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Shaped

A community-driven blog supporting educators, building lifelong learners, and shaping the future of education.* 

 

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9/11 Activities for Elementary Students

How do you teach younger students about the September 11, 2001 attacks and their impact? We've got you covered with these 9/11 activities for elementary school.

Brenda Iasevoli
Shaped Executive Editor

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Teaching about Classifying Polygons

Teach students about the different types of polygons in mathematics, which can be described as flat, closed figures with three or more sides.

Richard Blankman
Shaped Executive Editor

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29 Back-to-School Writing Prompts for Middle and High School

School's back in session, which means it's time for a fresh batch of writing prompts for the new year. Have your high school or middle school students try these Back-to-School prompts this fall.

Ali Habashi
Former Shaped Editor

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Mayan Pyramids vs. Egyptian Pyramids Lesson Plan Idea

Looking to include ELA instruction in your social studies classroom? This Mayan pyramids vs. Egyptian pyramids lesson plan idea has students discuss the similarities and differences between the two types of structures through writing an essay.

Shaped Staff

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Meet the Teacher Night Ideas: Holding a Successful Event for Students’ Families

Try these Meet the Teacher Night ideas to give students and families a warm welcome to your classroom and start off the school year right.

Katie Risolo Radovich
First-Grade Teacher

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Free Teaching Resources: Fun Classroom Activities and Lesson Plan Ideas

Find free teaching resources. Explore fun classroom activities, lessons plans, downloadables, and videos for Grade K–12 kids to keep learning and growing at grade level.

Shaped Staff

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How to Boost Students’ SEL Skills Using Current Events

Fourth-grade teacher Perry Hollins shares tips for teaching current events through an SEL lens.

Perry Hollins
Fourth-Grade Teacher, Evanston/Skokie School District, Illinois

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Video: Teaching Math with Art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Use this video to teach numbers and expressions in math class by investigating how different numbers look around the world and throughout history at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Richard Blankman
Shaped Executive Editor

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6 Presidents' Day Bulletin Board Ideas for Teachers

Check out these six Presidents' Day bulletin board ideas created by teachers to get your students learning about American presidents.

Alicia Ivory
Shaped Editor

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Teaching Impeachment in the Classroom: Q&A With Emma Humphries of iCivics

Dr. Emma Humphries, Chief Education Officer at iCivics, shares how she believes educators can carefully and thoughtfully approach teaching impeachment in K–12 classrooms.

Geraldine Stevens
Social Studies Content Expert

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6 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Bulletin Board Ideas

Use these Martin Luther King, Jr. Day bulletin boards as inspiration for your own to teach students about themes such as racial equality.

Jordan Friedman
Former Shaped Editor

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8 Black History Month Writing Prompts

Introduce students to Black innovators with these Black History Month writing prompts and guide them into a particular type of text, such as personal narrative, informative, or persuasive.

Perry Hollins
Fourth-Grade Teacher, Evanston/Skokie School District, Illinois

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11 Most-Read Shaped Blogs of 2020

Before we say goodbye to 2020, we want to highlight the most-read Shaped blogs, written with you in mind as you navigated this most unusual year.

Christine Condon
Shaped Editor-in-Chief

Fun writing prompts for middle school

4 Writing Prompts for Middle School Students to Practice Different Genres

Use these four fun writing prompts for middle school students, along with accompanying rubrics and tips, to help them build their writing skills throughout the school year.

Sara Buren
Shaped Contributor

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Television and the 1960 Election Lesson Plan: When Media and Politics Collide

Download a 1960 election lesson plan to teach your students about the first-ever televised presidential debates in 1960 and their long-term impact.

Shaped Staff

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Great Summer Reads with Carol Jago: Never Give Up, Grades 9–12

Though the characters in these stories face challenges and obstacles, they never stop trying to do the right thing.

Shaped Staff

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Great Summer Reads with Carol Jago: Never Give Up, Grades 6–8

Though the characters in these stories face challenges and obstacles, they never stop trying to do the right thing.

Shaped Staff

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Literacy at Work: The Writers Room with Duane Capizzi

Have your students explore the exciting world of TV writing with a free lesson plan and insights from producer, writer, and Carmen Sandiego showrunner Duane Capizzi.

Shaped Staff