.

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Child Soldier Stories - Social Studies 6

The following activity will allow students to take a deeper look at the issue of child soldiers around the world. Have students read the following excerpts from an interview with child soldiers. As students take a look at the real life experiences of these youth, have them place their feet in the shoes of these soldiers. Have a discussion guided by the questions found below.

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Child Soldiers - Social Studies 6

This lesson takes students through a journey of trying to understand how child soldiers are used.

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Education and Conflict - Social Studies 6-7

To help students to understand how conflict stops others from going to school.

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Our Connected World - Social Studies 6-7

Students will create a visual representation of global interconnection, which will set them up for a discussion on equity and trade. The success of the first seven Millennium Development Goals is dependent on a concrete commitment to uphold this eighth MDG, which calls for global partnerships to support development. The existing global partnerships benefit rich countries, especially when it comes to the issue of trade. Many countries are still struggling to pay only the interest on loans they acquired decades ago, making actual repayment of the principal impossible.

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What is Child Labour? - Social Studies 6

Students will learn about child labour, what it is, and how it looks. After learning about child labour students will take action against child labour, potentially tying it into Labour Day.

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Amnesty International - Child Soldiers - Social Studies 6-7

This lesson plan uses Ishmael Beah's first-hand account of life as a child soldier to encourage students to expand their understanding beyond themselves: to think globally and to think about human rights. It is designed for use with film clips from Ishmael Beah's session at the Human Rights Action centre. www.amnesty.org.uk/childsoldier

The lesson plan is for use with young people aged between 11 and 14, but it may be possible to adapt some activities to an older age group. The activities can be used in a stand-alone lesson in citizenship or in an interdisciplinary project in English or Art to encourage students to make connections between different areas of learning. The activities enable young people to learn independently and as part of a group, and to apply their learning in new contexts.

Extension activities can be used as homework or in additional lessons to allow students to develop independent study skills and their knowledge of the subject.

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Child Labour Activity - Social Studies 6

This lesson presents an overview of where, why, how, and in what conditions child labour occurs. Students will identify the physical and emotional challenges that children forced into labour face. Students will study the efforts by the international community to prevent children from working in hazardous environments.

In many places around the world children are forced to work, sometimes in brutal conditions and dangerous environments that are threatening to their lives and health. Typically, children who are forced into labour don't go to school or participate in recreational activities. Child labour exists for many reasons, mainly economic gain. Many products we use have possibly passed through the hands of a child labourer in the process of being made. Children forced into labour deserve empathy.

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Child Soldiers: Power Relationships - Social Studies 6-7

How is it that children end up as soldiers? This lesson plan looks at the way some armies and militias "press gang" children and young people into fighting - forcibly recruiting those who otherwise would have no intention of fighting.

As with other lesson plans, you will take students through a series of discussions and activities, getting deeper into the story as you go. You need no prior knowledge - just the ability to guide students as they explore what it feels like to be someone else.

Download Lesson Plans

Child Soldiers in Uganda - Social Studies 6

Students will be introduced to child soldiers in Uganda and will:

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Children's Rights (module) - Social Studies 6-8

On November 20th 1989, the United Nations adopted the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). This convention spells out the basic human rights to which children everywhere are entitled. However, despite the efforts to ratify this convention, to this day there are youth around the world that are still being denied their rights.

This module (4-5 lessons) is designed to help educators dive deeply into children's rights issues. Using dynamic student-centred activities, students are encouraged to learn the facts and engage with the issues. From this process they will emerge as children's rights advocates, ready to engage in tangible outlets to create change.

This lesson consists of three parts: orientation activities, core activities and concluding activities. For a thorough understanding of children's rights, teach the activities in sequence as a unit plan. If you have less class time, select one activity from each section (i.e.: one orientation activity, one core activity, and one concluding activity). After participating in this lesson, students will emerge as knowledgeable and enthusiastic advocates for change, eager to take action and engage in their global community on this important global issue.

Together, let's use education to combat apathy and encourage change.

Download Lesson Plans

Child's Work - Social Studies 6-8

Students will become aware of the causes of child labour and the effects of work on the lives of children. They will have the opportunity to explore the types of programs that might address the needs of working children.

Download Lesson Plans

Child Soldiers (module) - Social Studies 6-8

In this module (10 lessons), students will learn the scope and impact of the forced recruitment of child soldiers and the actions being taken by individuals and organizations to eliminate this practice. Students will analyze primary and secondary sources, debate, create maps, discuss, design individual action plans, conduct Internet research, and write reflectively as they learn about child soldiers.

What is the nature and extent of the use of child soldiers in armed conflicts?;

What are some of the motivations for using children as soldiers?;

What is the impact of warfare on child soldiers?;

What actions have been taken by the world community to eliminate the use of child soldiers?;

How are youths around the world promoting peace?

Download Lesson Plans

Personal Waste Assessment Student Action Activity: Class Composting Project - Social Studies 6-9

The Sustainable Schools Teachers' Guide challenges schools to shift sustainability from textbooks into classrooms. It helps facilitate skills, such as eco-literacy, global awareness and critical thought, which students need to make sustainable decisions. Sustainability is all about learning to share resources with future global generations. Today's youth have an important role to play in creating an environmental sound and socially just world. So, there's no better place to start than with than youth education and understanding leading to action for a greener future.
Personal Waste Assessment
In this activity, students record and chart the amount of daily waste they produce. Students can gather personal waste data by collecting the waste they produce throughout the day. The activity is divided into three parts, giving teachers the option of extension opportunities.
Student Action Activity: Class Composting Project
Composting can be an excellent part of a school waste reduction strategy. Composting transforms biodegradable waste that would otherwise be sent to the landfill.

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Ecological Footprint; Food Miles; Sustainable Food Production - Social Studies 6-9

This unit is about food sustainability in our society. It discusses ideas such as a
"food imprint" (how much food we eat, waste, etc). The lesson describes ways to teach how science and health are somewhat synonymous when discussing ideas like food intake and how to properly care for food growth. It requires students to research and evaluate texts based on their value.

This unit is the first of a three-unit resource that was produced by the Saskatchewan Organic Directorate (SOD) for middle year's learners to explore the challenges and advantages of local food production, particularly that which is embedded in a holistic view of human connection to and dependence on ecological systems. These units contextualize the benefits of local, organic foods within the larger picture of sustainability principles and practices.

Within unit one there are seven lessons which introduce students to the connections between their food choices and their ecological foot prints, and making healthy choices.

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Sow the Seed - Social Studies 6-9

This activity series is about the the global impact of climate change. It helps students begin to understand the concepts and learn how to reduce the impacts of climate change through localized farming, etc. Teachers select from the range of activities below so that students can complete the wall chart. Students use the wall chart to track their learning as they carry out these activities. Students must provide evidence of learning about the issue and also taking some action about it to complete the wall chart successfully. Students must begin by planting some seeds of their own!

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World Trivia Challenge - Social Studies 6

Students will participate in a trivia challenge where they read, learn, and compare statistics for least developed, developing, and industrialized countries.

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The Girl Child - Social Studies 6

Students will be randomly selected to participate in a simulation that demonstrates how some children in developing countries have limited or no access to a formal education. Students will be introduced to the issue of gender equality, specifically access to education.

The objective of this activity is to generate class discussion about lack of opportunity for half of the world's population based on something over which they have no control-their gender.

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The Real Survivor - Social Studies/Health/Science 4-6

Through this interactive game, students are introduced to a range of factors that people living in poor rural communities in developing countries face that contribute to their cycle of poverty. The interactions between environmental, economic, social and political factors are stressed as each student tries to collect enough food to "survive." Following the game, students analyze the many factors that contribute to food security through discussion and by completing a summary chart and questions as an extension activity.

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Remember the Land: Global Ecumenical Voices on Mining Study Guide - Social Studies 6, 7, 8, 9

Canada is home to 75% of the world's mining and exploration companies. Canadian stock exchanges raise 40% of all mineral exploration capital worldwide. In May 2011, 150 people-church leaders and grass roots activists- from around the world gathered in Toronto to consider the impact of Canadian mining on the environment and the people who seek to protect it. Remember the Land is the story of that gathering. It raises questions that KAIROS encourages you to explore as individuals, as congregations, as members of institutional churches and as citizens.

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Getting Better When I'm Sick - Health 9

Child mortality in the developing world is a big concern. Every year, more than 10 million children die before the age of five from causes that are easily prevented in the developed world. Half of the children who die before the age of five are killed by five diseases or illnesses: HIV/AIDS, diarrhoea, malaria, measles and pneumonia. These children lack access to the essential services that would help them recover from the preventable diseases and illnesses that are killing children by the millions.

Students will understand the importance of vaccinations as a way to prevent disease. Students will explore the levels of health care they have access to, from simple at-home treatments to the help of healthcare professionals.

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Child Survival What's Right with this Picture - Social Studies, Science 6

Students use critical thinking skills to determine strengths of communities in Vietnam, Ghana, Zimbabwe and the Caribbean. Students will then build on the specified strengths to identify opportunities that can potentially improve the lives of people in the community. Students will further reflect on their own strengths as a class and as individuals and use the generated ideas to improve the lives of people in their school.

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Rights of the Child 2 - Polluting Rights - Social Studies, Health 3-8

Students will understand how pollution affects children's rights and health through real life examples; the environmental problems that affect children around the world; how pollution affects children's rights and health through real life examples; the environmental problems that affect children around the world.

Students will develop an appreciation for a healthy environment and how it applies to rights, as well as, an appreciation for a healthy environment and how it applies to rights.

Download Lesson Plans

United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child - Social Studies 6

Students will read the articles in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Then they will sort the rights into 3 categories: provision rights, protections rights, and participation rights.

Students will read the articles in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Then they will sort the rights into 3 categories: provision rights, protections rights, and participation rights.

This is a modified concept formation task. In most concept formation tasks, there is a set of information that students must examine and sort into categories that have not been made known to them. Concept formation tasks encourage students to think critically and break large amounts of information into smaller, more meaningful, and more manageable chunks.

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Development Assistance Simulation - Social Studies and Geography 6-8

Students participate in a simulation to decide on the types of development assistance that are most needed and the countries` most in need of assistance.

Students gain information and build awareness and empathy concerning these development issues. The simulation provides students with an opportunity to become involved in these issues and empowered by the decision-making process.

By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:

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Grades 7-10 Lesson Plans

Introduction to the United Nations - Social Studies 8: Power

The lesson begins with a reading on the United Nations and the Nobel Peace Prize. After a brief discussion of the article students are asked to write letters to the United Nations Secretary-General expressing their global concerns, the world they would like to see in the twenty-first century, and the role they see themselves playing in it.

Following composition, students will read their letters to the class for feedback and complete another draft for display.

The lesson plan also provides a mailing address where the students could send their letters. If this is done, please note: since the lesson was first posted, the United Nations has chosen another Secretary General. Letters should be addressed to Mr. Ban Ki-moon. A biography of Mr. Ban can be found at un.org/sg/biography.shtml.

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Climate Change: Creating Solutions for our Future - Social Studies 7

This extensive resource was jointly developed by the Lethbridge Environment Week Committee, USC Canada, and Alberta Environment. It includes six lessons, numerous activities, background information for teachers, and evaluation suggestions. Lessons can be used individually or as a group.

The lessons include "Picturing Climate Change" where "students learn why human activity has contributed to climate change in the past 250 years, and about the United Nations Framework on Climate Change," "The Heat is On" that deals with Environmental Heroes in a game show format, and "The World in a Bottle" where students create a model of the Earth.

Lesson 4 is called "The World Wide Web" where "students are guided through several web sites [especially designed] for children." In lesson 5, students examine "Human Interactions" and learn how the people in Mali, West Africa are dealing with climate change. Lesson 6 concludes the package by issuing a call for action to encourage students to become active in their school and community by sharing their knowledge with others.

Ecological Footprints From Around the World - Social Studies 8

This lesson plan comes from CHF (formerly the Canadian Hunger Foundation). In it, students will discover their own ecological footprint and will be able to compare it to that of people in various developing countries. They will also explore how their actions can impact the earth.

The lesson provides all needed black line masters and includes extra teacher resources such as a country information sheet, glossary, additional web-based resources, extension ideas, teacher background information, and a handout on taking further action. The lesson plan does not contain an evaluation scheme.

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The United Nations - Social Studies 8

Students will go to the United Nations Web site to read about the history of the UN and the role of the UN as an organization for international conflict resolution. After answering a series of questions, students will read an article by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Each student will research one of the three international conflicts referred to in the article, write an evaluation of the UN's performance in helping resolve that conflict, and provide prescriptions for changes that would improve the UN's ability to resolve conflicts in the future.

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Cultural Characteristics Influence a Region's Character - Social Studies 8; Social Studies 11

In this National Geographic lesson, students will analyze demographic data and explore relationships between several cultural characteristics of nations. A key component of the lesson is examining health statistics including maternal health to draw conclusions about developed, undeveloped, and underdeveloped countries.

This lesson provides some excellent country profiles that include maternal mortality rate, fertility rate, and other statistics related to the status of women in other cultures. The lesson plan eventually reveals the actual countries and through further research, the students need to draw conclusions about the nations such as "Countries that have high total fertility rates and high maternal mortality rates will tend to have poor health care."

The lesson provides the background and the activities that will engage students and challenge their way of thinking about health around the world and in particular women's maternal health. This lesson would be suitable for students in Social Studies 8; Social Studies 11.

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Addressing World Hunger - Social Studies 8

This lesson, from the National Geographic, introduces students to programs that exist to address the complex problem of world hunger. They will read articles about specific initiatives and projects, and will be asked to discuss these projects and whether they think they are effective. Students conclude by writing statements they would make to friends or relatives who think the world hunger problem may be irresolvable.

During the lesson, student will discuss some of the reasons why people go hungry. They will read become familiar with three organizations that are fighting world hunger, and write sentences describing what each organization does, read articles on projects aimed at alleviating hunger, label maps with the places mentioned in the articles, discuss the articles as a class, and write statements to friends or relatives who might find the world hunger situation hopeless.

Note: While the lesson is not intended as an exhaustive look at world hunger, it provides a good introduction to the issue.

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Industrial Revolution - History 10

This is a series of six lessons which are intended to give students the outlet to form opinions about the advantages and disadvantages of the current model of globalisation. Students will also be able to draw comparisons between the Industrial Revolution and modern globalization. The six lessons include:

Introduction: Context to Industrial Revolution

Cotton Industry: From Cottage to Factory

Urbanisation: Factories, Slums and Exploitation

Industrialisation and Globalization

Make Trade Fair

What can we do?

The purpose of Lesson 1, Context to Industrial Revolution, is to introduce students to the events and factors leading to the Industrial Revolution in Britain. It is also meant to give students the tools and facts they need to negotiate with the notion of progress and be critical of the effects, costs and underlying factors of industrialization.

Lesson 2, Cotton Industry: From Cottage to Factory, serves to introduce students to the notion of progress in relation to the cotton industry; it is intended to show the social consequences of this. It is also meant to have students begin to think about modern connections to the garment industry. Note: This lesson uses literary passages from Silas Marner and Oliver Twist as well as paintings by Constable and Turner to examine conditions during the Industrial Revolution. Although the paintings are not difficult to find on the Internet, the specific literary passages needed are missing (though noted as "attached" on the lesson plan). Unless teachers are thoroughly knowledgeable with these texts, it would be impossible to identify the individual passages.

Lesson 3, Urbanization: Factories, Slums and Exploitation, is intended to explicitly introduce students to the social repercussions of industrialization. It is intended to serve as a useful point of comparison to the current model of globalization and Oxfam's campaigns.

Industrialization and Globalization, the lesson 4 topic, draws comparisons between the Industrial Revolution and the current model of globalization; it also introduces students to Oxfam's campaigns.

Lesson 5, Make Trade Fair, is intended to give students the outlet to form opinions about the advantages and disadvantages of the current model of globalization. It is also intended to draw further comparisons with the Industrial Revolution.

In Lesson 6, What can we do?, students are given the outlet to inform their fellow students about the injustices they have experienced and learnt about. It is also intended to tie in with World Food Day. It will also introduce students to a summative task-a 15 to 20 minute presentation on an industry of interest to them.

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An Introduction to Food and Trade: Winners and Losers - Social Studies 9-12

Students will learn about food as a basic human right, free trade and how it affects food security and developing nations, and what they can do locally to make a global impact in a workshop style lesson.

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Hunger Hurts - Social Studies 9-12

Students will explore needs and wants, and how they are linked to hunger locally and globally. They will investigate global and community initiatives that provide alternative solutions to hunger. Students should develop an understanding and sensitivity towards hunger, and evaluate approaches to resolving it.

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An Introduction to Food and Trade: Winners and Losers - Social Studies 9-12

Students will learn about food as a basic human right, free trade and how it affects food security and developing nations, and what they can do locally to make a global impact in a workshop style lesson.

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Permaculture - Social Studies 9

Students will develop a working definition of permaculture. As part of a small team, they will devise plans to turn aspects of their school into a permaculture environment.

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Food and Food Security: Slowing Down our Food - Social Studies 9-12

Provides students with the opportunity to explore where their food comes from and what processes impact its arrival in the grocery store. This lesson also provides students the opportunity to discover the meaning and significance of food security, the slow food movement, and the CSA (Community Shared Agriculture).

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Child Labour in Developing Countries - Social Studies 6-8

This activity looks at the interdependent nature of the world using industry in China as an example. It explores the idea of global citizenship using the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child as a values framework. This is a lesson plan that can be used as part of UNICEF's National Non-Uniform Day that raises money for getting children in Bangladesh and Brazil out of labour and into school.

Learning aims

Download Lesson Plans

Giving Voice to Child Labourers Through Monologues - Social Studies 6-8

Students learn about child labour, as it occurred in England and the United States during the Industrial Revolution and as it continues around the world today.

Download Lesson Plans

Child Labour in the Industrial Revolution

Education and Conflict - Social Studies 6-7

To help students to understand how conflict stops others from going to school.

Download Lesson Plans

Our Connected World - Social Studies 6-7

Students will create a visual representation of global interconnection, which will set them up for a discussion on equity and trade. The success of the first seven Millennium Development Goals is dependent on a concrete commitment to uphold this eighth MDG, which calls for global partnerships to support development. The existing global partnerships benefit rich countries, especially when it comes to the issue of trade. Many countries are still struggling to pay only the interest on loans they acquired decades ago, making actual repayment of the principal impossible.

Download Lesson Plans

Amnesty International - Child Soldiers - Social Studies 6-7

This lesson plan uses Ishmael Beah's first-hand account of life as a child soldier to encourage students to expand their understanding beyond themselves: to think globally and to think about human rights. It is designed for use with film clips from Ishmael Beah's session at the Human Rights Action centre. www.amnesty.org.uk/childsoldier

The lesson plan is for use with young people aged between 11 and 14, but it may be possible to adapt some activities to an older age group. The activities can be used in a stand-alone lesson in citizenship or in an interdisciplinary project in English or Art to encourage students to make connections between different areas of learning. The activities enable young people to learn independently and as part of a group, and to apply their learning in new contexts.

Extension activities can be used as homework or in additional lessons to allow students to develop independent study skills and their knowledge of the subject.

Download Lesson Plans

Child Soldiers - Power Relationships - Social Studies 6-7

How is it that children end up as soldiers? This lesson plan looks at the way some armies and militias "press gang" children and young people into fighting - forcibly recruiting those who otherwise would have no intention of fighting.

As with other lesson plans, you will take students through a series of discussions and activities, getting deeper into the story as you go. You need no prior knowledge - just the ability to guide students as they explore what it feels like to be someone else.

Download Lesson Plans

Children's Rights (module) - Social Studies 6-8

On November 20th 1989, the United Nations adopted the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). This convention spells out the basic human rights to which children everywhere are entitled. However, despite the efforts to ratify this convention, to this day there are youth around the world that are still being denied their rights.

This module (4-5 lessons) is designed to help educators dive deeply into children's rights issues. Using dynamic student-centred activities, students are encouraged to learn the facts and engage with the issues. From this process they will emerge as children's rights advocates, ready to engage in tangible outlets to create change.

This lesson consists of three parts: orientation activities, core activities and concluding activities. For a thorough understanding of children's rights, teach the activities in sequence as a unit plan. If you have less class time, select one activity from each section (i.e.: one orientation activity, one core activity, and one concluding activity). After participating in this lesson, students will emerge as knowledgeable and enthusiastic advocates for change, eager to take action and engage in their global community on this important global issue.

Together, let's use education to combat apathy and encourage change.

Download Lesson Plans

Child's Work - Social Studies 6-8

Students will become aware of the causes of child labour and the effects of work on the lives of children. They will have the opportunity to explore the types of programs that might address the needs of working children.

Download Lesson Plans

Child Soldiers (module) - Social Studies 6-8

In this module (10 lessons), students will learn the scope and impact of the forced recruitment of child soldiers and the actions being taken by individuals and organizations to eliminate this practice. Students will analyze primary and secondary sources, debate, create maps, discuss, design individual action plans, conduct Internet research, and write reflectively as they learn about child soldiers.

What is the nature and extent of the use of child soldiers in armed conflicts?;

What are some of the motivations for using children as soldiers?;

What is the impact of warfare on child soldiers?;

What actions have been taken by the world community to eliminate the use of child soldiers?;

How are youths around the world promoting peace?

Download Lesson Plans

Personal Waste Assessment Student Action Activity: Class Composting Project - Social Studies 6-9

The Sustainable Schools Teachers' Guide challenges schools to shift sustainability from textbooks into classrooms. It helps facilitate skills, such as eco-literacy, global awareness and critical thought, which students need to make sustainable decisions. Sustainability is all about learning to share resources with future global generations. Today's youth have an important role to play in creating an environmental sound and socially just world. So, there's no better place to start than with than youth education and understanding leading to action for a greener future.
Personal Waste Assessment
In this activity, students record and chart the amount of daily waste they produce. Students can gather personal waste data by collecting the waste they produce throughout the day. The activity is divided into three parts, giving teachers the option of extension opportunities.
Student Action Activity: Class Composting Project
Composting can be an excellent part of a school waste reduction strategy. Composting transforms biodegradable waste that would otherwise be sent to the landfill.

Download Lesson Plans

Ecological Footprint; Food Miles; Sustainable Food Production - Social Studies 6-9

This unit is about food sustainability in our society. It discusses ideas such as a
"food imprint" (how much food we eat, waste, etc). The lesson describes ways to teach how science and health are somewhat synonymous when discussing ideas like food intake and how to properly care for food growth. It requires students to research and evaluate texts based on their value.

This unit is the first of a three-unit resource that was produced by the Saskatchewan Organic Directorate (SOD) for middle year's learners to explore the challenges and advantages of local food production, particularly that which is embedded in a holistic view of human connection to and dependence on ecological systems. These units contextualize the benefits of local, organic foods within the larger picture of sustainability principles and practices.

Within unit one there are seven lessons which introduce students to the connections between their food choices and their ecological foot prints, and making healthy choices.

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Sow the Seed - Social Studies 6-9

This activity series is about the the global impact of climate change. It helps students begin to understand the concepts and learn how to reduce the impacts of climate change through localized farming, etc. Teachers select from the range of activities below so that students can complete the wall chart. Students use the wall chart to track their learning as they carry out these activities. Students must provide evidence of learning about the issue and also taking some action about it to complete the wall chart successfully. Students must begin by planting some seeds of their own!

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Treasure of the Tar - Social Studies 10

Students will use the Canadian Atlas to discover a vital Central Plains natural resource. They will use a variety of sources to communicate key facts about the resource in a poster format. Students will locate in the Atlas the region known as the "Tar Sands" in the Central Plains and hypothesize about the future economic potential of this natural resource.

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Standard of Living Comparisons - History/Geography 10

This lesson will expose Grade 10 students to current economic and social data on various countries around the world. The students will use the data to make comparative statements regarding Canada's place in the world. A mapping activity will give the students a visual display of the distribution of wealth in the world.

Students will become familiar with the diverse range of standards of living around the world, and attempt to offer solutions to the problem of the unequal distribution of wealth worldwide.

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Poverty of Distribution - Social Studies, Math 9

Susan George, in her book "How the Other Half Dies- the Real Reasons for World Hunger", argues that world hunger is not a matter of having too little food to feed everyone, but is rather the consequence of unequal distribution of the world's food. She suggests that the business of agriculture, called agribusiness, is focused on maximizing profit, which in many cases is a barrier to sharing food more equally.

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Remember the Land: Global Ecumenical Voices on Mining Study Guide - Social Studies 6, 7, 8, 9

Canada is home to 75% of the world's mining and exploration companies. Canadian stock exchanges raise 40% of all mineral exploration capital worldwide. In May 2011, 150 people-church leaders and grass roots activists- from around the world gathered in Toronto to consider the impact of Canadian mining on the environment and the people who seek to protect it. Remember the Land is the story of that gathering. It raises questions that KAIROS encourages you to explore as individuals, as congregations, as members of institutional churches and as citizens.

Download the Lessons

Remember the Land: Global Ecumenical Voices on Mining Community Mapping Activity - Social Studies 6, 7, 8, 9

The Community Mapping Activity is designed to help you better understand the impacts of resource extraction on communities such as those highlighted in the KAIROS video Remember the Land.

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Measuring the Success The Millennium Development Goals (MDG's) Social Studies 7

Students will become familiar with the dimensions of world poverty; learn about the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs); and discover connections among the MDGs.

The Millennium Development Goals

By 2015 all 189 United Nations Member States have pledged to:

1. Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger

2. Achieve universal primary education

3. Promote gender equality and empower women

4. Reduce child mortality

5. Improve maternal health

6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases

7. Ensure environmental sustainability

8. Develop a global partnership for development

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When I Was Born... Social Studies 9

Every year, more than 500,000 women die in childbirth, most of them in developing countries. While this is not an issue of concern in wealthier nations-where fewer than 10 women die for every 100,000 child births-the rate of deaths among women in the developing world can be as high as 1,000 for every 100,000 births. Poverty is the biggest reason for this disparity. The women in the developing world are dying during childbirth because they are malnourished and weakened by other illnesses and diseases. They are also more likely to have numerous births and they lack access to trained health care workers and medical facilities.

Students will discover the range of experiences and health care services provided for pregnant women and compare the experience between North America and developing countries.

Through discussion, both at home and at school, they will see the different experiences a pregnant woman can have based on where she lives or the poverty with which she must live.

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Rights of the Child 2 - Polluting Rights - Social Studies, Health 3-8

Students will understand how pollution affects children's rights and health through real life examples; the environmental problems that affect children around the world; how pollution affects children's rights and health through real life examples; the environmental problems that affect children around the world.

Students will develop an appreciation for a healthy environment and how it applies to rights, as well as, an appreciation for a healthy environment and how it applies to rights.

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War Within - Math 9

This lesson uses math problems to explore how poverty, underdevelopment and illiteracy contribute so much to the spread of HIV/AIDS.

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Development Assistance Simulation - Social Studies and Geography 6-8

Students participate in a simulation to decide on the types of development assistance that are most needed and the countries` most in need of assistance.

Students gain information and build awareness and empathy concerning these development issues. The simulation provides students with an opportunity to become involved in these issues and empowered by the decision-making process.

By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:

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Grades 11-12 Lesson Plans

Child Brides: Stolen Lives - Social Studies 20 (Grade 11), Unit 5: World Governance

This is from the United States Public Broadcasting System (PBS) series NOW. It provides a startling insight into the issue of child brides in many developing countries. NOW's production team travelled to Niger, India and Guatemala to report on a global custom that devastates lives and keeps communities from prospering.

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Hungry for Food Security - The East African Experience - Social Studies 20 (Grade 11)

Presentation introduces students to issue of food insecurity (with an emphasis on East Africa) using statistics and examples/case studies. Students will also learn about the factors impacting food insecurity, with an emphasis on environmental factors and will be provided with an overview of some grassroots approaches to enhancing food security in rural African communities.

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AIDS in Africa: The Scope of the Problem - Grade 11, Social Studies 20, Unit 2: Population; Unit 3: Environment

This lesson was prepared in collaboration with the Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water at the Environmental Protection Agency in the U.S.

As part of the lesson, students will learn about how water becomes impure with parasites and other contaminants; they will read personal accounts of unsafe water; and they'll work together to brainstorm solutions to the water problems of communities in Africa.

The lesson plan covers eight class periods, but teachers may find that they will be able to cover the material more quickly. Access to a computer lab (or computer connected to a projector) will be needed to view the photos during the first part of the lesson. Students will need to use the computer lab for research during the latter stages of the lesson. They will also need access to poster board or other material for their final product.

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AIDS in Africa: More than Sympathy (Lesson 2) - Grade 11, Social Studies 20, Unit 2: Population; Unit 3: Environment.

This is a companion lesson to The Scope of the Problem (above). It, too, is from the National Geographic. The lesson focuses on why the disastrous numbers surrounding the AIDS epidemic in Africa exist. It asks students to explore what is being done, and what can be done, to ease the situation. During the lesson, students will identify cultural factors within Africa that underlie the scope of the AIDS epidemic there, discuss worldwide responses to the crisis in Africa, list evidence of attitudes and excuses in the world that explain these responses, and determine what could be done within Africa and in the outside world to ease the AIDS crisis in Africa.

Using statistics and other readings from both the Washington Post and the New York Times students will discuss the forces at work to make the situation as dire as it is. Students are asked to develop three worldwide goals and three goals for Africa to address the crisis.

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Sustainable Livelihoods - Social Studies 30 (Grade 12)

This lesson comes from CHF (formerly The Canadian Hunger Foundation). The site contains an excellent lesson plan that can be used as an introduction to Standard of Living, the Human Development Index, and the disparity among the world's nations in these standards.

Students, in groups of 4 or 5, play a card game which provides them with different scenarios that either increase or decrease their overall well being. This provides a great opening into a discussion of disparities among the different nations and societies of the world.

The lesson plan includes black line masters for student handouts, background information for teachers, and an evaluation rubric. This lesson could be used when examining Canada's economic, political, and developmental role in the world. Student worksheets are also available in French.

Download Lesson Plans

Hunger Hurts - Social Studies 9-12

Students will explore needs and wants, and how they are linked to hunger locally and globally. They will investigate global and community initiatives that provide alternative solutions to hunger. Students should develop an understanding and sensitivity towards hunger, and evaluate approaches to resolving it.

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Food Security & Environmental Change in Africa - Social Studies 11

In this lesson, via PowerPoint, students will be introduced to:

The characteristics of six African ecosystems

Various environmental problems that have largely resulted from poor natural resource management

The relationship between the people of Africa and the environment

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Food and Food Security: Slowing Down our Food - Social Studies 9-12

Provides students with the opportunity to explore where their food comes from and what processes impact its arrival in the grocery store. This lesson also provides students the opportunity to discover the meaning and significance of food security, the slow food movement, and the CSA (Community Shared Agriculture).

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The Gender Divide: A Different Perspective - Social Studies 11

In this activity, students take part in a role playing exercise to develop a community map from their gender's perspectives. The different roles of men and women are explored in terms of social and environmental implications.

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Giving Credit Where Credit is Due - Social Studies 11

Micro-finance, sometimes called micro-credit, is an alternative approach to lending that provides loans to people who would not normally qualify for traditional bank loans. In this activity, students investigate this alternative economic approach, analyze the costs and benefits and compare it with traditional lending systems. The social and environmental impacts of micro-finance programs are also investigated by students.

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HIV/AIDS, Malaria, and other Diseases Lesson Plans

Diseases of Africa - Social Studies 6

The key feature of this lesson is a research project and multimedia presentation. Students are placed in groups of two to research particular diseases common in Africa. Students first consult reference material for information on what diseases are common and then, as part of an international medical team they prepare a presentation on one particular disease. Presentations are to include information on the spread of the disease, immediate treatments, and long range solutions, problems associated with short range treatments, costs, ethical considerations, religious beliefs, and current medical practices.

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Students are to first story-board their presentations and then develop a multimedia presentation for the class. Note: While the lesson plan refers to Hyperstudio, the presentations could take any form.

Malaria - Social Studies 6

This lesson is from the Global Nomads Group, a New York based non-profit founded in 1998. The lesson starts off by asking what the students know about malaria. From there it proceeds to the story of Kofi, a five year old boy whose parents discover he has the disease. The story details the parents' struggle to obtain medical help, and the difficulties faced by others in their village. The lesson goes on to describe how mosquitoes transmit malaria, the life cycle of mosquitoes, and methods that have been used to lessen the effects of these insects.

Although this site provides some good, basic information, it was designed as background information for a teleconference with members of Global Nomads so no student tasks are outlined. However, student activities can easily flow from the information. For example, students could undertake further research into the control efforts outlined, investigate other disease spreading parasites, or research organizations working to provide assistance in malaria prone areas.

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AIDS in Africa: The Scope of the Problem - Grade 11, Social Studies 20, Unit 2: Population; Unit 3: Environment

This lesson was prepared in collaboration with the Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water at the Environmental Protection Agency in the U.S.

As part of the lesson, students will learn about how water becomes impure with parasites and other contaminants; they will read personal accounts of unsafe water; and they'll work together to brainstorm solutions to the water problems of communities in Africa.

The lesson plan covers eight class periods, but teachers may find that they will be able to cover the material more quickly. Access to a computer lab (or computer connected to a projector) will be needed to view the photos during the first part of the lesson. Students will need to use the computer lab for research during the latter stages of the lesson. They will also need access to poster board or other material for their final product.

Download Lesson Plans

AIDS in Africa: More than Sympathy (Lesson 2) - Grade 11, Social Studies 20, Unit 2: Population; Unit 3: Environment.

This is a companion lesson to The Scope of the Problem (above). It, too, is from the National Geographic. The lesson focuses on why the disastrous numbers surrounding the AIDS epidemic in Africa exist. It asks students to explore what is being done, and what can be done, to ease the situation. During the lesson, students will identify cultural factors within Africa that underlie the scope of the AIDS epidemic there, discuss worldwide responses to the crisis in Africa, list evidence of attitudes and excuses in the world that explain these responses, and determine what could be done within Africa and in the outside world to ease the AIDS crisis in Africa.

Using statistics and other readings from both the Washington Post and the New York Times students will discuss the forces at work to make the situation as dire as it is. Students are asked to develop three worldwide goals and three goals for Africa to address the crisis.

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Getting Better When I'm Sick - Health 9

Child mortality in the developing world is a big concern. Every year, more than 10 million children die before the age of five from causes that are easily prevented in the developed world. Half of the children who die before the age of five are killed by five diseases or illnesses: HIV/AIDS, diarrhoea, malaria, measles and pneumonia. These children lack access to the essential services that would help them recover from the preventable diseases and illnesses that are killing children by the millions.

Students will understand the importance of vaccinations as a way to prevent disease. Students will explore the levels of health care they have access to, from simple at-home treatments to the help of healthcare professionals.

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War Within - Math 9

This lesson uses math problems to explore how poverty, underdevelopment and illiteracy contribute so much to the spread of HIV/AIDS.

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UN Lesson Plans

Introduction to the United Nations - Social Studies 8: Power

The lesson begins with a reading on the United Nations and the Nobel Peace Prize. After a brief discussion of the article students are asked to write letters to the United Nations Secretary-General expressing their global concerns, the world they would like to see in the twenty-first century, and the role they see themselves playing in it.

Following composition, students will read their letters to the class for feedback and complete another draft for display.

The lesson plan also provides a mailing address where the students could send their letters. If this is done, please note: since the lesson was first posted, the United Nations has chosen another Secretary General. Letters should be addressed to Mr. Ban Ki-moon. A biography of Mr. Ban can be found at un.org/sg/biography.shtml.

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The United Nations - Social Studies 8

Students will go to the United Nations Web site to read about the history of the UN and the role of the UN as an organization for international conflict resolution. After answering a series of questions, students will read an article by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Each student will research one of the three international conflicts referred to in the article, write an evaluation of the UN's performance in helping resolve that conflict, and provide prescriptions for changes that would improve the UN's ability to resolve conflicts in the future.

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Common Threads: Weaving Child Rights & Global Education Module 1: Exploring Rights - Social Studies, ELA 3

Students are introduced to basic human rights as entitlements that everyone holds. Students further examine how their wants and needs are consistent with human rights and more specifically, with the rights of a child.

Lesson 1.1: Child Rights are Human Rights

Examine the needs and wants of children and consider the rights of all children; students will address their own wants and needs, begin to comprehend the Convention on the Rights of the Child and create a mind map about the information on child rights.

Lesson 1.2: Child Rights

Students are introduced to child rights and who is responsible for upholding the rights; students will group child rights into the four categories of survival, development, protection or participation. Students will further examine each individual category, determining who within the community is responsible for children's accessibility to these rights.

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Common Threads: Weaving Child Rights & Global Education Module 2: Child Poverty - Social Studies, ELA 3

Students will become aware of the purpose and content of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and how child rights relate to achieving them. Connecting child rights to poverty and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Lesson 2.1: How is Child Poverty Connected to Child Rights?

Students will begin to understand that there are many causes and consequences of child poverty and how they are connected to child rights by grouping statements as either a cause or a consequence of poverty.

Lesson 2.2: Child Rights and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

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Common Threads: Weaving Child Rights & Global Education Module 3: Exploring the CRC - Social Studies, ELA 3

Students will be introduced to the importance of child participation to promote whole-community well-being through reflection and class discussion.

Students are to examine each of the eight child rights individually through inquiry activities and class discussion.

Lesson 3.1: The Right to Shelter

Students engage in a class discussion and inquiry activity in regards to the differences in houses across the world.

Lesson 3.2: The Right to Water

Through video analysis and working with a partner, students will assess the right to water and the consequences of not being able to claim the right.

Lesson 3.3: The Right to Food

Students explore the right to food by considering facts about hunger and synthesizing scenarios with selected child rights.

Lesson 3.4: The Right to Healthcare

Students will begin to understand the difficulties faced by children (specifically children with disabilities), when access to health care is denied through a reading comprehension activity.

Lesson 3.5: The Right to Education

Students consider the right to education through a reading comprehension activity centered on a young girl living in Bangladesh.

Lesson 3.6: The Right to Play

Students will understand that play and recreation are crucial to child development and learning through analysis of written and visual materials.

Lesson 3.7: The Right to Protection

Students will be introduced to child labour and share their opinions through self/group reflection and familiarization of the Fair Labour Standards.

Lesson 3.8: The Right to Participation

Students will be introduced to the importance of child participation to promote whole-community well-being through reflection and class discussion.

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United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child - Social Studies 6

Students will read the articles in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Then they will sort the rights into 3 categories: provision rights, protections rights, and participation rights.

Students will read the articles in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Then they will sort the rights into 3 categories: provision rights, protections rights, and participation rights.

This is a modified concept formation task. In most concept formation tasks, there is a set of information that students must examine and sort into categories that have not been made known to them. Concept formation tasks encourage students to think critically and break large amounts of information into smaller, more meaningful, and more manageable chunks.

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Environment Lesson Plans

Climate Change: Creating Solutions for our Future - Social Studies 7

This extensive resource was jointly developed by the Lethbridge Environment Week Committee, USC Canada, and Alberta Environment. It includes six lessons, numerous activities, background information for teachers, and evaluation suggestions. Lessons can be used individually or as a group.

The lessons include "Picturing Climate Change" where "students learn why human activity has contributed to climate change in the past 250 years, and about the United Nations Framework on Climate Change," "The Heat is On" that deals with Environmental Heroes in a game show format, and "The World in a Bottle" where students create a model of the Earth.

Lesson 4 is called "The World Wide Web" where "students are guided through several web sites [especially designed] for children." In lesson 5, students examine "Human Interactions" and learn how the people in Mali, West Africa are dealing with climate change. Lesson 6 concludes the package by issuing a call for action to encourage students to become active in their school and community by sharing their knowledge with others.

Ecological Footprints From Around the World - Social Studies 8

This lesson plan comes from CHF (formerly the Canadian Hunger Foundation). In it, students will discover their own ecological footprint and will be able to compare it to that of people in various developing countries. They will also explore how their actions can impact the earth.

The lesson provides all needed black line masters and includes extra teacher resources such as a country information sheet, glossary, additional web-based resources, extension ideas, teacher background information, and a handout on taking further action. The lesson plan does not contain an evaluation scheme.

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Treasure of the Tar - Social Studies 10

Students will use the Canadian Atlas to discover a vital Central Plains natural resource. They will use a variety of sources to communicate key facts about the resource in a poster format. Students will locate in the Atlas the region known as the "Tar Sands" in the Central Plains and hypothesize about the future economic potential of this natural resource.

Download Lesson Plans

Remember the Land: Global Ecumenical Voices on Mining Study Guide - Social Studies 6, 7, 8, 9

Canada is home to 75% of the world's mining and exploration companies. Canadian stock exchanges raise 40% of all mineral exploration capital worldwide. In May 2011, 150 people-church leaders and grass roots activists- from around the world gathered in Toronto to consider the impact of Canadian mining on the environment and the people who seek to protect it. Remember the Land is the story of that gathering. It raises questions that KAIROS encourages you to explore as individuals, as congregations, as members of institutional churches and as citizens.

Download Lesson Plans

Remember the Land: Global Ecumenical Voices on Mining Study Guide - Social Studies 6, 7, 8, 9

Canada is home to 75% of the world's mining and exploration companies. Canadian stock exchanges raise 40% of all mineral exploration capital worldwide. In May 2011, 150 people-church leaders and grass roots activists- from around the world gathered in Toronto to consider the impact of Canadian mining on the environment and the people who seek to protect it. Remember the Land is the story of that gathering. It raises questions that KAIROS encourages you to explore as individuals, as congregations, as members of institutional churches and as citizens.

Download the Lessons

Remember the Land: Global Ecumenical Voices on Mining Community Mapping Activity - Social Studies 6, 7, 8, 9

The Community Mapping Activity is designed to help you better understand the impacts of resource extraction on communities such as those highlighted in the KAIROS video Remember the Land.

Download the Lesson Plans

Food Security Lesson Plans

Hungry for Food Security - The East African Experience - Social Studies 20 (Grade 11)

Presentation introduces students to issue of food insecurity (with an emphasis on East Africa) using statistics and examples/case studies. Students will also learn about the factors impacting food insecurity, with an emphasis on environmental factors and will be provided with an overview of some grassroots approaches to enhancing food security in rural African communities.

Download Lesson Plans

An Introduction to Food and Trade: Winners and Losers - Social Studies 9-12

Students will learn about food as a basic human right, free trade and how it affects food security and developing nations, and what they can do locally to make a global impact in a workshop style lesson.

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An Introduction to Food and Trade: Winners and Losers - Social Studies 9-12

Students will learn about food as a basic human right, free trade and how it affects food security and developing nations, and what they can do locally to make a global impact in a workshop style lesson.

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Food Insecurity - Social Studies 3-5

Students will learn about and present a variety of positions on prawn farming, as well as benefits and detriments to various countries, with a focus on Asia and Australia. The inevitable question that students should be able to reflect on is: Should we eat prawns?

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Food Security & Environmental Change in Africa - Social Studies 11

In this lesson, via PowerPoint, students will be introduced to:

The characteristics of six African ecosystems

Various environmental problems that have largely resulted from poor natural resource management

The relationship between the people of Africa and the environment

Download Lesson Plans

Permaculture - Social Studies 9

Students will develop a working definition of permaculture. As part of a small team, they will devise plans to turn aspects of their school into a permaculture environment.

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Food and Food Security: Slowing Down our Food - Social Studies 9-12

Provides students with the opportunity to explore where their food comes from and what processes impact its arrival in the grocery store. This lesson also provides students the opportunity to discover the meaning and significance of food security, the slow food movement, and the CSA (Community Shared Agriculture).

Download Lesson Plans

The Real Survivor - Social Studies/Health/Science 4-6

Through this interactive game, students are introduced to a range of factors that people living in poor rural communities in developing countries face that contribute to their cycle of poverty. The interactions between environmental, economic, social and political factors are stressed as each student tries to collect enough food to "survive." Following the game, students analyze the many factors that contribute to food security through discussion and by completing a summary chart and questions as an extension activity.

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Sustainable Livelihoods Lesson Plans

Sustainable Livelihoods - Social Studies 30 (Grade 12)

This lesson comes from CHF (formerly The Canadian Hunger Foundation). The site contains an excellent lesson plan that can be used as an introduction to Standard of Living, the Human Development Index, and the disparity among the world's nations in these standards.

Students, in groups of 4 or 5, play a card game which provides them with different scenarios that either increase or decrease their overall well being. This provides a great opening into a discussion of disparities among the different nations and societies of the world.

The lesson plan includes black line masters for student handouts, background information for teachers, and an evaluation rubric. This lesson could be used when examining Canada's economic, political, and developmental role in the world. Student worksheets are also available in French.

Download Lesson Plans

Personal Waste Assessment Student Action Activity: Class Composting Project - Social Studies 6-9

The Sustainable Schools Teachers' Guide challenges schools to shift sustainability from textbooks into classrooms. It helps facilitate skills, such as eco-literacy, global awareness and critical thought, which students need to make sustainable decisions. Sustainability is all about learning to share resources with future global generations. Today's youth have an important role to play in creating an environmental sound and socially just world. So, there's no better place to start than with than youth education and understanding leading to action for a greener future.
Personal Waste Assessment
In this activity, students record and chart the amount of daily waste they produce. Students can gather personal waste data by collecting the waste they produce throughout the day. The activity is divided into three parts, giving teachers the option of extension opportunities.
Student Action Activity: Class Composting Project
Composting can be an excellent part of a school waste reduction strategy. Composting transforms biodegradable waste that would otherwise be sent to the landfill.

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Ecological Footprint; Food Miles; Sustainable Food Production - Social Studies 6-9

This unit is about food sustainability in our society. It discusses ideas such as a
"food imprint" (how much food we eat, waste, etc). The lesson describes ways to teach how science and health are somewhat synonymous when discussing ideas like food intake and how to properly care for food growth. It requires students to research and evaluate texts based on their value.

This unit is the first of a three-unit resource that was produced by the Saskatchewan Organic Directorate (SOD) for middle year's learners to explore the challenges and advantages of local food production, particularly that which is embedded in a holistic view of human connection to and dependence on ecological systems. These units contextualize the benefits of local, organic foods within the larger picture of sustainability principles and practices.

Within unit one there are seven lessons which introduce students to the connections between their food choices and their ecological foot prints, and making healthy choices.

Download Lesson Plans

Sow the Seed - Social Studies 6-9

This activity series is about the the global impact of climate change. It helps students begin to understand the concepts and learn how to reduce the impacts of climate change through localized farming, etc. Teachers select from the range of activities below so that students can complete the wall chart. Students use the wall chart to track their learning as they carry out these activities. Students must provide evidence of learning about the issue and also taking some action about it to complete the wall chart successfully. Students must begin by planting some seeds of their own!

Download Lesson Plans

Diversity Lesson Plans

Cultural Characteristics Influence a Region's Character - Social Studies 8; Social Studies 11

In this National Geographic lesson, students will analyze demographic data and explore relationships between several cultural characteristics of nations. A key component of the lesson is examining health statistics including maternal health to draw conclusions about developed, undeveloped, and underdeveloped countries.

This lesson provides some excellent country profiles that include maternal mortality rate, fertility rate, and other statistics related to the status of women in other cultures. The lesson plan eventually reveals the actual countries and through further research, the students need to draw conclusions about the nations such as "Countries that have high total fertility rates and high maternal mortality rates will tend to have poor health care."

The lesson provides the background and the activities that will engage students and challenge their way of thinking about health around the world and in particular women's maternal health. This lesson would be suitable for students in Social Studies 8; Social Studies 11.

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Poverty Lesson Plans

Addressing World Hunger - Social Studies 8

This lesson, from the National Geographic, introduces students to programs that exist to address the complex problem of world hunger. They will read articles about specific initiatives and projects, and will be asked to discuss these projects and whether they think they are effective. Students conclude by writing statements they would make to friends or relatives who think the world hunger problem may be irresolvable.

During the lesson, student will discuss some of the reasons why people go hungry. They will read become familiar with three organizations that are fighting world hunger, and write sentences describing what each organization does, read articles on projects aimed at alleviating hunger, label maps with the places mentioned in the articles, discuss the articles as a class, and write statements to friends or relatives who might find the world hunger situation hopeless.

Note: While the lesson is not intended as an exhaustive look at world hunger, it provides a good introduction to the issue.

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Hunger Hurts - Social Studies 9-12

Students will explore needs and wants, and how they are linked to hunger locally and globally. They will investigate global and community initiatives that provide alternative solutions to hunger. Students should develop an understanding and sensitivity towards hunger, and evaluate approaches to resolving it.

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Child Labour in Developing Countries - Social Studies 6-8

This activity looks at the interdependent nature of the world using industry in China as an example. It explores the idea of global citizenship using the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child as a values framework. This is a lesson plan that can be used as part of UNICEF's National Non-Uniform Day that raises money for getting children in Bangladesh and Brazil out of labour and into school.

Learning aims

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Child Soldier Stories - Social Studies 6

The following activity will allow students to take a deeper look at the issue of child soldiers around the world. Have students read the following excerpts from an interview with child soldiers. As students take a look at the real life experiences of these youth, have them place their feet in the shoes of these soldiers. Have a discussion guided by the questions found below.

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Child Soldiers - Social Studies 6

This lesson takes students through a journey of trying to understand how child soldiers are used.

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Education and Conflict - Social Studies 6-7

To help students to understand how conflict stops others from going to school.

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Our Connected World - Social Studies 6-7

Students will create a visual representation of global interconnection, which will set them up for a discussion on equity and trade. The success of the first seven Millennium Development Goals is dependent on a concrete commitment to uphold this eighth MDG, which calls for global partnerships to support development. The existing global partnerships benefit rich countries, especially when it comes to the issue of trade. Many countries are still struggling to pay only the interest on loans they acquired decades ago, making actual repayment of the principal impossible.

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What is Child Labour? - Social Studies 6

Students will learn about child labour, what it is, and how it looks. After learning about child labour students will take action against child labour, potentially tying it into Labour Day.

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Amnesty International - Child Soldiers - Social Studies 6-7

This lesson plan uses Ishmael Beah's first-hand account of life as a child soldier to encourage students to expand their understanding beyond themselves: to think globally and to think about human rights. It is designed for use with film clips from Ishmael Beah's session at the Human Rights Action centre. www.amnesty.org.uk/childsoldier

The lesson plan is for use with young people aged between 11 and 14, but it may be possible to adapt some activities to an older age group. The activities can be used in a stand-alone lesson in citizenship or in an interdisciplinary project in English or Art to encourage students to make connections between different areas of learning. The activities enable young people to learn independently and as part of a group, and to apply their learning in new contexts.

Extension activities can be used as homework or in additional lessons to allow students to develop independent study skills and their knowledge of the subject.

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Child Labour Activity - Social Studies 6

This lesson presents an overview of where, why, how, and in what conditions child labour occurs. Students will identify the physical and emotional challenges that children forced into labour face. Students will study the efforts by the international community to prevent children from working in hazardous environments.

In many places around the world children are forced to work, sometimes in brutal conditions and dangerous environments that are threatening to their lives and health. Typically, children who are forced into labour don't go to school or participate in recreational activities. Child labour exists for many reasons, mainly economic gain. Many products we use have possibly passed through the hands of a child labourer in the process of being made. Children forced into labour deserve empathy.

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Child Soldiers: Power Relationships - Social Studies 6-7

How is it that children end up as soldiers? This lesson plan looks at the way some armies and militias "press gang" children and young people into fighting - forcibly recruiting those who otherwise would have no intention of fighting.

As with other lesson plans, you will take students through a series of discussions and activities, getting deeper into the story as you go. You need no prior knowledge - just the ability to guide students as they explore what it feels like to be someone else.

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Child Soldiers in Uganda - Social Studies 6

Students will be introduced to child soldiers in Uganda and will:

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Children's Rights (module) - Social Studies 6-8

On November 20th 1989, the United Nations adopted the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). This convention spells out the basic human rights to which children everywhere are entitled. However, despite the efforts to ratify this convention, to this day there are youth around the world that are still being denied their rights.

This module (4-5 lessons) is designed to help educators dive deeply into children's rights issues. Using dynamic student-centred activities, students are encouraged to learn the facts and engage with the issues. From this process they will emerge as children's rights advocates, ready to engage in tangible outlets to create change.

This lesson consists of three parts: orientation activities, core activities and concluding activities. For a thorough understanding of children's rights, teach the activities in sequence as a unit plan. If you have less class time, select one activity from each section (i.e.: one orientation activity, one core activity, and one concluding activity). After participating in this lesson, students will emerge as knowledgeable and enthusiastic advocates for change, eager to take action and engage in their global community on this important global issue.

Together, let's use education to combat apathy and encourage change.

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Child's Work - Social Studies 6-8

Students will become aware of the causes of child labour and the effects of work on the lives of children. They will have the opportunity to explore the types of programs that might address the needs of working children.

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Child Soldiers (module) - Social Studies 6-8

In this module (10 lessons), students will learn the scope and impact of the forced recruitment of child soldiers and the actions being taken by individuals and organizations to eliminate this practice. Students will analyze primary and secondary sources, debate, create maps, discuss, design individual action plans, conduct Internet research, and write reflectively as they learn about child soldiers.

What is the nature and extent of the use of child soldiers in armed conflicts?;

What are some of the motivations for using children as soldiers?;

What is the impact of warfare on child soldiers?;

What actions have been taken by the world community to eliminate the use of child soldiers?;

How are youths around the world promoting peace?

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World Trivia Challenge - Social Studies 6

Students will participate in a trivia challenge where they read, learn, and compare statistics for least developed, developing, and industrialized countries.

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Standard of Living Comparisons - History/Geography 10

This lesson will expose Grade 10 students to current economic and social data on various countries around the world. The students will use the data to make comparative statements regarding Canada's place in the world. A mapping activity will give the students a visual display of the distribution of wealth in the world.

Students will become familiar with the diverse range of standards of living around the world, and attempt to offer solutions to the problem of the unequal distribution of wealth worldwide.

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Child Survival What's Right with this Picture - Social Studies, Science 6

Students use critical thinking skills to determine strengths of communities in Vietnam, Ghana, Zimbabwe and the Caribbean. Students will then build on the specified strengths to identify opportunities that can potentially improve the lives of people in the community. Students will further reflect on their own strengths as a class and as individuals and use the generated ideas to improve the lives of people in their school.

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Measuring the Success The Millennium Development Goals (MDG's) Social Studies 7

Students will become familiar with the dimensions of world poverty; learn about the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs); and discover connections among the MDGs.

The Millennium Development Goals

By 2015 all 189 United Nations Member States have pledged to:

1. Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger

2. Achieve universal primary education

3. Promote gender equality and empower women

4. Reduce child mortality

5. Improve maternal health

6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases

7. Ensure environmental sustainability

8. Develop a global partnership for development

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Rights of the Child 1 - A Journey to a New Planet - Social Studies 1-2

Students will begin to differentiate between things that they want and need. Students are introduced to basic human rights as entitlements that everyone holds. Students further examine how their wants and needs are consistent with human rights and more specifically, with the rights of a child.

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Rights of the Child 2 - Polluting Rights - Social Studies, Health 3-8

Students will understand how pollution affects children's rights and health through real life examples; the environmental problems that affect children around the world; how pollution affects children's rights and health through real life examples; the environmental problems that affect children around the world.

Students will develop an appreciation for a healthy environment and how it applies to rights, as well as, an appreciation for a healthy environment and how it applies to rights.

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Rights of the Child 2 - Polluting Rights - Social Studies, Health 3-8

Students will understand how pollution affects children's rights and health through real life examples; the environmental problems that affect children around the world; how pollution affects children's rights and health through real life examples; the environmental problems that affect children around the world.

Students will develop an appreciation for a healthy environment and how it applies to rights, as well as, an appreciation for a healthy environment and how it applies to rights.

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Rights of the Child 2 - Polluting Rights - Social Studies, Health 3-8

Students will understand how pollution affects children's rights and health through real life examples; the environmental problems that affect children around the world; how pollution affects children's rights and health through real life examples; the environmental problems that affect children around the world.

Students will develop an appreciation for a healthy environment and how it applies to rights, as well as, an appreciation for a healthy environment and how it applies to rights.

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Giving Credit Where Credit is Due - Social Studies 11

Micro-finance, sometimes called micro-credit, is an alternative approach to lending that provides loans to people who would not normally qualify for traditional bank loans. In this activity, students investigate this alternative economic approach, analyze the costs and benefits and compare it with traditional lending systems. The social and environmental impacts of micro-finance programs are also investigated by students.

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Development Assistance Simulation - Social Studies and Geography 6-8

Students participate in a simulation to decide on the types of development assistance that are most needed and the countries` most in need of assistance.

Students gain information and build awareness and empathy concerning these development issues. The simulation provides students with an opportunity to become involved in these issues and empowered by the decision-making process.

By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:

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Development Assistance Simulation - Social Studies and Geography 6-8

Students participate in a simulation to decide on the types of development assistance that are most needed and the countries` most in need of assistance.

Students gain information and build awareness and empathy concerning these development issues. The simulation provides students with an opportunity to become involved in these issues and empowered by the decision-making process.

By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:

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Industrial Revolution Lesson Plans

Industrial Revolution - History 10

This is a series of six lessons which are intended to give students the outlet to form opinions about the advantages and disadvantages of the current model of globalisation. Students will also be able to draw comparisons between the Industrial Revolution and modern globalization. The six lessons include:

Introduction: Context to Industrial Revolution

Cotton Industry: From Cottage to Factory

Urbanisation: Factories, Slums and Exploitation

Industrialisation and Globalization

Make Trade Fair

What can we do?

The purpose of Lesson 1, Context to Industrial Revolution, is to introduce students to the events and factors leading to the Industrial Revolution in Britain. It is also meant to give students the tools and facts they need to negotiate with the notion of progress and be critical of the effects, costs and underlying factors of industrialization.

Lesson 2, Cotton Industry: From Cottage to Factory, serves to introduce students to the notion of progress in relation to the cotton industry; it is intended to show the social consequences of this. It is also meant to have students begin to think about modern connections to the garment industry. Note: This lesson uses literary passages from Silas Marner and Oliver Twist as well as paintings by Constable and Turner to examine conditions during the Industrial Revolution. Although the paintings are not difficult to find on the Internet, the specific literary passages needed are missing (though noted as "attached" on the lesson plan). Unless teachers are thoroughly knowledgeable with these texts, it would be impossible to identify the individual passages.

Lesson 3, Urbanization: Factories, Slums and Exploitation, is intended to explicitly introduce students to the social repercussions of industrialization. It is intended to serve as a useful point of comparison to the current model of globalization and Oxfam's campaigns.

Industrialization and Globalization, the lesson 4 topic, draws comparisons between the Industrial Revolution and the current model of globalization; it also introduces students to Oxfam's campaigns.

Lesson 5, Make Trade Fair, is intended to give students the outlet to form opinions about the advantages and disadvantages of the current model of globalization. It is also intended to draw further comparisons with the Industrial Revolution.

In Lesson 6, What can we do?, students are given the outlet to inform their fellow students about the injustices they have experienced and learnt about. It is also intended to tie in with World Food Day. It will also introduce students to a summative task-a 15 to 20 minute presentation on an industry of interest to them.

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Giving Voice to Child Labourers Through Monologues - Social Studies 6-8

Students learn about child labour, as it occurred in England and the United States during the Industrial Revolution and as it continues around the world today.

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Gender Lesson Plans

Child Brides: Stolen Lives - Social Studies 20 (Grade 11), Unit 5: World Governance

This is from the United States Public Broadcasting System (PBS) series NOW. It provides a startling insight into the issue of child brides in many developing countries. NOW's production team travelled to Niger, India and Guatemala to report on a global custom that devastates lives and keeps communities from prospering.

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The Girl Child - Social Studies 6

Students will be randomly selected to participate in a simulation that demonstrates how some children in developing countries have limited or no access to a formal education. Students will be introduced to the issue of gender equality, specifically access to education.

The objective of this activity is to generate class discussion about lack of opportunity for half of the world's population based on something over which they have no control-their gender.

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The Gender Divide: A Different Perspective - Social Studies 11

In this activity, students take part in a role playing exercise to develop a community map from their gender's perspectives. The different roles of men and women are explored in terms of social and environmental implications.

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When I Was Born... Social Studies 9

Every year, more than 500,000 women die in childbirth, most of them in developing countries. While this is not an issue of concern in wealthier nations-where fewer than 10 women die for every 100,000 child births-the rate of deaths among women in the developing world can be as high as 1,000 for every 100,000 births. Poverty is the biggest reason for this disparity. The women in the developing world are dying during childbirth because they are malnourished and weakened by other illnesses and diseases. They are also more likely to have numerous births and they lack access to trained health care workers and medical facilities.

Students will discover the range of experiences and health care services provided for pregnant women and compare the experience between North America and developing countries.

Through discussion, both at home and at school, they will see the different experiences a pregnant woman can have based on where she lives or the poverty with which she must live.

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Resources Lesson Plans SCIC's Global Citizenship Education Program helps Saskatchewan teachers integrate international development and global justice into their classrooms by providing free, downloadable teaching resources for high schools and elementary schools. These are lessons created by SCIC's member organizations and have been compiled and reviewed to meet Saskatchewan Curriculum connections.

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Made by yours truly, learn how to create your own e-textile as well as basic Arduino coding!

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In this lesson you will be running a test on your Gemma as well as downloading the program that enables you to code your micro controller using Arduino IDE.

How to run a test:

It is important to run a test on your Adafruit Gemma before diving into coding on it. Here are the steps to running a practice test on your Gemma. Instructions derived from Make: Making Simple Robots by Kathy Ceceri.

Step 1: If you are using a Windows computer, you will need to download a driver called USB-tinyISP. The drivers job is to understand the language that is being communicated from the computer to the Gemma. Similar to how humans change their language when they are talking to young people compared to when they are speaking in front of university students. In other words, downloading the driver enables the computer to communicate effectively with the Gemma.

- To install the driver: Type in http//bit.ly/ada-drivers where you will find instructions for Windows 7, 8 and XP.

Step 2: Plug in your Gemma into the computer using the USB port and the mini USB cable on the Gemma. Once this is plugged in, you should see the green LED light on the Gemma light up as well as the red onboard LED flash.

- Once you've plugged your Gemma in, there should be a pop-up box prompt on the screen. You do not need it to search the web for the driver as it should directly install the driver onto your hard drive.

Step 3: Next you will need to download the Arduino IDE program onto your computer. Go to downloading the Arduino IDE program page here and follow the prompts. Once you have successfully downloaded the program onto your hard drive you will need to ensure you are using the correct board. Unfortunately, because the Gemma is an Adafruit and only compatible with Arduino you must download the board separately and install it into the program. Watch this tutorial video where I show you how to download the Adafruit Gemma board into the IDE program. You can also view this link that gives you descriptive instructions for downloading additional boards to the IDE programming.

Step 4: Run the code. Watch this video that shows you what code to use to run your test. This specific code is set to change the red LED to start blinking on and off once every second. Although it was blinking before, this blink should be much slower.

Step 4: Now that you've got your Gemma working and the body finished, the next step is to connect them together. Using another colour of felt cut out an outline of the Gemma and the LED Matrix. Place the outlines behind each piece. Sew the corners of the LED matrix and the Gemma to the rectangular piece of felt you made earlier in this lesson.

Step 5: Plug in the battery pack to the Gemma and place the black box behind the robot. Attach the battery pack to the back of Fiberbot with velcro. That way if you want to put these "eyes" on a different robot everything is portable.

Alright, so you can put the Fiberbot down for a second. I am going to guide you to the website that gives you step-by-step directions on how to download the Arduino program onto either your MacBook or Windows computers. Now this is going to make your Fiberbot smile!

1. Downloading Arduino: On the adafruit website, there is a page available specifically for learning about your Gemma controller. First things first, you need to download the compatible software onto your computer. Here is the link for completing this step.

Downloading Arduino
https://learn.adafruit.com/introducing-gemma/setti...

2. Programming with Arduino IDE: Again, on the adafruit website under getting started with Gemma you can find a tab called 'programming with Arduino IDE.' This specific webpage allows you to understand the meanings behind the code. All coding essentially is, is telling something to perform as task. These are known as inputs and outputs. An input is information coming into object and the output is the end result. For example, if I tell my sister to do the dishes and she does them, the input is represented by me asking her to do the dishes, the output is her doing them. Another example would be using your remote control for your TV. You push the on button which is the input and the TV turns on acting as the output. The same communication is used when working with micro controllers. We are going to learn how to send inputs into our Gemma in order for it to have a response (output). Read about the different meanings of the code. I really like using this website because it breaks steps down for beginners. It is easy to understand and they provide lots of visuals to follow along to.

Programming with Arduino IDE
https://learn.adafruit.com/introducing-gemma/progr...

3. Once you have downloaded the Arduino program onto your computer, open it up and follow the prompt on the video I have provided. You want to click on 'tools' at the top menu bar, scroll down to 'board:' and click on Adafruit Gemma (ATtiny85 @ 8MHz). Because coding is slightly different from board to board it is important to choose the correct board for the controller you are using.

4. Now that you have downloaded the Arduino program and have become familiar with some of the context behind the coding, I think you are ready to begin coding your very own Fiberbot!!! Check out the next lesson on how to code using Blink.

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Robotic E-textile: Hello! My name is Fiberbot, and I am so happy you are going to be making more of my friends. In this instructables you will learn exactly how to make a robot that looks just like me. I will also let you in on a little secret and share with you how...

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This conference is focused on racial equity in literacy. Check it out for summer 2019.

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Some exciting news to share!!! Save the date! Join me and @SonjaCherryPaul this summer for our Institute for Racial Equity in Literacy at @UNHLit! And stay tuned for updates regarding additional speakers and session leaders — hope you'll join us!!! @pennykittle #IREL19

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Some exciting news to share!!! Save the date! Join me and @SonjaCherryPaul this summer for our Institute for Racial Equity in Literacy at @UNHLit! And stay tuned for updates regarding additional speakers and session leaders — hope you'll join us!!! @pennykittle #IREL19 https://t.co/ZgEkWv9m1A

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Some exciting news to share!!! Save the date! Join me and @SonjaCherryPaul this summer for our Institute for Racial Equity in Literacy at @UNHLit! And stay tuned for updates regarding additional speakers and session leaders — hope you'll join us!!! @pennykittle #IREL19 pic.twitter.com/ZgEkWv9m1A
— Tricia Ebarvia (she/her) (@triciaebarvia) December 2, 2018

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Some exciting news to share!!! Save the date! Join me and @SonjaCherryPaul this summer for our Institute for Racial Equity in Literacy at @UNHLit! And stay tuned for updates regarding additional speakers and session leaders — hope you'll join us!!! @pennykittle #IREL19 https://t.co/ZgEkWv9m1A

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Some exciting news to share!!! Save the date! Join me and @SonjaCherryPaul this summer for our Institute for Racial Equity in Literacy at @UNHLit! And stay tuned for updates regarding additional speakers and session leaders — hope you'll join us!!! @pennykittle #IREL19 https://t.co/ZgEkWv9m1A

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Some exciting news to share!!! Save the date! Join me and @SonjaCherryPaul this summer for our Institute for Racial Equity in Literacy at @UNHLit! And stay tuned for updates regarding additional speakers and session leaders — hope you'll join us!!! @pennykittle #IREL19

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I used this website to learn an in-depth understanding about the Seven Sacred Teachings which I then implemented into a few health lessons.

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This website provides support for all levels within school jurisdictions to increase awareness, understanding and application of First Nations, Métis and Inuit histories, perspectives and ways of knowing for the purpose of implementing treaty and residential schools education and Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action for education.

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This resource focuses on growing educators understanding of Truth and Reconciliation through a scope and sequence approach. The literature kit provides an arrangement of books with annotations included

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"In addressing the particular needs of First Nations, Métis and Inuit teachers and learners, this collection of materials sheds light on issues of diversity, equity and human rights as they touch the day-to-day life in Alberta schools and society”.

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First Nations, Metis and Inuit Professional Learning 

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First Nations, Metis and Inuit Professional Learning 

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"The First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Professional Learning website provides educators with supports and tools to design and facilitate professional learning. It offers curricular resources that build capacity, engage learners, and build paths toward reconciliation through education."

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The resources in this photo tile gallery provide a "big picture" of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Professional Learning.

Watch videos for an introduction to professional learning and overviews of the pillar goals and strategic pathways that build capacity for you and your students.

Build understandings with foundation resources. Open photo stories to reflect on your understandings and perspectives.

Use the guides, sources, and Google Docs to inform your professional learning process.

Sort these resources by clicking on each resource category below. Mouse over and click the icon or touch the photo tile to access each resource.

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FNMI - First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Professional Learning Project

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The resources in this photo tile gallery provide a "big picture" of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Professional Learning. Watch videos for an introduction to professional learning and overviews of the pillar goals and strategic pathways that build capacity for you and your students. Build understandings with foundation resources.

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Gabriel Dumont Institute of Native Studies and Applied Research: Virtual Museum of Metis History and Culture. 

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Gabriel Dumont Institute of Native Studies and Applied Research: Virtual Museum of Metis History and Culture. 

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The Gabriel Dumont Institute (GDI) Publishing Department has published or produced more than 80 Métis-specific books and educational resources since the early 1980s. This section contains many of GDI's out-of-stock learning resources. It also contains Métis-specific learning resources produced by Métis community members who work outside of the Institute.

Métis-specific books and learning and cultural resources, can obtained through the Gabriel Dumont Institute at shopmetis.ca.

Lesson Plans

Miscellaneous Resources

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The Virtual Museum of Métis History and Culture

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The Gabriel Dumont Institute (GDI) Publishing Department has published or produced more than 80 Métis-specific books and educational resources since the early 1980s. This section contains many of GDI's out-of-stock learning resources. It also contains Métis-specific learning resources produced by Métis community members who work outside of the Institute.

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Educational Core Studies: First Nations, Metis, Inuit. 

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Educational Core Studies: First Nations, Metis, Inuit. 

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This resource has been created by the Faculty of Education at the U of R and has many different links to additional treaty ed resources.

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Treaty Education and Reconciliation Resources, STF (article with excellent updated resource list published Dec. 21st, 2017)

Indian Horse Reflection Guide
Download word doc:Indian Horse Reflection Guide
Questions to use as a guide only and not a list to answer. This is to be a reflective piece of writing that tells your connections, emotions, questions, aha moments and bumps along the way. There is no one right answer for any of these questions but take time to think deeply within yourself as you write. Saul Indian Horse was told that story-sharing is an effective form of therapy and even though he was skeptical, he found that to be true. Reading and reflecting on this book may not be 'therapy' for the reader but rather a way for us to face the realities of racism and residential schools and to better understand our roles and responsibilities as people and as educators.

More Resources: Indian Horse Videos
Trailer - great intro to novel (only about 2 minutes)
Author on Canada Reads (2 min)
Canada Reads 2013 book trailer (52 seconds)
Richard Wagamese speaking - close to an hour
Perspectives of Grade 12's respond to novel in a video - thru art, poetry, story

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Treaty Education and Reconciliation Resources, STF (article with excellent updated resource list published Dec. 21st, 2017) Indian Horse Reflection Guide Download word doc:Indian Horse Reflection Guide Questions to use as a guide only and not a list to answer. This is to be a reflective piece of writing that tells your connections, emotions, questions, aha moments and bumps along the way.

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Secret Path is a ten song album by Gord Downie with a graphic novel by Jeff Lemire that tells the story of Chanie Wenjack, a twelve year-old boy who died fifty years ago on October 22, 1966, in flight from the Cecilia Jeffrey Indian Residential School near Kenora, Ontario, trying to walk over 400 miles home to the family he was taken from.

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This resource has been developed by Pernille Ripp and offers multiple different projects that focus on global collaboration.

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Edutopia: Preparing for Cultural Diversity: Resources for Teachers 

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Edutopia: Preparing for Cultural Diversity: Resources for Teachers 

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Preparing for Cultural Diversity: Resources for Teachers

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How can teachers prepare for diverse classrooms? There isn’t a definitive answer, but there is a wealth of resources online. Discover some helpful links for teachers.

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Building belonging: A toolkit for early childhood educators on cultural diversity and responding to prejudice | Australian Human Rights Commission

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'Building Belonging' is a comprehensive toolkit of early education resources which i

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Planning for Effective, Meaningful Instruction. 

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Planning for Effective, Meaningful Instruction. 

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We know that students learn best when they are truly engaged in what they are learning, when they have the opportunity to explore, debate, discuss, examine, defend, and experiment with the concepts and skills they are ready to learn.

Students learn best when instruction is:

Appropriately Challenging

Kids (and adults!) learn best when they start at their current level of understanding and are challenged - with support (teacher, peers, materials, etc.) - just beyond what they are comfortable doing on their own. (See Zone of Proximal Development)

The student's background knowledge and current skill level are more important than their age/grade level in determining what they are ready to learn. Just because a student is in 5th grade doesn't mean he should be working on "5th grade" skills.

Use a variety of data (assessment scores, classroom performance, etc.) to identify what each student is ready to work on and plan instruction accordingly, modifying content or activities as needed. Use daily informal formative assessment strategies to monitor student progress and verify that students are demonstrating a gain in understanding of the skills and concepts.

Based on Real-World Problems and Situations

Students need to understand how the skills and concepts they are learning fit into their lives. When will they need to use decimals? How does democracy affect them? How will they benefit from being able to better understand what they read? Connect the skills and concepts to things that already know. Make them relevant.

Purposeful

You (and your students) should be able to explain the purpose of each activity or assignments. Why is it worth spending time on? What are they expected to learn?

Meaningful and Interesting

We shouldn't be waiting until spring before we begin the "fun" activities. We know that these activities are the ones that students love, that they remember.

Use engaging activities all year:

Use science experiments to practice math skills

Use interesting current events or social studies projects to work on reading and language

Use art projects to practice math concepts such as ratio, proportion and patterns

Get kids moving!

Working on measurement? Go outside and measure how far kids can jump, how fast they can run. Measure shadows, the diameter of a light post, the distance around the building.

Talking about point of view? Have students stand on their chairs.

Reading out loud? Have students stand up and walk around the classroom in a circle as they read along.

Practice vocabulary or math facts as students walk, one per sidewalk square or stair step.

Kids will learn the basic skills better when they have the chance to practice them in a meaningful, interesting context... And these types of activities make teaching more fun and fulfilling, and make school a more pleasant place to be.

Remember: No one instructional method will work for all students, for all teachers, or in all subject areas. Think of these ideas as places to start in figuring out what works most effectively for you and your students.

Strategy Ideas:

Alternative Assessments:

"Assessment" can refer to end-of-unit tests or projects, quizzes and graded class assignments as well as informal progress checks throughout each day

Wide variety of possibilities, including:

Use of different checklists or rubrics, or similar rubrics with adapted scales

Use of different tests/assessments

Adapt existing test/assessment so that specific parts of the test only have to be completed by specific groups of students

Allow a student to respond to test questions orally instead of in writing, or typing on a computer instead of writing by hand

Allow a student to respond by demonstrating the skill (For example, a student may use a light bulb, battery and some wire to build an electric circuit rather than drawing a diagram or writing a paragraph about it.)
Assess what is most important for the student to know. Is is more important that he know what a circuit is or more important that he can write a description?

Minimal Prep Time Version: Include as part of the assessment several questions of varying complexity or focused on different aspects of the concept, and then allow students to make some choices about which ones they answer. (Example: Students are required to answer question 1 but can choose from questions 2-4 for their second response.)

Anchor Activities (or Sponge Activities):

Prep Time Varies; Monitor Progress, Work Together, Share Ideas & Opinions, Take Notes

Designed for students to work on either immediately at the beginning of class time or after their class work has been completed, so that their instructional time is maximized

Possibilities include:

Have students respond in writing or out-loud with a partner to a question on the board about the previous day's lesson

Have students draw a graphic organizer to be used for notetaking later in class

Provide students with notes or vocabulary to copy for use as a reference during the day's lesson

Beneficial for classroom management as well as instruction

Intended to extend or deepen understanding of a concept or skill, not just to be busy work

Resources, Examples and More Information

Appointment Clocks:

Requires Some Prep Time; Form Groups, Get Moving!, Work Together

Used to quickly put students in pairs or small groups

Make a copy of the clock for each student. The names of other students go at each hour mark around the clock so that asking students to find their "1 o'clock" partner puts the students in pairs, for example.

Allow students to choose partners for some times on the clock, but decide some of the partners ahead of time so that you know, for example, that the 2 o'clock partners are students with similar skills in reading or that the 5 o'clock partners have similar interests.

Centers (or Stations):
More Prep Time Required; Work Together, Adapt Content, Share Ideas & Opinions

Centers can be used to arrange various activities and assignments by level of difficulty or by interest.

By Academic Skill Level: Set up 3-4 experiments that deal with the same concept, but that vary in complexity. Lower-level students may work on the experiment with fewer steps while higher-level students work on a more complicated task.

By Learning Style: Set up stations focused on the same concept but designed for different modalities. Auditory learners may listen to a recording of text while visual learners examine maps and posters and kinesthetic learners use manipulatives.

By Interest: Set up stations focusing that provide additional information about and enrichment of specific components of the concepts being studied. Allow students to choose which component they spend their time working on.

Choice Boards:

Options posted for students to choice from after they have completed their classwork. Choices can be individualized based on student need or interest.

Helps with classroom management because students know what their choices are; less time wasted.

Print choices on cards and glue magnets on the back so the choices can easily be put up or taken down based on what's appropriate for the time available (ie., if student works requires a quiet room, choices may be limited to "silent reading" or "work on homework," etc.

Six commands or questions, written on the sides of a cube. Students roll the cube and respond. Cubes may be used to differentiate by readiness or interest.

Ideas:

Describe, Compare, Contrast, Apply, Predict, Imagine - Use with any two or three things/concepts/ideas (people from history, current events, mathematical formulas, elements from the periodic table, geometric shapes, countries, chocolate bars - the possibilities are endless!

Who, What, When, Where, Why, How - Have students come up with questions about a current topic of study. Students can exchange questions with others to answer.

Sample Cubing Lesson: Primary Reading - Concepts of Print

Create two or three different cubes, each with questions at different levels of complexity. Assign students to work in small groups and respond (on paper or out loud) to the questions on their assigned cube.

Use to determine where each student will start when rotating through multiple activities, to randomly create student groups for an assignment

Minimal Prep Time Version:Write the six commands/questions on the board, numbered 1-6. Have the students roll a dice to determine which one to respond to.

Curriculum Compacting:

Used for individual or small groups of students with advanced knowledge of the concepts or skills to be studied

Identify the skills or aspects of the concepts with which the students are already proficient. Spend less time on those parts of the curriculum, allowing the students to focus on what the really need to learn and understand.

Exit Ticket/Ticket Out the Door:

At the end of a class period ask students to take out a piece of scrap paper, or hand out blank index cards (keep a stack readily available) and ask students a question related to that day's lesson. Students write their responses on the paper or index card which they then hand to the teacher at the door as they leave the classroom.

See "Reflection and Response" for question ideas

Use the student responses to determine if they need additional practice on the skill/concept

Student responses may be used to create small groups for the next day's lesson - grouping students with similar levels of understanding of the skill/concept or with similar (or differing) opinions or views on the topic

On each wall of the classroom, post signs that say: "Strongly Agree," "Agree," "Disagree," "Strongly Disagree"

Present students with a statement related to a concept or topic currently being studied

Have students respond to the statement by moving and standing under the sign that represents their opinion

Give the students 1-2 minutes to discuss with in their groups why they chose that place to stand

Optional: Have students partner with someone from another side and try to persuade them to change their opinion

Small groups for an activity can be formed by having the students work with the others who chose the same side or by taking one person from each side to create groups of four with differing viewpoints.

Grade as You Go:

Use with classwork involving repetitive practice, such as a math or language worksheet

As students work (alone or with a partner), circulate around the classroom checking answers on the students' work. Mark correct answers on their papers with the tip of a colored marker (Crayola "Stampers" work particularly well).

Benefits:

Students get immediate feedback on what they are doing correctly.

Students can go back to the answers that weren't correct and try again. (This works well when the students are in partners; they can talk through what they've done and help each other.) Identifying their mistakes now will help reduce the chance of repeating the same mistakes again later.

If students are struggling, they will know that their answers aren't correct sooner rather than later and can work to identify the mistakes they're making instead of spending the class period repeatedly getting the problems wrong (and potentially reinforcing the incorrect way to solve the problem).

If a student is working quickly and getting all of the problems correct (demonstrating a good understanding of the skill), you may choose not to require him to complete the assignment, but to move on to something else instead.

You will know right away if the class as a whole is ready to move on to the next skill.

When the assignments are turned in, they're already graded!

Heads Together:

Works especially well for students already working in small groups, especially if they are sitting at a table or cluster of desks together

How It Works:

1. Present a question to the class. Announce "Heads Together!"

2. Students stand up and lean in toward the others in the small group - literally heads together!

3. In their group, students discuss answers to the question

4. After a minute or two, announce "Heads Apart!"

5. Students end their discussion and sit back down.

6. Follow up with whole group discussion and continue with the lesson.

Benefits:

Every student participates

Standing up - that little bit of physical activity - can be enough to increase student engagement and get their focus back on the work at hand

Leaning together helps keep the noise level down while so many student groups are having conversations at once

Can be used as needed with no prior planning - If a lesson is dragging, if students are distracted, tired, or not paying attention, use this strategy to get them back on track and refocused.

Homework Options:

Prep Time Varies; Monitor Progress, Adapt Content

Assign homework based on a student's level of readiness. All students may be working on the same concept or skill, but are assigned homework of varying level of difficulty.

Another option: Students may be given assignments focusing on different skills, based on their individual needs, to give them a chance to practice the skills each student needs most.

Materials/Resources: The Curriculum Ladders may be helpful in identifying what skills are needed for each student or group of students.

Works well with small groups needing to cover large amounts of material

Divide the material to be covered in 3-5 parts. Put the same number of students in each small group. One student is each group is assigned to cover one of the parts of the materials. The student's job is to become the "expert" on their portion of the material so that they can then share what they've learned with the rest of their group.

1. Students read their assigned material independently

2. Students meet with those from other groups that read the same material to discuss what was most important and what needs to be taught to their groups. (optional)

3. Students meet with their small groups and to share what they've learned with each other. Follow with whole group discussion of the most important points.

Columns: "What I Know," "What I Want to Know," and "What I Learned"

Can be used at the beginning of a unit to assess students' background knowledge and interest in the topic, or it can be used at various points throughout the unit to assess student progress. Students can track their own progress and help determine what they most need to work on next.

Learning Contracts:

Works well with individual students or small groups in need of a challenge

Detailed list of directions and assignments for the student to complete within a set period of time. Teacher and student work together to establish contract requirements and due dates. Can be effectively used to develop goal-setting.

Can be used to practice time-management as well. Provide students with a blank calendar have students schedule days/class periods when they will work on each part of the contract in order to meet the final due date. Students working on the same part of the contract during the same class perdiod may have the option of working togther.

Literature Circles:

Requires Some Prep Time; Compare & Contrast, Form Groups, Get Moving!, Work Together, Adapt Content, Share Ideas & Opinions

Small groups of students, arranged by readiness level or interest, reading and responding to a novel together

Idea: The whole class may be reading novels by the same author or that have similar themes, but each literature circle group has a novel that is specifically appropriate for them. This allows for whole group discussion as well as small group work.
A few times a year, allow students to choose their own groups. Present them with the novels to be studied for a particular unit (basic plot summary, reading level, book length, etc.) and let students choose which book they are each most interested in. They'll then work with others who chose the same book.

Encourage groups to move their desks into a circle, to sit together on the floor or to otherwise move out of their normal seating to encourage discussion and an emphasis on actively working as a learning team instead of more passively listening to a teacher

Menus (or Agendas):

List of assignments, activities, or projects a student will work on during a set amount of time (ie. one class period, one week, one unit). Students may choose the order which they complete the work.

"Main Course" Items: Assignments that the student is required to complete

"Side Dish" Items: Students choose 2-3 assignments from a list of options

"Dessert" Items: Optional items that students may choose for additional enrichment or practice

Agenda format may be structured more loosely, such as the low-prep example below

Like Learning Contracts, Menus/Agendas can be used to practice time-management as well. Provide students with a blank calendar have students schedule days/class periods when they will work on each part of the contract in order to meet the final due date. Students working on the same part of the contract during the same class period may have the option of working together.

Materials/Resources: Reading Agenda - Novel Study (Word)

Mini White Boards:

Provide each student with a small white board (10-12 inches square), a dry erase marker and a tissue (to wipe the board clean between questions). Ask a question or write a problem on the board. Ask students to respond on their white boards, which they hold up once they have an answer written.

Can also be used for questions based on opinion or that potentially have multiple right answers. After students hold up their answers, have them find a partner with a different answer. Give them each one minute to explain to their new parters why their own answer is the right one. Have the students come back together and discuss any changes in opinion.

Or, have students form small groups with others who gave the same or similar answers. Use these student groups for the day's lesson.

Benefits:

You will get immediate feedback about which students understand the concept or skill and which students may need some additional support.

All students participate. Holding up the answers increases the accountability and engagement for everyone.

Materials/Resources:

Cheaper White Boards: At your local home improvement store, buy a large, plain white piece of the material used for shower walls. Ask to have it cut into 10-12 inch squares (enough to have a class set). Cheap, but they can last for years.

Another Option: Instead of a white board, use a heavy-duty, clear page protector with white cardstock inside. As a bonus, you can layer the plain white cardstock with graph paper, a black-line master of a map, or a copy of whatever students need for the skill they're practicing.

Orbitals (Independent Study Projects):

3-4 week independent study projects intended to provide enrichment

Effective for use with individual students who have already mastered the concepts the class will be working on. Provides an opportunity for them to focus on a part of the concept or separate topic of particular interest to the student (possibility something he or she is passionate about). Allow the student to share with the class what he or she has learned at the conclusion of the project. For example, while the class studies the Civil War, a student who is already very knowledgeable about that war might focus on specific details related to a particular battle or person involved.

Question Choices:

Requires Minimal Prep Time; Monitor Progress, Form Groups, Adapt Content

During whole group discussions, include questions that everyone in the class is able to answer, as well as more complex questions that only a few students may be able to answer. Adjust the difficulty of the questions depending on which student will be called on to respond.

Also see Alternative Assessment Minimal Prep Time Version

Reading Buddies:

Pair each student with another of a different reading level (low with medium, medium with high) for partner reading and discussion

Also, pairing upper grade students with lower grade students, such as having a fourth grade class buddy up with a first grade class, provides reading practice for all students and can be fun and motivating for both groups.

Reflection and Response:

Provide opportunity for students to respond and reflect on day's learning. Helps you to know where they stand for planning next lessons. Increases memory retention for students.

Keep a stack of blank index cards on hand to give to students at the end of class. Have students respond on the card to something from the day's lesson.

Ideas:

Draw a sketch that demonstrates _______________ (a key concept from that day's lesson)

What one thing from today's lesson would you like to know more about?

What one thing from today's lesson did you find most interesting?

Ask a question from the day's lesson content.

Ask a question that requires higher-level thinking or connections to "real-life":

Which of the generals leading this battle showed the most bravery? Why?

How would this math skill would be used in science? in cooking? in construction?

Which of these people/ideas/concepts/events is the most important/useful/worth remembering? Why?

Scaffolding:

Works well with individuals and small groups when working on instruction of specific skills

Identify specific levels of complexity within the development of a particular skill/concepts. Match students, by ability, with the appropriate level of skill; students at the same level may work in flexible groups. The goal is to have each student move up at least one level.

Sticky Note Graphs:

Give each student a small stack of sticky notes (5-10 notes, depending on how many responses you anticipate)

Present students with a question related to the content. Questions with multiple correct answers or that ask for opinions or votes work well.

Students write one answer or response on each sticky note

Question Ideas:

Which animal is most important to sustaining the jungle ecosystem?

What are your three favorite books that you read last year?

What activities should we plan for our class picnic?

The Process:

After students finish writing their answers, have them place all of their sticky notes in a designated spot on a wall or white board.

Students work together to find and group sticky notes with the same or similar answers (stick the notes in clusters or in lines to create a bar graph)

Discuss which responses where most common and why

Optional: Leave the sticky notes on the wall during additional lessons on the concept/topic. After students have learned more, have give them the opportunity to change their response (and have them explain their reason for wanting to change their answer).

Think-Tac-Toe:

Requires More Prep Time; Compare & Contrast, Form Groups, Work Together, Adapt Content, Share Ideas & Opinions, Take Notes

Nine commands or questions, arranged like a tic-tac-toe board. Students choose three to complete, creating a row vertically, horizontally, or diagonally.

Student choice allows for differentiation by interest and/or learning style. Think-tac-toe boards for different levels of readiness can also be created and given to different groups of students.

Students may also be given choices as to which assignment square they complete during a particular class period. Students who choose the same assignment may form a small group for that day.

Materials/Resources: Think-Tac-Toe for middle grade novel study - 2 Levels (Word)

Think-Pair-Share:

Requires Minimal Prep Time; Monitor Progress, Compare & Contrast, Work Together, Share Ideas & Opinions

Provides opportunities for all students to respond and be involved during whole group discussion

1. Ask a question or propose a problem

2. Students first think of an answer or idea on their own (2-3 minutes)

3. Next, students share, and possibly revise, their responses by sharing with a partner

4. Then open discussion to the whole group to share and compare answers and ideas

Tiered Activities:

3-4 different activities of different levels of complexity and difficulty, but with a common goal or end result. For example, different groups of students may be working on science experiments of different levels of difficulty, but all with the purpose of learning about the food chain.

1. Begin by planning the mid-level activity, what you might normally plan for your whole class.

2. Then add a level of difficulty or complexity to make the same lesson more challenging for higher-level students.

3. Simplify or add resources to the original acitivity to better meet the needs and fill in any learning gaps for lower-level students.

Students may work in small groups with others at the same level for a particular lesson or throughout a particular unit.

Tiered activities can lead to effective whole group discussion and comparison of results.

Minimal Prep Time Version: Some curriculum come with leveled workbooks. There may be a "Reteaching" workshop that explains a skill step-by-step, a "Practice" workbook that provides problems to solve related to the skill, and an "Enrichment" workbook that extends the skill in some way. Assign students to the appropriate workbook page so that every student can practice the same skill at his or her own level of readiness. Or, briefly describe the assignments and then let the students choose which level they'd like to complete; their choices may provide some insight into their comfort level with the skill.

Tiered Rubrics:

2-3 rubrics are developed for one project, and given to students based on readiness. This provides all students with appropriate skills to focus on and a chance to be successful.

Ideas:

Include the same categories, but adjust the point value and/or required elements, or

Add additional categories or requirements to increase the challenge and take off or reduce the requirements (leaving only on what's most important for them to learn) for kids needing assistance

Use rubrics with increasing difficulty or requirements over successive projects as a means of identifying areas of student growth

Varied Organizers:

Provide 2-3 organizers of differing complexity

Example:

Students needing more guidance may be given a ready-to-use organizer with blanks for them to fill in.

Students ready for more independence may be given an incomplete organizer that requires them to fill in blanks as well as adding detail.

More advanced students may be given only a basic framework for the organizer (or a blank piece of paper) which they complete on their own.

Varied Products:

Possibly the easiest way to differentiate

Allow students to make choices about how they demonstrate what they've learned, whether they write an essay, make a poster, or act out a scene.

Be clear about your expectations, possibly using a rubric; then allow students to meet the requirements in their own way.

This also works well when you have limited resources because not all students need to same materials and equipment at the same time.

Varied Texts:

Provide resources at a variety of reading levels that provide students with information about the skill or concept being studied

Assign reading material to students based on skill level, or allow them to choose the text they are most interested in. Put students in small groups with other students reading the same material.

Material from the Learning Continuum is provided by courtesy of NWEA and may not be republished, rewritten, or redistributed. All rights reserved.

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STEM teaching is the hands-on exploration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics concepts, and it's becoming an increasingly important part of modern-day education. STEM skills grant students the 21st-century abilities needed to perform a wide range of both essential and highly-skilled jobs.
Risk-taking, leaping, trying again, and failing are part of our genetic material. Without it, humans would not have inhabited every corner of this planet. Oftentimes we can see failure, particularly in exams, as negative - one of the worst things we can allow students to experience. But what if we allow students to fail in a safe space and make learning a personal endeavor? Go #BeyondCode and enrich your learning experience with engaging STEAM activities that foster creativity and collaboration.
Sphero makes remarkably cool, programmable robots and STEAM-based educational tools that transform the way kids learn, create and invent through coding, science, music, and the arts.
Using information available, combined with skills acquired, can help make good decisions. That's the basic process of critical thinking. Critical thinkers can solve problems by keeping a clear mind and rational thoughts that will help you analyze a situation and make a sound decision.
STEM teaching is the hands-on exploration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics concepts, and it's becoming an increasingly important part of modern-day education. STEM skills grant students the 21st-century abilities needed to perform a wide range of both essential and highly-skilled jobs.
Risk-taking, leaping, trying again, and failing are part of our genetic material. Without it, humans would not have inhabited every corner of this planet. Oftentimes we can see failure, particularly in exams, as negative - one of the worst things we can allow students to experience. But what if we allow students to fail in a safe space and make learning a personal endeavor?
Go #BeyondCode and enrich your learning experience with engaging STEAM activities that foster creativity and collaboration.
Sphero makes remarkably cool, programmable robots and STEAM-based educational tools that transform the way kids learn, create and invent through coding, science, music, and the arts.
Using information available, combined with skills acquired, can help make good decisions. That's the basic process of critical thinking. Critical thinkers can solve problems by keeping a clear mind and rational thoughts that will help you analyze a situation and make a sound decision.
STEM teaching is the hands-on exploration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics concepts, and it's becoming an increasingly important part of modern-day education. STEM skills grant students the 21st-century abilities needed to perform a wide range of both essential and highly-skilled jobs.
Risk-taking, leaping, trying again, and failing are part of our genetic material. Without it, humans would not have inhabited every corner of this planet. Oftentimes we can see failure, particularly in exams, as negative - one of the worst things we can allow students to experience. But what if we allow students to fail in a safe space and make learning a personal endeavor?
Go #BeyondCode and enrich your learning experience with engaging STEAM activities that foster creativity and collaboration.

Sphero makes remarkably cool, programmable robots and STEAM-based educational tools that transform the way kids learn, create and invent through coding, science, music, and the arts.

Using information available, combined with skills acquired, can help make good decisions. That's the basic process of critical thinking. Critical thinkers can solve problems by keeping a clear mind and rational thoughts that will help you analyze a situation and make a sound decision. STEM teaching is the hands-on exploration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics concepts, and it's becoming an increasingly important part of modern-day education. STEM skills grant students the 21st-century abilities needed to perform a wide range of both essential and highly-skilled jobs. Risk-taking, leaping, trying again, and failing are part of our genetic material. Without it, humans would not have inhabited every corner of this planet. Oftentimes we can see failure, particularly in exams, as negative - one of the worst things we can allow students to experience. But what if we allow students to fail in a safe space and make learning a personal endeavor? Go #BeyondCode and enrich your learning experience with engaging STEAM activities that foster creativity and collaboration. Sphero makes remarkably cool, programmable robots and STEAM-based educational tools that transform the way kids learn, create and invent through coding, science, music, and the arts. Using information available, combined with skills acquired, can help make good decisions. That's the basic process of critical thinking. Critical thinkers can solve problems by keeping a clear mind and rational thoughts that will help you analyze a situation and make a sound decision. STEM teaching is the hands-on exploration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics concepts, and it's becoming an increasingly important part of modern-day education. STEM skills grant students the 21st-century abilities needed to perform a wide range of both essential and highly-skilled jobs. Risk-taking, leaping, trying again, and failing are part of our genetic material. Without it, humans would not have inhabited every corner of this planet. Oftentimes we can see failure, particularly in exams, as negative - one of the worst things we can allow students to experience. But what if we allow students to fail in a safe space and make learning a personal endeavor? Go #BeyondCode and enrich your learning experience with engaging STEAM activities that foster creativity and collaboration. Sphero makes remarkably cool, programmable robots and STEAM-based educational tools that transform the way kids learn, create and invent through coding, science, music, and the arts. Using information available, combined with skills acquired, can help make good decisions. That's the basic process of critical thinking. Critical thinkers can solve problems by keeping a clear mind and rational thoughts that will help you analyze a situation and make a sound decision. STEM teaching is the hands-on exploration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics concepts, and it's becoming an increasingly important part of modern-day education. STEM skills grant students the 21st-century abilities needed to perform a wide range of both essential and highly-skilled jobs. Risk-taking, leaping, trying again, and failing are part of our genetic material. Without it, humans would not have inhabited every corner of this planet. Oftentimes we can see failure, particularly in exams, as negative - one of the worst things we can allow students to experience. But what if we allow students to fail in a safe space and make learning a personal endeavor? Go #BeyondCode and enrich your learning experience with engaging STEAM activities that foster creativity and collaboration. Sphero makes remarkably cool, programmable robots and STEAM-based educational tools that transform the way kids learn, create and invent through coding, science, music, and the arts. Using information available, combined with skills acquired, can help make good decisions. That's the basic process of critical thinking. Critical thinkers can solve problems by keeping a clear mind and rational thoughts that will help you analyze a situation and make a sound decision. STEM teaching is the hands-on exploration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics concepts, and it's becoming an increasingly important part of modern-day education. STEM skills grant students the 21st-century abilities needed to perform a wide range of both essential and highly-skilled jobs. Risk-taking, leaping, trying again, and failing are part of our genetic material. Without it, humans would not have inhabited every corner of this planet. Oftentimes we can see failure, particularly in exams, as negative - one of the worst things we can allow students to experience. But what if we allow students to fail in a safe space and make learning a personal endeavor? Go #BeyondCode and enrich your learning experience with engaging STEAM activities that foster creativity and collaboration. Sphero makes remarkably cool, programmable robots and STEAM-based educational tools that transform the way kids learn, create and invent through coding, science, music, and the arts. Using information available, combined with skills acquired, can help make good decisions. That's the basic process of critical thinking. Critical thinkers can solve problems by keeping a clear mind and rational thoughts that will help you analyze a situation and make a sound decision. STEM teaching is the hands-on exploration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics concepts, and it's becoming an increasingly important part of modern-day education. STEM skills grant students the 21st-century abilities needed to perform a wide range of both essential and highly-skilled jobs. Risk-taking, leaping, trying again, and failing are part of our genetic material. Without it, humans would not have inhabited every corner of this planet. Oftentimes we can see failure, particularly in exams, as negative - one of the worst things we can allow students to experience. But what if we allow students to fail in a safe space and make learning a personal endeavor? Go #BeyondCode and enrich your learning experience with engaging STEAM activities that foster creativity and collaboration. Sphero makes remarkably cool, programmable robots and STEAM-based educational tools that transform the way kids learn, create and invent through coding, science, music, and the arts. Using information available, combined with skills acquired, can help make good decisions. That's the basic process of critical thinking. Critical thinkers can solve problems by keeping a clear mind and rational thoughts that will help you analyze a situation and make a sound decision. STEM teaching is the hands-on exploration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics concepts, and it's becoming an increasingly important part of modern-day education. STEM skills grant students the 21st-century abilities needed to perform a wide range of both essential and highly-skilled jobs.

Cybersecurity Lessons Named Best of STEM!

Check out our award-winning lessons developed to make it easy to teach cybersecurity principles to students.

Learn More

STEAM Learning Solutions

We offer coding robots and STEAM (STEM + Art) educational tools that transform the way kids and teens learn, create, and invent through coding, science, engineering, and the arts. Looking to inspire your whole class? Shop our education packs.

STEAM Activities & Resources

The Sphero ecosystem of tools and the Sphero Edu platform gives kids, teachers, and parents of all learning and coding abilities a blank canvas to solve challenges at home, in school, and beyond.

September 2022 marks one year of Sphero indi bringing play-based learning to the classroom for the earliest learners. A lot has happened during indi's first year-it was named one of TIME Magazine's Best Inventions of 2021 , made its way into thousands of Pre-K and elementary classrooms across the world, and filled our feed with kiddos having so much fun learning! We'd love to celebrate this milestone with all of you, so here's a free printable activity for indi's first birthday party!

Universal Design for Learning is a teaching framework developed by Massachusetts-based education nonprofit CAST that caters to all students regardless of their personality type or academic ability. Based on scientific insights into the learning process, UDL provides guidelines for all forms of learning, both inside and outside the classroom.

Inquiry-based learning is a method of learning where students are asked questions based on real-life experiences. By contextualizing the questions, students explore how they think, rather than simply being told what to think. At its core, inquiry-based learning encourages students to be more curious about their learning and to reflect deeply on how they arrive at conclusions.

Looking to Bring Sphero to your Classroom?

Our team of education experts is here to help. Contact us today and get a demo.

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STEM Kits & Robotics for Kids | Inspire STEM Education with Sphero

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Sphero makes remarkably cool, programmable robots and STEAM-based educational tools that transform the way kids learn, create and invent through coding, science, music, and the arts. Using information available, combined with skills acquired, can help make good decisions. That's the basic process of critical thinking.

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Through these devices, you can understand how external drives can work as a keyboard to control your computer.

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Learn how robots work using these cute little bots! Appropriate for all ages.

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Grab the New Cubelets TWELVE Pack! Cubelets® Robot Blocks are a fast and easy way to inspire kids to become better thinkers.

Initiate, Imagine, Inspire.

Inspire a love of learning through play. Cubelets® Robot Blocks make it fast and easy to engage children as young as four in learning by building robots. There's no wrong way to build with Cubelets, so it is remarkably easy to transform these blocks into brilliant bundles of robotic curiosity.

Ages 4+ / Free shipping in the USA

Making with Magnets.

You don't need to know how to code or wire to construct robots with Cubelets. Snap the robot blocks together and the magnetic faces do the rest. Every unique arrangement is a new robot with novel behaviors emerging from the construction. Invention made easy.

While you don't need to know how to code to play, you can code Cubelets to exhibit new behaviors using C.

Cubelets are robot blocks that easily connect to form robots that

inspire kids to become better thinkers. Press play to learn more!

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Builders rejoice! Cubelets Brick Adapters let you pair with Lego® and other brick-based constructions to add new levels of detail and artistry to your robots. Brick Adapters come in two different styles, "studs" and "sockets" so you can build in any direction.

LEGO® is a trademark of the LEGO Group of companies which does not sponsor, authorize or endorse this site.

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Ready to take your robots to the next level? Add a Bluetooth Cubelet to your construction to create responsive remote control robots or reprogram Cubelets to exhibit new behaviors.

Download the Cubelets App for iOS or Android to build with Bluetooth.

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It's never been easier to code your own Cubelets robot! Cubelets Blockly is the perfect platform to learn to program your own robots! This simple and powerful visual programming tool gives you full control over your Cubelets® robot blocks. Create countless new robots and behaviors with the power of code.

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Cubelets Twelve Kit
The Cubelets TWELVE kit contains these 12 Cubelets and is the best way to introduce robotics and programming to kids. Create thousands of thought-provoking robots that provide intuitions about the behavior of complex systems with Cubelets TWELVE!

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Start Your Collection With These Cubelets Essentials

Cubelets for Educators

Considering Cubelets for your classroom, maker space, museum, or camp? Explore our Education section for educator specific packs and pricing! In addition, you'll find over 40 hours of free standards-aligned curricula.

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Cubelets SIX Kit
The Cubelets Six kit contains these 6 Cubelets and is the best way to inspire a love of learning through robotics. With the Cubelets Six, you can create simple mobile and reactive Cubelet robots that provide intuitions about the behavior of complex systems.

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Ages 4+ / Free shipping in the USA

The Cubelets Twenty Kit has Cubelets Twenty Kit 20 blocks and contains an assortment of Sense, Action, and Think blocks. With it, you can experiment and create mobile robots and logic constructions.

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Cubelets F.A.Q.

What ages are Cubelets appropriate for? +

Cubelets are designed for kids age 4 and up. Adults often enjoy building with Cubelets as well.

Do you offer an educator's discount? +

Sorry, we don't offer an educational discount or discounts to any groups.

How do I start? +

Take a look at our Getting Started Guide.

Why isn't my robot driving? +

Do you have a Battery Cubelet on your robot? Every robot needs a Battery Cubelet to supply power. Is the Battery Cubelet turned on? Do you have a Drive Cubelet? A robot needs wheels to drive. If your robot has Battery and Drive Cubelets and is just sitting there, perhaps it needs a Sense Cubelet to provide some stimulus. Maybe your robot will drive according to light levels, or maybe you'll design it with Distance Cubelets so that it can follow or avoid things.

Are magnetic toys dangerous? +

Eating or inhaling tiny magnets can be fatal. In 2006 and 2007, the Consumer Products Safety Commission ordered a recall of millions of Mega Brands' Magnetix kits, finding that the little magnets were improperly attached and could fall out.

Modular Robotics is committed to making the safest magnetic toys ever produced, and we are working with the industry to set better guidelines for using magnets in toys and to improve testing criteria and oversight. The magnets inside of Cubelets are not just glued in, they are mechanically attached so that they cannot fall out. Cubelets contain magnets, batteries, and motors. They are only for children age 4 and up, and kids should always be supervised when playing with them.

Are your kits lead-free? +

Our kits contain no lead and are independently tested by Intertek, a nationally recognized testing laboratory. Our kits are compliant with US CPSIA and ASTM standards.

What should I do if one of my Cubelets is broken? +

Cubelets come with a one year warranty against design and manufacturing defects. If you have a broken Cubelet, send it back to us (you pay postage), we'll repair or replace it and send it back to you (we pay postage).

Contact

Cubelets and the Modular Robotics logo are trademarks of Modular Robotics Incorporated. Some of our technology is licensed from Carnegie Mellon University. Patents Pending, 2012.

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Grab the New Cubelets TWELVE Pack! Cubelets® Robot Blocks are a fast and easy way to inspire kids to become better thinkers. Initiate, Imagine, Inspire. Inspire a love of learning through play. Cubelets® Robot Blocks make it fast and easy to engage children as young as four in learning by building robots.

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These circuit boards are amazing for all ages. From block coding to learning how to write code, these microbits will blow your mind!

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This website offers numerous different types of academic journals for all ages. Great for research projects, or a place to grow your knowledge!

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This website offers resources for teaching and learning about orange shirt day which brings awareness to Indian Residential Schools, remembering that every child matters.

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Orange Shirt Day is held every September 30th. The Manitoba Teachers' Society - together with Manitoba's education partners and many Indigenous organizations - will be honouring residential school survivors. Read a book that talks about the first day of school such as Jessica by Kevin Henkes, Scaredy Squirrel by Melanie Watt or The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn.

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This is a must have website in the back of your pocket. Stay up to date with education news nation wide, as well as a ton of different resources.

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Publications Catalogue - Canadian Teachers' Federation

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Welcome to the Canadian Teachers' Federation (CTF) publications site. The CTF catalogue of publications covers a wide range of topics including diversity and human rights, francophone education in minority settings, mental health and social justice. Publications listed on this site are available for purchase.

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Toolkits that help individuals get started on their own reconciliation journey.

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Reconciliation is an ongoing journey, one that will take a collective effort to find a new way forward. We invite you to contribute to this important conversation and involve your social and professional circles, be it your family, friends, colleagues, neighbours or classmates.

The Community Action Toolkits are intended to provide you with some guidelines and ideas on how to start the reconciliation conversation.. Of course, every community and situation is different and we invite you, as the expert in your own community, to use these tools in a way that is appropriate, impactful and safe in your respective environments and situations.

We look forward to hearing and sharing positive stories from the community on taking reconciliation action.

Please note that although our small and humble team does not have the capacity to provide individual advice and consultation to all projects, we want to make this a positive experience for you! Therefore, the Reconciliation Canada team is continuously working to gather ideas for improvement and resources to add to this page, so be sure to check back regularly for updates and additional resources.

Kitchen Table Guide for Reconciliation Dialogue: For Individuals, Communities and Organizations

An opportunity to gather family, friends, neighbours, or colleagues to join the dialogue on reconciliation
Learn more →
Begin the Dialogue: Guide for Municipal or First Nation Governments

A local-government guide to assist in the first step towards reconciliation, intended to assist your collective in the internal exploration of the meaning and relevance of reconciliation in your community.
Learn more →
Young Leaders

A call-to-action for post-secondary students, student unions, associations and clubs.
Learn more →
Young Adult Voices

A 'how to' guide for senior high school students to action reconciliation within their schools, families and social networks.
Learn more →
Plan Your Own Event

Ideas, inspiration and tips for planning your own reconciliation event.
Learn more →

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Reconciliation is an ongoing journey, one that will take a collective effort to find a new way forward. We invite you to contribute to this important conversation and involve your social and professional circles, be it your family, friends, colleagues, neighbours or classmates. The Community Action Toolkits are intended to provide you with some guidelines [...]

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This website offers a resource for discussing identity, power and privilege in the classroom.

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Introduction What Is Social Justice? Communal Agreements Icebreaker: Respect Activity Activities: Introducing Identity: "My Fullest Name" Understanding Privilege and Systems of Power: "Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack" Gender and Sexuality Workshop: Creating Gender-Free Nouns Race and Ethnicity: Diversity Profile Intersection Identity and Privilege: Crossing the Line Recap and Closing Activity Closing and Recommended Resources
Introduction

This toolkit is meant for anyone who feels there is a lack of productive discourse around issues of diversity and the role of identity in social relationships, both on a micro (individual) and macro (communal) level. Perhaps you are a teacher, youth group facilitator, student affairs personnel or manage a team that works with an underserved population. Training of this kind can provide historical context about the politics of identity and the dynamics of power and privilege or help build greater self-awareness.

The following activities are intended for groups of 10 to 60 people. For larger groups, you can break into multiple sessions with additional facilitators to ensure the conversations and activities remain focused. The diversity toolkit outlined here may be used as a guideline and can be modified to better fit your group's unique needs.

A note on facilitators: Facilitators should be well versed in the topics and themes we will be discussing, but they do not need to be experts. This workshop is organized as a popular education activity where the majority of the outcomes are learned from the experiences and knowledge of the individuals participating rather than a teacher/student relationship.

Facilitator Sensitivity

Facilitators will be experiencing and addressing the feelings that come with confronting participants' notions of identity, privilege, race and sexuality. Some participants may be required to attend this workshop (through work or school, etc.), so facilitators should be clear that participants are there because these are issues that affect everyone and that there will not be personal judgment of anyone's feelings about a particular issue. Facilitators should remind participants that:

Facilitators should emphasize that what is shared during the workshop is private and confidential. Participants can talk about how the workshop affected them personally and what they learned generally, but they should respect the privacy of the personal information of the other participants.

What Is Social Justice? Setting a Stage for Discussion

Before beginning, it's important that everyone have a basic understanding of two core concepts related to privilege and identity. This will allow everyone to start the conversations on the same page and ensure that the participants have a foundation upon which to build future knowledge.

The first core concept is culture, which is:

The second core concept is identity, which is:

Everyone Has Many Identities

Age, gender, religious or spiritual affiliation, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity and socioeconomic status are all identities. Some identities are things people can see easily (like race or assumed gender), while other identities are internalized and are not always easy to see (like a disability, socioeconomic status or education level). There are two types of identities that need to be defined in order to spark a discussion on social justice. The first type deals with identities that are part of a majority status - or "agent" - while the second includes identities that are part of the minority status - or "target."

Agent: Members of dominant social groups privileged by birth or acquisition who knowingly or unknowingly exploit and reap unfair advantage over members of the target groups.

Target: Members of social identity groups who are discriminated against, marginalized, disenfranchised, oppressed, exploited by an oppressor and oppressor's system of institutions without identity apart from the target group, and compartmentalized in defined roles.

After participants understand the difference between agent and target groups, the facilitator can begin a discussion on oppression. The key features of oppression are:

But remember:

When the facilitator talks about these concepts with the group, it is helpful to start with an understanding that everyone experienced being a target or agent at some point in their lives. This helps create a dialogue of understanding. This is not to say that some target statuses are more salient (for example, people can see I am a woman, or a Black woman, before they even speak with me) and others may be easier to conceal (for example, if I am lesbian). But each creates a burden on the individual and each has its own set of challenges to overcome.

Communal Agreements

Before initiating any activity, it is critical that the group builds communal agreements. Rather than naming these "rules" that are then placed upon the group, we will call these "agreements" because these are the guidelines built by the group that all members agree to follow during the course of the workshop. Once an agreement has been put forward, the facilitator should then ask for a definition of what that agreement means to ensure that there is a communal language. Below are several suggested agreements.

Icebreaker: Respect Activity

Source: Critical Multicultural Pavilion

Ask participants to find someone in the room they don't know and make an introduction. Talk for five to 10 minutes about respect. What does it mean to you to "show respect?" How do you show respect to others? After the allotted time, ask all participants to sit and open the discussion. How did people define respect? What were some of the core concepts discussed?

Common responses will likely include:

All responses are worthy of reflection in terms of their cultural and hegemonic influences. Ask participants where their ideas of respect come from and whom they are meant to protect. If the group raises any of the common responses above, challenge them to answer the following questions:

The point of the discussion is to reflect critically on assumptions and socializations regarding respect. The point is not to agree and to learn from each other's differences.

This activity helps to establish a basis of respect within the group, helping the participants take the first steps toward creating and maintaining a constructive discussion of social justice and equity. At the very least, participants meet someone new and exchange ideas with that person. The group also gets its first look at the similarities and differences between participants, potentially in ways that reflect privilege and power.

Activity One: Introduction Identity

Definition
Everyone has a personal and social identity. Personal identities include an individual's name, unique characteristics, history, personality and other traits that make one different from others. Social identity includes affinities one has with other people, values and norms that one accepts, and the ways one has learned to behave in social settings.

Objective
The following activity is particularly useful when working with participants who don't know one another very well. The goal of this activity is to warm up participants to sharing about themselves and start revealing a bit about each participant's background.

Materials
Markers and 8-by-10-inch sheets of paper folded horizontally.

Instructions
Write out your fullest name and tell your story. On the back of the piece of paper write the top three identities you feel closest to. The facilitator encourages participants to go around the circle to share any meanings, significance, culture, significant ancestors and the top three identities they hold dearest. Everyone will have a chance to share and be heard by the group.

Suggested questions if participants need help getting started:

Facilitators should encourage students to be creative. Make it clear that it is acceptable to write poetry, list adjectives that describe them, include humor, etc.

If your group is large, break into diverse small groups of five or six to make sure everyone has an opportunity to share their story. Ask for volunteers to get the group started and tell participants they can share their stories from memory, or read them.
Facilitator Notes

Discussion
When everyone has shared, ask participants how it felt to share their stories. Why is this activity important? What did you learn?

Activity Two: Understanding Privilege and Systems of Power

Activity
"Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack"

Objective
The objective of this activity is to confront entrenched systems of power and privilege, and identify common situations when privilege is not acknowledged, to the detriment of the disadvantaged and oppressed.

Discussion
What is privilege? We all have privileges. What are yours? Were you surprised by any of the privileges you found in your invisible knapsack?

Activity Three: Gender and Sexuality

Group Definition
Have the group describe what they believe to be the definition of the terms "gender" and "sexuality."

Objective
The objective of this activity is to reconsider male-gendered nouns that we consider "generic." Generating gender-free nouns and pronouns will help participants incorporate more inclusive language in their daily speech and writing.

Instructions
Break participants into small groups and give them a printout of the chart below. Instruct participants to convert the suffixes of the nouns into gender-free, inclusive terms by changing the noun root word or substituting a non-gender-specific root word from another language. Tell participants that since male endings are so pervasive, it is OK to invent new words by replacing the endings of existing words with something non-gendered.

Discussion Questions
The facilitator should ask the following questions of the group while also encouraging them to share personal experiences that speak to their point. What are characteristics of what society believes a [woman/man/girl/boy] should be? What are the norms for appearance/behavior? What happens when someone falls outside of this norm? How do the words we use influence the way we think about certain professions?

Activity Four: Race and Ethnicity

Definition
Race is a social construction that has real consequences and effects. Race is colloquially used to refer to a person's skin color, religion or area of origin (e.g., Black, Jewish or African). Technically, however, race is based on national origin, sociocultural groups and self-identification. The U.S. government, including the Census Bureau and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, does not attempt to identify race according to biology, anthropology or genetics. Religious belief is not considered a race, but can be a factor in identifying one's sociocultural group. (For a full explanation of how each racial category is defined, refer to the U.S. Census About Race page). In a historical context, race has played a large part in how our society has evolved, and it shapes the way we see others and how we experience our lives. (For more on race from a historical perspective, read " A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America," by Ronald Takaki.)

Objective
The objective of this activity is to help participants take stock of the multicultural diversity in their lives. It should help participants get a clear image of how diverse or homogenous their surroundings are and identify ways to improve their exposure to multiculturalism on a daily basis.

Instructions
Fill in the appropriate boxes:

Activity Five: Intersectional Identity and Privilege

Activity
Crossing The Line

Objective
The purpose of this activity is to explore the diversity among the members of our community. How a person identifies can affect many facets of his or her life. We will use this activity to get to know one another on a deeper level. What are our values, backgrounds, and visible and invisible labels? This activity requires everyone to step outside of his or her comfort zone. Participants being vulnerable can help the group learn more about the identities they do not share.

Instructions
Have all participants line up in a straight line facing the facilitator. If the room is too small to have each participant standing shoulder to shoulder, an alternative is to have the group stand in a circle and step into the circle. The facilitator should explain that they will read a statement. If the statement describes you, then silently step across the line. Everyone should quietly notice who stepped across the line and who did not. After a moment, the facilitator will thank those who stepped forward and will then have everyone step back in line.

Discussion
Activity Six: Recap and Closing Activity

This toolkit was designed to address human issues that everyone faces and help participants recognize how they can better understand and work toward solving, or at least improving, these issues. Participants were often forced to confront socialized and entrenched notions of privilege, identity and social justice. Anything that was difficult to confront during the training will be even more difficult to confront in practice, but if these were easily solvable issues, they wouldn't be issues for long. Participants should feel better equipped with newfound knowledge and empathy, and prepared to apply the lessons they learned in their own lives and communities.

Objective
To practice giving positive feedback and to have participants leave the workshop feeling energized.

Instructions
Have participants mingle randomly in a large group and then instruct them to stop and share with the person in front of them one way in which that person "shined" during the workshop. Repeat several times so that each person gets feedback and support from different people in the group. If there are an odd number of participants, the facilitator should address the odd person out each time.

Completing this training is not the end, but merely the beginning. Hopefully, this toolkit has helped to create new understanding among your participants. Individuals should have learned about their own identity and of those around them, as well as the implications of socially constructed labels and stereotypes of an individual's experience. Those interested in this type of work may be interested in a career in social work, facilitation, advocacy or sociology. At the end of the training, facilitators should be prepared to provide additional resources for participants who want to learn more about issues of identity, power and privilege. Below we cite several resources to help you get started.

Recommended Resources

Resources for Additional Activities

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Citation for this content: The MSW@USC, the online Master of Social Work program at the University of Southern California.

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Diversity Toolkit: A Guide to Discussing Identity, Power and Privilege

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This training is meant for anyone who feels there is a lack of productive discourse around issues of diversity and the role of identity in social relationships, both on a micro (individual) and macro (communal) level.

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Peter is an education professor who has created a webpage all about differentiated math lessons!

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Peter Liljedahl, PhD Professor Faculty of Education Simon Fraser University 8888 University Drive Burnaby, BC, V5A 1S6, Canada Voice: +778-782-3188 Email: liljedahl@sfu.ca

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This website provides different strategies for engaging your students.

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Most teachers I know care deeply about helping their students succeed at school, and if you are reading this article, you are undoubtedly one of them. Yet, research has revealed some teaching strategies have far more impact than others. These are evidence-based teaching strategies. Busy teachers have so many demands on their time that it is hard to keep abreast of what the research really says - especially amidst the noise of trendy fads.

That's where I can help. I am a passionate teacher who recently had both my legs amputated. This gives me time to read the research and share my findings with teachers like you.

If you want to make a larger difference in how well your students do, then learn about these 10 evidence-based teaching strategies. Some of them may surprise you!

Evidence-Based Teaching Strategy 1: A Clear Focus

A clear focus enables you to focus everything you do and everything you get your students to do on achieving this intended learning. In turn, this has a sizeable impact ( d = 0.75) ¹ on your students' learning.

Note, the impact of a clear focus relies on you adjusting your teaching and learning activities in line with that focus. It doesn't come from fancy names such as learning intentions or learning targets. You can call them goals, intentions, objectives or anything else - it doesn't matter.

Teaching Strategy 2: Pretesting

The term 'testing' tends to get a bad rap in teaching circles. Yet, when viewed more broadly, it actually a potent teaching strategy that underpins x strategies in this list. Pretesting is the first of these.

Teaching Strategy 3: Show & Tell

I call the second evidence-based teaching strategy show and tell, although the research refers to be various other names. It is grounded in the idea that novice learners learn best with explicit instruction ² and represents the I Do phase of the I Do - We Do - You Do model. instruction should make use of:

The nature of show and tell varies slightly between procedural and conceptual knowledge.

Procedural Show & Tell

With procedural learning, show and tell involves:

Modelling often involves working an example, which has a moderate-to-large impact on students learning ⁴.

When worked examples are coupled with verbal explanations of the steps or actions needed, they have even more impact ⁵.

Conceptual Show & Tell

With conceptual learning, show and tell involves:

Visuals may include text, but they are not text-based. Research on the modality and multimedia effects 3 show that combining meaningful visuals with verbal explanations enhances learning.

However, visuals must be used carefully. See The Use of Visuals article.

Checking for Understanding

Models of explicit instruction, such as the I Do - We Do - You Do framework, advise that you should check for understanding before moving on from this stage.

Strategy 4: Integrate Prior Understandings

Pretesting is a powerful way to activate prior understandings. Yet, activating prior understandings is only the first step. You also need to prompt your students to integrate the new information with what they already understood, with questions such as, how does/is this new information:

Relationships could be sequential, hierarchical, cause-effect or comparative. You can ask your students to show these relationships using some form of a graphic organiser:

And, the impact is even larger in mathematics when integrating prior understandings is coupled with worked examples.

Strategy 5: Retrieval Practice

Research shows that retrieving information from memory is a powerful way to learn. In psychology, we refer to this as the testing effect.

In fact, students who practise retrieving information from memory do far better than students who spend an equivalent amount of time restudying.

You can also ask students to practise using a mixture of the above methods.

Strategy 6: Feedback

Feedback is the breakfast of champions, and it is the breakfast served by extraordinary teachers around the world.

Giving feedback involves telling a student:

Feedback is different to praise. Praise focuses on the student, while feedback focuses on what your student did. It provides your students with a tangible understanding of:

In John Hattie's view, any teachers who seriously want to boost their children's results should start by giving them dollops and dollops of feedback.

If you want to learn more about giving feedback, subscribe to our email list. You will then receive a free copy of our eBook How to Give Feedback to Students: The Advanced Guide. You should also check out our student feedback infographic.

Teaching Strategy 7: Spaced Practice

We know that retrieval practice works well, that it works better than restudying material, and that it gas even more impact when accompanied by feedback.

Yet, research shows that students learn more when they practice the same thing repeatedly with spaces in between than they do when they study the same thing intensely for a block of time.

For more details see Distributed vs Massed Practice.

Teaching Strategy 8: Productive Group Work

Group work can have a potent and positive impact on your students' learning.

Yet, group work done at the wrong time or in the wrong way can backfire. Kids can muck around and leave one or 2 group members to do the work. So, follow these tips:

1. Don't use group work as teaching strategy until your class is routinely behaving well as a whole class

2. When you first use group work, make the task easy enough that students won't need help. Then spend your time watching all the groups, offering praise and positive correction when appropriate.

3. Only use group work once all indivdual students have a basic mastery of the task

4. Choose tasks that have a small number of discrete steps

5. Make group sizes equivalent to the number of steps in the class

6. Have each student complete one step, then rotate roles with repeat tasks

7. Hold groups accountable for their behaviour, effort and results

SHAUN KILLIAN
(MEd., MLead.)

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10 Evidence-Based Teaching Strategies for 2023

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Some teaching strategies have more impact on your students' results than others. Discover this core list of 10 evidence-based teaching strat ..

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On this website you will find 56 different ways to gather evidence of student achievement.

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This resource offers 15 different ways to assess your students!

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Assessment activities should be quick, enjoyable, and versatile. That's because formative assessment is best when it's ongoing and consistent. Teachers use it in their classrooms to provide critical feedback to students. It helps them to monitor and modify their instruction methods and lesson plans to improve learning outcomes. That's why we must use a variety of assessment activities and change them up frequently to stimulate both students and themselves.

Here's a list of awesome formative assessment activities that we like. They're creative, low-tech, fun and engaging for students. Best of all, they're easy for a teacher to implement on an ongoing basis anytime.

15 Formative Assessment Activities You'll Love Using

Formative assessment is an assessment that's both for learning and as learning. This continual cycle of feedback and improvement makes learning useful and effective. Try these assessment activities with your students and see the results for yourself.

1. Peer Quizzes: Students can write their own questions about the content and then quiz each other. They would also spend time going through the incorrect answers with each other to heighten their understanding.

2. 5x5 Journal: Journalling has been proven to be one of the best reflection tools around for learning. Have students journal about the five most interesting ideas they discover during a lesson. Next, they identify five things that resonate with them about each one and explain why.

3. Past Postcards: Have students adopt the personality of a historical figure and write a postcard to another historical figure from the same era. They can discuss a significant event from history that has just occurred.

4. Cool Collages: Ask students to make a collage or poster from magazine photos for demonstrating their understanding of a concept. They can use standard art materials or use apps designed for drawing.

5. Talk it Out: Students can host their own talk show and discuss the important points of any lesson. They write their own questions and answers, and can even play characters of their own creation.

6. Daring Doodles: Challenge students to use a drawing rather than words to show understanding of a concept. This is the perfect exercise for those kids who have difficulty speaking out in class.

7. Exploration Table: At the end of class, each student answers the following questions presented to them on index cards:

What did we do in class?

Why did we do it?

What did I learn today?

How can I apply it?

What questions do I have about it?

8. 3-2-1: Have students write or talk about 3 things they learned, 2 things they still want to learn, and 1 question they have. These values are interchangeable and can be used in different combinations, or with different questions altogether.

9. Four Corners: This is a great way to encourage dynamic movement while learning multiple-choice questions. Designate each corner of the classroom to represent A, B, C, and D. Students go to the corner that they believe corresponds with the correct answer.

10. Traffic Cards: Students create index cards with a large green marker circle on one side and red on the other. If they are following along and understanding the lesson, the green side of their card is upright and visible to you. When they do not understand something and need clarification, they flip the card to show you the red side. Here is an alternative method that can be downloaded for free and printed on coloured card stock for quick use.

11. Twitter Board: Students summarize what was learned in a lesson using 140 characters. Pin small strips of paper to a poster or cork board to resemble a Twitter feed.

12. Top Ten Lists: Students can write out their ten most important takeaways from a lesson plan or a class discussion. Encourage them to create lists that are humourous and fun.

13. Roll the Dice: Put a die at each desk. At the end of class, each student rolls and briefly answers aloud a question based on the number rolled:

1. I want to remember ...

2. Something I learned today

3. One word to sum up what I learned

4. Something I already knew

5. I'm still confused about ...

6. An "aha" moment that I had today

14. Enthusiasm Example Chart: Here's a great chart for not only collecting feedback but also introducing scatter plots to students. Students rank what they learned that day and how much they enjoyed the lessons. They then elaborate on a Post-It, offering details about what they found helpful to them in having a successful learning day. They can also share what prevented them from having a fulfilling day. Compile the data and discuss it in class the next day.

15. Quick Quotables: Have students create two columns on a piece of paper. On one side have them write 5 or 6 of their most favourite quotes from people they admire. In the adjoining column, have them write their own interpretation of the what the quote means to them and why it appeals to them. If they're feeling good about it, have them consider what makes a great quote as they write their own about ideas that are important to them.

Assessment Activities in Your Pocket

Hopefully, these formative assessment activities have inspired you to devise your own engaging assessment tools. You'll find all these activities and many, many more in our latest resource . This new guide features over 70 quick assessment activities for using in your classrooms. It's a veritable Swiss army knife of the best and most popular formative assessment tools in classrooms today.

Additional Reading

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15 Assessment Activities That Are Fast, Fun, and Formative

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Assessment activities should be quick, enjoyable, and versatile. That's because formative assessment is best when it's ongoing and consistent. Teachers use it in their classrooms to provide critical feedback to students. It helps them to monitor and modify their instruction methods and lesson plans to improve learning outcomes.

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This online resource provides educators with resources to teach about Indian Residential Schools and reconciliation.

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This guide showcases tons of different children's books to incorporate into different lessons.

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This blog is an amazing resource for teachers written by teachers. Multiple posts on relationships, social justice and teaching for the child.

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You have reached the meat (or hummus, if you'd rather) inside the sandwich that is Cult of Pedagogy. This is where most of this site's accumulated wisdom lives.

To help you find what you need, I've chunked all the posts into three big buckets. Start there, or scroll down to see an index of topics. If you want to get more specific, use the search bar at the top of this page. Still can't find what you're looking for? Contact our support staff. If they can't help you find it, they'll add your topic to our list of future blog posts.

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You have reached the meat (or hummus, if you'd rather) inside the sandwich that is Cult of Pedagogy. This is where most of this site's accumulated wisdom lives. To help you find what you need, I've chunked all the posts into three big buckets. Start there, or scroll down to see an index of topics.

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Provided by the Cult of Pedagogy, this resource guide is a wonderful starting point for creating your must-read list.

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Every book I feature on this site has been read and carefully reviewed, and I highly recommend each one. If I don't like a book or think it will be useful to teachers, I just won't review it. If you click on the "Buy Now" affiliate link, you will be taken to that book's Amazon order page (for most titles), where you can order the book and I will get a very small commission for letting you know about it - thank you!!

Teaching College: The Ultimate Guide to Lecturing, Presenting, and Engaging Students (2017)
by Norman Eng
Read the Review Buy Now
Good Thinking: Teaching Argument, Persuasion, and Reasoning (2016)
by Erik Palmer
Read the Review Buy Now
The Classroom Chef: Sharpen Your Lessons, Season Your Classes, Make Math Meaningful (2016)
by John Stevens & Matt Vaudrey
Read the Review Buy Now
Pushout: The Criminalization of Black Girls in Schools (2016)
by Monique Morris
Read the Review Buy Now
Visible Learning for Teachers: Maximizing Impact on Learning (2011)
by John Hattie
Read the Review Buy Now
The Gift of Failure: How the Best Parents Learn to Let Go So Their Children Can Succeed (2015)
by Jessica Lahey
Read the Review Buy Now
Focus: Elevating the Essentials to Radically Improve Student Learning (2011)
by Mike Schmoker
Read the Review Buy Now
Hacking Education: 10 Quick Fixes for Every School (2015)
by Mark Barnes and Jennifer Gonzalez
Read the Review Buy Now
Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning (2014)
by Peter Brown, Henry Roediger, and Mark McDaniel
Read the Review Buy Now Read the Review Buy Now Read the Review Buy Now

Unshakeable: 20 Ways to Enjoy Teaching Every Day...No Matter What (2015)
by Angela Watson

The Teacher's Guide to Tech: A Cult of Pedagogy Digital Binder (2015)
by Jennifer Gonzalez

Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain: Promoting Authentic Engagement and Rigor Among Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students (2014)
by Zaretta Hammond

Read the Review
Buy Now

A Non-Freaked Out Guide to Teaching the Common Core: Using the 32 Literacy Anchor Standards to Develop College- and Career-Ready Students (2014)
by Dave Stuart, Jr.

Read the Review
Buy Now

You've Gotta Connect: Building Relationships that Lead to Engaged Students, Productive Classrooms, and Higher Achievement (2014)
by James Sturtevant
Read the Review Buy Now Read the Review Buy Now See Our Book Study of this Title Buy Now See Our Book Study of this Title Buy Now Strategies I've Explored from This Book Buy Now Read the Review Buy Now Read the Review Buy Now
Read the Review
Buy Now

Teach, Breathe, Learn: Mindfulness in and out of the Classroom (2014)
by Meena Srinivasan
Read the Review Buy Now
Awakened: Change Your Mindset to Transform Your Teaching (2011)
by Angela Watson

Teaching Digital Natives: Partnering for Real Learning (2010)
by Marc Prensky
Read the Review Buy Now Read the Review Buy Now
Understanding by Design (2005)
by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe

The Strategic Teacher (2007)
by Harvey Silver, Richard Strong, and Matthew Perini

This Is Not a Test: A New Narrative on Race, Class and Education (2014)
by José Vilson

The Reason I Jump: The Inner Voice of a Thirteen-Year-Old Boy with Autism (2013)
by Naoki Higashida

Start Where You Are, But Don't Stay There: Understanding Diversity, Opportunity Gaps, and Teaching in Today's Classrooms (2010)
by H. Richard Milner IV

Read the Review
Buy Now

Reign of Error: The Hoax of the Privatization Movement and the Danger to America's Public Schools (2013)
by Diane Ravitch

The Best-Kept Teaching Secret: How Written Conversations Engage Kids, Activate Learning, and Grow Fluent Writers, K-12 (2013)
by Harvey "Smokey" Daniels and Elaine Daniels

Read the Review
Buy Now

Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery (2008, 2011)
by Garr Reynolds

How to Talk So Kids Can Learn: At Home and in School (1996)
by Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Every book I feature on this site has been read and carefully reviewed, and I highly recommend each one. If I don't like a book or think it will be useful to teachers, I just won't review it. If you click on the "Buy Now" affiliate link, you will be taken to that book's Amazon order page ...

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This is a free amazing PDF resource that links specific grades with different social issues. Must read!

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This is an hour of code resource, however DTT has many resources for teachers to engage students in the classroom.

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This post is written by Karly Moura, a teacher on special assignment (TOSA) and computer science teacher in Mount Diablo USD in Concord, California. You can follow her on Twitter or follow her blog at karlymoura.blogspot.com.

You don't have to be an expert programmer yourself to get your students started coding in the classroom and the Hour of Code is a great place to start. With the incredible amount of resources available to educators, you can learn to program along WITH your students.

The Hour of Code is celebrated the first week of December with over 180 countries participating around the world. You can get your students in on the action no matter what grade level or subject area you teach.

Below you will find 20 ways to get your class coding before, during, or even after the Hour of Code.

Hour of Code activities and tutorials

Only have 60 minutes to host your Hour of Code? Or maybe you want to try a short tutorial out with your students before jumping in further. These activities will take approximately an hour for your students to complete. Many are available in multiple languages and teacher's guides are provided. In addition to the ones I have highlighted below, you can find many, many more at Hourofcode.com/us/learn.

1. Dance Party- This year code.org has teamed up with musicians like Ed Sheeran, Imagine Dragons, J Balvin and Willy William, Justin Bieber, Katy Perry, Keith Urban, Lady Antebellum and more for a dance party coding activity that students will flip for.

2. Minecraft tutorials- Each year code.org offers Minecraft lovers everywhere the chance to combine their coding skills with familiar characters from Minecraft. Students can complete the newest tutorial and can try out past year's activities too.

3. Lightbot- ANY age, pre-reader+ can experience the Hour of Code with Lightbot. Lightbot uses programming logic to solve fun puzzles. Students will learn how to sequence instructions, write procedures, and utilize loops along the way.

4. Intro to App Lab- With this tutorial aimed at 13+ students can create their own app in JavaScript using block-based programming. Have advanced coders? They can level up with text-based programming.

5. Animate your name in Scratch- Scratch is a free, block-based programming language created by the Lifelong Kindergarten group at MIT. In this tutorial, students can animate the letters of their name, initials, or a favorite word.

6. Coding Mathematics models- Students in grades 6+ learn to code different mathematical models in Python (a text-based programming language) with Tracy the Turtle. Although no prior coding experience is necessary, they recommend that students participating in the activity have completed Algebra I or higher.

No computers? No problem! Unplugged coding ideas.

It may surprise you and your students to know that you don't need a computer to celebrate the Hour of Code! There are tons of activities available for students of all ages.

7. Hello Ruby- The Hello Ruby picture book series is one of the most brilliant ways to teach programming to young learners. Each book contains a beautiful story that introduces readers the fundamentals of computer science along with an activity book for young programmers. Check out helloruby.com for free lesson plans and links for ordering the books.

8. Dance party unplugged- The same awesome dance party activity that was mentioned above can be done without a computer! Students can learn coding concepts to choreograph a dance party together using events to respond to a user using a controller.

9. My robotic friends- In this fun, unplugged activity students will figure out how to guide each other to accomplish specific tasks without discussing them first. This traveling circuits activity teaches students the basics of coding as well as the extremely valuable skill of debugging.

10. Printable coding cards- Printable coding cards can be used with students for a hands-on, offline coding experience. Coding cards from Tickle App, Scratch Jr or Scratch can be used with online coding activities, unplugged lessons or even with robots!

Going beyond an hour of code

If you have more than an hour to devote to Computer Science education week or want your students to have the opportunity to go beyond the Hour of Code then these resources are the perfect addition.

If you want to use the choice boards or HyperDocs with your class just go to File > Make a copy! (But please, please, please ... don't request access. Just make your own copy. Thanks!)

11. Choice boards- A choice board is a great option if you have a lot of classes participating in the Hour of Code or if you want to give your students the option of choosing their activity. Feel free to adapt this HOC choice board for K-5 or this HOC choice board for 6+ to meet the needs of your students.

12. Hour of Code HyperDoc for K-2- This mini-unit can be done as a whole class or students can complete the activities in pairs or individually depending on their age and/or coding experience. This Introduction to Coding and the Hour of Code HyperDoc is meant to be assigned as "view only", students will use the links provided to complete activities.

13. Hour of Code HyperDoc for 3+- This version of the Introduction to Coding and Hour of Code HyperDoc is more interactive and self-paced for older students. Students will learn about the basics of computer programming and block coding languages prior to trying out an hour of code activity.

14. How Computers Work- Computer science is about more than just coding. In this mini unit, geared toward grades 5-8, students will explore what makes a computer a computer, binary, circuits, logic and more. Lisa Guardino and I created this HyperDoc to introduce students to how computers work. This mini unit includes a NEW BreakoutEDU digital, a show what you know choice board, and fun challenges to get kids thinking.

15. BreakoutEDU digital- Add an extra challenge to your Hour of Code celebration with a computer science themed BreakoutEDU digital. These virtual escape rooms are meant to be challenging so students will need an extra dose of growth mindset and resiliency as they tackle these breakouts. The Ransomware and Robot breakouts were created by Stephanie Allen, an adjunct professor of computer science Portland Community College.

16. Flipgrid Explorer Series: Code- Last year the Flipgrid team hosted a two-week series that gave students an opportunity to connect with the developers who work behind the scenes to create the platform. This year they are back with another engaging series that will engage your students in designing and developing their own projects Stay on the lookout and check blog.flipgrid.com/news/explorer for the start of this series happening in the beginning of December.

Celebrating the Hour of Code with physical computing and robots

Got robots or physical computing devices like MaKey MaKey or Micro:bit? Even if you only have one or two robots or devices these activities work great as a station and most of these tutorials can be completed with or without the robot or device. Check out hourofcode.com/us/learn/robotics for more.

17. Ozobots- With this tiny little robot students in pre-k and up can practice coding using markers or the Ozoblockly editor. Ozobot has 19 different Hour of Code tutorials ranging from beginner to comfortable, no screen to tablets or computers, and even tutorials that don't require an Ozobot at all!

18. MaKey MaKey- Marketed as an "invention kit for everyone" Makey Makey turns everyday objects into a touchpad or keyboard. Let your students explore the world of circuits and electricity with MaKey MaKey as they complete the Hour of Code through this HyperDoc remixed by Owen Peery.

19. Micro:bits- These pocket-sized computers cost around $24 and can be programmed using Blocks, JavaScript, and Python. In this Hour of Code project, suggested for grades 6+, students create pictures or animations that will appear on the micro:bit display when the buttons are pressed. If you have micro:bits and younger students that are eager to try the new Beta version of Scratch 3.0 then the Scratch 3.0 activity cards for micro:bit are the perfect place to begin. Students can code using the MakeCode editor with or without a micro:bit on Chromebooks, PCs, Macs, Linux systems (including Raspberry Pi). Also check out Brian Aspinall's Hour of Curiosity site with a whole page dedicated to Micro:bit tutorials and activities.

20. RoboBlockly- Created at the UC Davis C-STEM center, RoboBlockly prepares students to program in C/C++. Based on Google's Blockly programming language, RoboBlockly allows you to control Linkbots and Lego Mindstorms NXT/EV3 as well as to draw and animate for beginners to learn robotics. These Hour of Code activities are suitable for a range of skill levels and can be completed with or without the robots.

Bonus! Check out this Wakelet collection that includes ALL of the links from this post. I will likely add to it in the coming weeks as more resources are shared during CS education week. This collection can be shared directly through Facebook, Twitter, and Google Classroom or you can even make a copy to edit and add your own resources!

Ready to move beyond the Hour of Code?

If you are ready to begin teaching computer science in your classroom but aren't sure where to start or just want more resources then stay tuned for a guest post by Owen Peery during Computer Science Education Week on the Ditch That Textbook blog!

Related posts:
For notifications of new Ditch That Textbook content and helpful links: Interested in having Matt present at your event or school? Contact him by e-mail! Matt is scheduled to present at the following upcoming events:

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20 ways to celebrate the Hour of Code in ANY class

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This post is written by Karly Moura, a teacher on special assignment (TOSA) and computer science teacher in Mount Diablo USD in Concord, California. You can follow her on Twitter or follow her blog at karlymoura.blogspot.com.

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This resource provides elements that incorporate different languages into your lesson.

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K-12 Online Language Learning | Rosetta Stone

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Rosetta Stone online language learning for education complements classroom instruction in both English and world languages. Learn about customer successes.

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Do's and Don'ts for teaching ESL Learners 

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Do's and Don'ts for teaching ESL Learners 

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Edutopia is a free source of information, inspiration, and practical strategies for learning and teaching in preK-12 education. We are published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization.

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Classroom Management Tools & Resources - Google for Education

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Get started with Google Classroom, a central hub for tools and resources designed to help educators manage classrooms and enrich learning experiences.

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@kellywchris A2. Today's classrooms are quite diverse with learners with different strengths and needs hence need for responsive strategies to enhance learning outcomes. ('As classrooms become more diverse, @UPEI rethinks the way it teaches' @UPEI_Education https://t.co/KYqW71J5Kj #saskedchat

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@kellywchris A2. Today's classrooms are quite diverse with learners with different strengths and needs hence need for responsive strategies to enhance learning outcomes. ('As classrooms become more diverse, @UPEI rethinks the way it teaches' @UPEI_Education https://t.co/KYqW71J5Kj #saskedchat https://t.co/K9fSmRWgLd

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Q2. Why is it essential to Differentiate Learning for students in today's classrooms? #saskedchat https://t.co/hwuEc7bkAZ

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A2. Today's classrooms are quite diverse with learners with different strengths and needs hence need for responsive strategies to enhance learning outcomes. ('As classrooms become more diverse, @UPEI rethinks the way it teaches' @UPEI_Education https://t.co/KYqW71J5Kj #saskedchat pic.twitter.com/K9fSmRWgLd
— James Oloo (@JamesAlanOLOO) November 30, 2018

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@kellywchris A2. Today's classrooms are quite diverse with learners with different strengths and needs hence need for responsive strategies to enhance learning outcomes. ('As classrooms become more diverse, @UPEI rethinks the way it teaches' @UPEI_Education https://t.co/KYqW71J5Kj #saskedchat https://t.co/K9fSmRWgLd

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@kellywchris A2. Today's classrooms are quite diverse with learners with different strengths and needs hence need for responsive strategies to enhance learning outcomes. ('As classrooms become more diverse, @UPEI rethinks the way it teaches' @UPEI_Education https://t.co/KYqW71J5Kj #saskedchat https://t.co/K9fSmRWgLd

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@kellywchris A2. Today's classrooms are quite diverse with learners with different strengths and needs hence need for responsive strategies to enhance learning outcomes. ('As classrooms become more diverse, @UPEI rethinks the way it teaches' @UPEI_Education https://t.co/KYqW71J5Kj #saskedchat

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DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE COPY OF Shattering the Silence: The Hidden History of Indian Residential Schools in Saskatchewan

A project of heart Saskatchewan ebook resource for educators

Title: Shattering the Silence: The Hidden History of Indian Residential Schools in Saskatchewan
Commissioned Author: Shuana Niessen
Publisher: Faculty of Education, University of Regina
Regina, Saskatchewan
110 pages
July 2017
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

To keep your place in the ebook while exploring links, download and save the file to your computer before clicking links.

Warning! This book contains disturbing elements that are not suitable for some audiences. Topics that are covered may cause trauma invoked by memories of past abuse. Those eligible for Indian Residential School Health support who are in need of emotional and crisis support, please contact Indian Residential Schools Resolution Health Support Program 24-hour crisis line: 1-866-925-4419

Click on the cover image to download the .pdf version to your computer or ipad/iphone

Flash version for PCs. To turn page, place Cursor on corner,
click and drag page over or click on the bottom corner of the page
Click here to view full size

If the flash version does not automatically load to your browser, the ebook may be viewed in Explorer or Irfanview.

For areas with unstable internet connection, a low-resolution file can be downloaded by clicking here

Tweets:

Great resource on IRS in Sask that includes curriculum connections. https://t.co/Oy44Mte35J

- STF Library (@STFLibrary) August 27, 2017

"Shattering the Silence" a superb new IRS teaching resource by @URFacofEd and POH Saskatchewan https://t.co/S2TKOWhfrg

- Project of Heart (@projectofheart) August 24, 2017

"Shattering the Silence": University of Regina and POH Saskatchewan's superb new resource https://t.co/rZIiKOn9eG via @NationTalk

- URFacultyofEducation (@URFacofEd) September 8, 2017

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DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE COPY OF Shattering the Silence: The Hidden History of Indian Residential Schools in Saskatchewan A project of heart Saskatchewan ebook resource for educators Title: Shattering the Silence: The Hidden History of Indian Residential Schools in Saskatchewan Commissioned Author: Shuana Niessen Publisher: Faculty of Education, University of Regina Regina, Saskatchewan 110 pages July 2017 Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

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A steadily growing initiative can be observed taking root in public spaces across Canada since the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) issued its report in 2015. It's a collection of local campaigns that seek to address the way Canadians think about their collective history in the light of what we now understand to be a century-long attempt by Canada to carry out cultural genocide on Indigenous peoples; this period is now known as the Indian Residential School (IRS) era. Continue reading The reconciliation plaques of Beechwood Cemetery

It is said that good things come in threes but sometimes twos are even better. This week a pair of powerful teacher reports reached us through the EdCan network, both from Stavely Elementary School in Southern Alberta, on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy.

The first is from teacher Julaine Guitton, and her intro sets the stage for what was about to happen in her classroom:

On the morning of September 30, 2016 I wore an orange shirt to school. I had received an e-mail about Orange Shirt Day, including a short video, and I decided to wear orange and talk to my students about residential schools and reconciliation during our Social Studies time. I showed them the video, and the looks on their faces told me that they had questions. They asked me things like, "Is this for real?" and "Did this really happen in Canada?" ..

Click on her reflection below to see what happened next!

Our Journey Into Reconciliation

The second report is by Ira Provost, an Indigenous educator who is the Program Coordinator or Administrator of First Nations, Métis and Inuit (FNMI) Education Programs for the Southern Alberta school district.

If you are an educator looking to tell your administration or school board about the benefits of Project of Heart, Ira's reflections make a powerful case. First he sets out the problem:

Meaningful engagement with the Indigenous community means taking the time to develop a relationship and nurturing that relationship for mutually beneficial success.

According to many anecdotal comments from the local Indigenous parents I've heard from over the years in schools, and from being a parent myself, school personnel do not take enough time to get to know the Indigenous community.

And after Ira had witnessed the POH exercise:

"I was greatly impressed and, like the other invited FNMI guests, was blown away by what was presented and what we had heard!

Below is Ira Provost's compelling report in his own words.

Stavely Elementary School's Project of Heart

On February 13th, Ottawa teachers Kim Bruton and Amanda Anderson presented Project of Heart at Connaught Public School's Evening Towards Reconciliation. The event was put on by the school and parent council to continue a dialogue regarding Indigenous culture and history. The first part of the programme included a dinner, and keynote addresses by Peter Garrow and the Caring Society's Daxton Reid. Continue reading POH honoured to be part of Connaught Public School's Evening for Reconciliation

In February of this year, professors Warren McBride and Sylvia Smith presented Project of Heart and Justice for Indigenous Women to the University of Ottawa's teacher-education candidates in their first year FNMI course of study (First Nations, Inuit, and Metis Education: Historical Experiences and Contemporary Perspectives). Continue reading U Ottawa teacher candidates support Justice for Indigenous Women, make links to POH social justice actions

A big POH shout-out goes to Grade 7 and 8 students of teacher Guillermo Vodniza at Hugh John MacDonald School in Winnipeg, who did an outstanding job of educating themselves - and their community - about the experiences of young children who attended Indian Residential Schools in Manitoba. Continue reading Winnipeg: Hugh John MacDonald School partners with POH to learn Canada's real history

(Editor's note: this article is cross-posted from J4Iw.ca)
University of Regina graduate student Jenna Tickell has a history with working for justice;

Recently, with the support of her Masters Supervisor Dr. Brenda Anderson, Tickell organized a gathering of Regina community members ages 7 to 70 who volunteered to participate in a workshop held at Luther College at The University of Regina called "Justice for Indigenous Women."

Continue reading "This is where the true magic happens."

It was four years ago that Bernstorff-Gymnasium Satrup (bernstorffgym.de) (Bernstorff High School) in Flensburg, north Germany, did a complete unit on Canada in their Grade 12 English class.

The teacher, Miriam Bobzien, is an experienced and fluent English speaker who was tasked with preparing this class to write their "Abitur", an examination students must take if they wish to go to University. Continue reading Throwback Thursday: The German edition

It's hard to think of a more appropriate title for a publication. With the work of reconciliation picking up pace across the country, this hard-hitting, truth-telling teacher resource makes it clear that Saskatchewan's tragic IRS experience will not be left out of the narrative.

Published by University of Regina's Faculty of Education, Saskatchewan's Project of Heart has been working up to this moment for almost two years.

Publications Manager Shuana Niessen had this to say:

"Researching and writing this ebook has been the most meaningful work in my career.

Pulling together school-specific information from primary source documents, news clippings, research, and the NCTR reports along with listening to survivor/thriver stories have all contributed to a greater understanding of the complex issues around the history of Indian residential schools in Saskatchewan. I am so grateful to have had this opportunity to learn and I hope that others will find Shattering the Silence: The Hidden History of Indian Residential Schools in Saskatchewan an informative and accessible ebook from which to learn and teach about Indian residential schools in Saskatchewan."

On behalf of Project of Heart (National) we want to throw out a huge meegwetch to Shuana and the University of Regina's Faculty of Education for the sustained commitment that was undertaken to create this excellent resource.

May we NEVER attempt to whitewash our collective history again.

On August 10th, 2017, Project of Heart and our sister organization Justice for Indigenous Women joined with a number of other NGOs across Canada (Amnesty International, the Broadbent Institute, the Canadian Friends Service Committee, Children First Canada, the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society, Justice for Indigenous Women, KAIROS, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Quebec, the Rideau Institute and the United Food and Commercial Workers Canada) to condemn Canada for its lack of action in addressing extreme inequities faced by Indigenous children.

Craig Benjamin from Amnesty International (Canada) addressed the the independent body that oversees compliance with the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

Today and tomorrow (August 14 & 15), Canadian officials appear before a UN committee and must explain why they are actively resisting four orders from the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal that require them to stop discriminating against 163,000 First Nations children. It was over one and a half years ago that the Tribunal concluded that Canada was guilty of racial discrimination by not funding First Nations children on and off reserves, and it has since made three more rulings ordering Canada to comply.

Canada is appealing the latest order.

This past spring Curriculum Services Canada invited Project of Heart's Charlene Bearhead to speak about her work in the field of reconciliation. Charlene is the former Education Lead for the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation and is the current Education Coordinator for the MMIW inquiry.

Here's Curriculum Service's CEO Amy Coupal talking about the powerful impact of Charlene's address:

I had the privilege of hearing Charlene Bearhead speak at an international education conference in Ottawa earlier this year. She blew me away, and frankly the whole audience, too. She challenged and enlightened me and I've harkened back to her message many times. As we've been thinking and learning about Canada 150, we asked Charlene to share her thoughts. Take a look at her guest blog post ...

After you click the link and read the post, we'd be eager to here *your* reflections on the meaning of #Canada150 in the comments section below.

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A steadily growing initiative can be observed taking root in public spaces across Canada since the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) issued its report in 2015.

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Children's Book

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"Uegaki's first picture book is a joyful tribute to a little girl's inner and outer sense of style. Uegaki conveys Suki's determination to honour her grandmother and remember a favourite day with language as colourful as the all-important kimono. Suki's Kimono successfully achieves that delicate balance between plot, language, illustration, and design that is so critical when creating memorable picture books."

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This website offers tons of different books for children.

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©2018 Kids Can Press LTD. All Rights reserved. Part of Corus Kids.

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Using a Children's book to teach about social justice, so powerful!

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teach like a pirate: increase student engagement

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education / teaching methods & materials / general

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education/teaching methods & materials - general

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Teach Like a PIRATE: Increase Student Engagement, Boost Your Creativity, and Transform Your Life as an Educator

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Up to 90% off Textbooks at Amazon Canada. Plus, free two-day shipping for six months when you sign up for Amazon Prime for Students.

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play like a pirate: engage students withtoys

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education / teaching methods & materials / general

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Play Like a PIRATE: Engage Students withToys, Games, and Comics

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Serious learning can be seriously FUN! For some, school feels like a chore: boring, monotonous, necessary. But what if school were fun - for you and your students? What would life be like if you felt excited about your lessons? Better yet, what if your students actually looked forward to yo...

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culturize: every student. every day. whatever it takes.

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Culturize: Every Student. Every Day. Whatever It Takes.

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Up to 90% off Textbooks at Amazon Canada. Plus, free two-day shipping for six months when you sign up for Amazon Prime for Students.

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the first days of school: how to be an effective teacher

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education / teaching methods & materials / general

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teaching methods & materials - classroom planning

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The First Days of School: How to Be an Effective Teacher

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The First Days of School: How to Be an Effective Teacher: Harry K. Wong, Rosemary Tripi Wong: 9780962936029: Books - Amazon.ca

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This book offers a nice, approachable introduction to teaching for social justice, across various disciplines. Although concrete examples are presented, the ideas of teaching for social justice still remain somewhat theoretical. I'd recommend reading this book with a group, either as part of a teacher education course or a study group, so that you have the opportunity to engage in meaningful discussions about the ideas presented.

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against common sense: teaching and learning toward social justice

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educational equalization - united states

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social justice - study and teaching - united states

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social justice;study and teaching;united states.

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education / educational policy & reform / general

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Against Common Sense: Teaching and Learning Toward Social Justice

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Up to 90% off Textbooks at Amazon Canada. Plus, free two-day shipping for six months when you sign up for Amazon Prime for Students.

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Empowered Schools, Empowered Students

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empowered students: creating connected and invested learners (corwin connected educators series)

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education / student life & student affairs

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education / teaching methods & materials / general

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school change; school reform; student engagement; student voice; leadership; teacher leadership

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education / student life & student affairs

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education / teaching methods & materials / general

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Empowered Schools, Empowered Students: Creating Connected and Invested Learners (Corwin Connected Educators Series)

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Open up a new world of learning and engage students with these powerful ideas! This book helps you empower teachers and students to regain control of their own teaching and learning journey. With this helpful guide, cultivate enthusiasm for learning by changing the power dynamic and putting the r...

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education / teaching methods & materials / general

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giving our classrooms back to our students

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beginning teachers; common core; classroom practice; giving our classrooms back to our students; learning environment; passionate learners; pernille ripp; standards-based teaching; student assessment; student discipline; student engagement; student-centered learning; teacher professional development

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education / teaching methods & materials / general

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education/teaching methods & materials - general

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Would you want to be a student in your own classroom? In Passionate Learners: How to Engage and Empower Your Students, author Pernille Ripp challenges both novice and seasoned teachers to create a positive, interactive learning environment where students drive their own academic achievement. You'...

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Being the Change: Lessons and Strategies to Teach Social Comprehension

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Being the Change: Lessons and Strategies to Teach Social Comprehension [Ahmed, Sara K.] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Being the Change: Lessons and Strategies to Teach Social Comprehension