Travis Coleman

Students research a real-world problem and use a detailed template to write a bill. Students eventually act out the process and have the class/classes split into the House of Reps. and the Senate. They present their bill, try to convince their classmates to vote for it, and present it again for an official vote. If their bill passes the 'House' and 'Senate', it advances to the President (principal?) to become a law or to be vetoed. The detailed, step-by-step packet walks students through the bil

Kids love designing their own dinosaur theme park and a children's story about it! This is one of my students' favorite projects throughout the year.Students Will:1. Research a chosen dinosaur, noting its dietary, spacial, and social needs.2. Design a park on poster/grid board based on their research. (ex. giving it appropriate space based on its size) A map key must be included.3. Write a short children's story to teach others about their dinosaur.File Includes: Detailed step-by-step instructio

To demonstrate what they've learned about how social classes and religion played a role in preparing for the afterlife in Egypt, students use items from the classroom or home to students design a tomb (in a shoebox) for a pharaoh. Students must also write an explanation for why Egyptians would have included each item in the tomb.Students must meet the criteria outlined in the directions to ensure historical accuracy and quality.

Students demonstrate their understanding of the parts of an animal cell by creating an edible model.This activity can be adapted to a variety of grade levels by increasing or decreasing the number of cell parts. File Includes: objective, safety instructions, materials list, diagram, 'jobs of a cell' table for students to fill in, step-by-step instructions, answer key

Activity 1: Students read the first 10 Amendment to our Constitution (Bill of Rights) before writing about and discussing real-life scenarios that the Bill of Rights protect us from. They read examples and then write their own.Example: "The army base in your town is over - crowded. The mayor passed a law that anyone with an extra bedroom must house a soldier from the base. Which Amendment prevents this?"Activity 2: Students design posters which include a picture and a short explanation of what e

Summary: Students conduct an experiment to see which type of salt is most effective at melting ice.File Includes: Information about salt types (1 pg. article), activity summary, materials list, pre and post lab questions, data table, sheet to conduct experiment on (labeled w/ different salt types)

Want to engage your students as they learn about force and motion in a unique and truly exciting way? This activity is for you! We've all seen the egg-drop activity, but this take it to a whole new level and requires students to research safety features that car companies utilize before students design and building their own egg car! Their egg car has to meet certain requirements listed in this file. Eventually, their egg will be tested at high speeds. (Details are in the file.) Will the safe

This packet helps students research and design a two-part biome model. It asks questions that will help them decide what animals and plants should be represented in their biome and what kind of climate should be evident. (There's much more to the packet than what you see in the preview.) A three-step food chain is also required prior to students researching where their particular biome can be found on a world map. Regarding the two parts, one side of the biome should appear in its natural state

This is one of my favorite ways to teach about plant growth! In this activity, students will conduct some research about a seed type they select and then grow their selected plants in a small greenhouse they design using a plastic bin, popsicle sticks, plastic wrap, etc. This guide for students and teachers includes: -short explanation of what a greenhouse is and how they work (pictures included) -day by day instructions -seed/plant life cycle diagram (includes scientific nam

In this activity students will create a Chia-pet style house that grass will grow out of, and they'll only need household items (with the exception of grass seed) to do it! This project takes about 20-30 minutes (based on student age and ability) the first day and roughly 5 minutes every other day for a couple of weeks, depending on how long the grass survives. For older students, you can have them make larger houses or plant more complicated things that don't require deep soil. (Tip: Be sure t

We can all enjoy a soda or sports drink from time to time, but do we really know what’s in them? Soda has the composition of a variety of ingredients. Water is the primary ingredient, but sugar is usually the second. In this activity, students learn how many teaspoons of sugar are left over after boiling or heating up the contents of a can or soda and a bottle of Gatorade. Students will be required to review vocab, complete pre and post lab questions, conduct research about sugar content for v

Want a FUN way to introduce economics to your students? This is it! This project involves collaboration, creativity, writing, reading, acting, planning, drawing, light math, real-life application, and excitement! In this activity, students will play the role of producers as they invent, create, advertise, and 'sell' a useful product to consumers (another class). Students will learn about products vs. services, supply and demand, producers and consumers, profit, imports, exports, and tariffs.

Are you wanting students to reflect upon their reading beyond a traditional book report where they just repeat what happened in the story? This is for you! This folder contains student instruction sheets for how to complete a weekly reading journal. In it, students track their own reading and are required to select questions to respond to from a long list of options. Folder Contains: a. Grade Tracker -students list the # of pages read that week, which helps you monitor their progress

In this activity, students will research the viscosity of various substances and decide which one they can bring in for class. They will be randomly paired with another team. Once paired, they'll make a hypothesis stating why they believe their substance will move quicker or more slowly than their opponent's substance. They will test their assumptions by each pouring their substance down a plywood board that's placed at a steep angle. This file includes a step by step guide for teachers and s

Do you want your students to discover connections between the real world coronavirus crisis and what they've been learning in class about how our government works? Here are two assignments I've had my 7th and 8th graders complete recently via e-learning. Public Health and the Constitution: Student research how the government can legally limit the number of people who gather together in spite of the 1st Amendment. (The answer has to do with the 10th Amendment and various Acts that were passed i

What kid doesn't love learning about animals? What kid doesn't love writing? Okay, maybe not quite as many for the latter. Here is a way to combine the two while also helping your students develop research skills! Here is a step-by-step guide for both teachers and students that shows how to research specific animals while focusing on characteristics that make each species unique. The file contains a guide that walks students through selecting an animal, what to include in each paragraph regard

In this activity, students will write a letter to students in the grade below them to give them advice about how to succeed in the next grade. The file helps students organize their thoughts so that when the guide is complete, all they have too do is turn their thoughts into complete sentences! Kids love giving younger students the 'low down' on teachers, such as how to succeed in their class and what struggles to expect. This is an excellent activity for that last week of school when it's diffi