Lesson Plans and Educational Resources

Lesson Plans

Collections of Links to Lesson Plans

• Indiana and the World: Themes and Lesson Plans (by Indiana University International Resource Center
• Lesson Plans from GENI (Geography Educators Network of Indiana)
• Lesson Plans from the Cyberschoolbus (United Nations)
• Lesson Plans from DiscoverySchool (Discover.com)
• Links to lesson plans and educational resources (developed by the College of Saint Benedict/St.John's University)
• AskERIC is an excellent source for lesson plans and ideas submitted by teachers from around the country. This site has thirteen different subjects to search through, with lesson plans for pre-kindergarten to twelfth grade students, and is very easy to navigate! Also has a guide on how to write your own lesson plans.
  For a lesson plan that will supplement the information students will learn at the International Festival, go to this website and enter the key word culture, select whichever grade level you are interested in, and search. There are some fun and informative activities for every grade that would be a great introduction for students coming to the International Festival. [review by Jessica Koopman, October 2002]
• LessonPlanPages.com features lesson plans for pre-kindergarten to twelfth grade students that are completely free! Includes lesson plans by subject or by specific topic, as well as many other resources for teachers. [review by Jessica Koopman, October 2002]
• The New York Times' Learning Network provides interesting lesson plans for grades 3-12 that connect directly to current events and articles in The New York Times. It has areas for students, teachers, and parents to investigate current news topics, along with ways to effectively discuss these topics at school and at home. [review by Jessica Koopman, October 2002]
• Teachnet. This non-traditional site includes not only lesson plans for art, math, science, and language, but also topics such as technology, real world, and seasonal lessons. Each lesson plan also includes feedback and suggestions from teachers who have used the plan before in their classroom. [review by Jessica Koopman, October 2002]
• Voices from the Field. "Based upon published stories written by Peace Corps authors, these authentic first-person narratives highlight cultural diversity and the common bonds of humanity. Included are field-tested lesson plans focusing on essential questions and enduring understandings to expand the boundaries of students' world views and increase their understanding of other cultures." [review by Kristin Hoyt-Oukada, Consultant, Foreign Language Education, Indiana Department of Education, Office of Program Development, October 2002]
• Building Bridges. "A dozen lessons based on other Peace Corps resources help students in grades 6-12 understand the concept of culture and facilitate getting along with others of different backgrounds. The easily-adapted lessons are designed to develop not only tolerance across cultures but also an ethic of social service beyond the classroom. [review by Kristin Hoyt-Oukada, Consultant, Foreign Language Education, Indiana Department of Education, Office of Program Development, October 2002]
• Themes and Lesson Plans from the Indiana in the World website of Indiana University Bloomington.
• "Resources for teachers who are committed to teaching Japan or China in social studies or world history"; 800:441-3272.
• Merlot: "MERLOT (Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching) is a free and open resource designed primarily for faculty and students of higher education. Links to online learning materials are collected here along with annotations such as peer reviews and assignments."

Specific Lessons

Secondary

• Asian media: lesson plans developed by Asian Educational Media Service of University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana.
• Teaching East Asian Literature in the High School: links on this site take you to resources and "Best Lesson Plans" from previous seminars
• Diversity in America (EDSOasis)
• Europe Map Puzzle: "Learn the countries of Europe and their capitals with this fun and educational puzzle game"
• Central America Map Puzzle: "Learn the countries of Central America and their capitals with this fun and educational puzzle game."
• Australia and South East Asia Map Puzzle: "Learn the countries of Australia and South East Asia and their capitals with this fun and educational puzzle game."
• South America Map Puzzle: "Learn the countries of South America with this fun and educational puzzle game"
• Africa Map Puzzle: "Learn the countries of Africa with this fun and educational puzzle game"
• Middle East Map Puzzle: "Learn the countries of the Middle East with this fun and educational puzzle game"
• Geo-Globe Interactive Geography
• Journey of a Picture Bride (Japan)
• The Censor's Hand (Eastern Europe)
• The Vietnamese Refugee Experience (Vietnam/US)



Asian literature

• "In a Grove" and "Rashomon" by Akutagawa, lesson plan by Cecilia Boyce
• �Autumn in the Palace of the Han� by Ma chih-yuan, lesson plan by June Kushida
• "Kokoro (True Heart)" by Velina Hasu Houston, lesson plan by Diane Mertens
• "The Priest of Shiga Temple and His Love� by Mishima Yukio, lesson plan by Lois Smith
• "The Hell of Mirrors" by Edogawa Rampo, lesson plan by Anne Brinckerhoff
• "Almaden" by Kim Chi-won, lesson plan by Maria T. Kelsay
• �The Story of Miss Li� by Po Hsing-chien, lesson plan by Dexter Mahaffey
• "Congruent Figures" by Takahashi Takako, lesson plan by Persephone P. Reynolds
• "Encounter with a Skull" by Koda Rohan, lesson plan by Cathy Challacombe
• "A Study of Twilight Crane" by Kinoshita Junji, lesson plan by Robert Quiring
• "Raise the Red Lantern" by Su Tong, lesson plan by Susanna Schantz
• "Confucian Ideals: The Analects and Miss Li", lesson plan by Laura Sheffler
• "Glimpses in the Mirror: Women's Identity in the Modern Chinese Stories 'Xiaoxiao' and 'The Wounded', lesson plan by Eileen Frawley (see also history lesson by Jaclyn Brillant)
• "Historical lecture for the story 'Xiaoxiao' by Shen Congwen" by Jaclyn Brillant (see lesson plan on 'Xiaoxiao' by Eileen Frawley)
• "Using 'Chuang Tzu' in a British Literature Curriculum", lesson plan by Doug Parker



Middle School

• Japan: The Geography of a Nation
• Cultural Diversity (EDSOasis)
• Castle Town Maze Activity (Japan)



Elementary

• Global Food Trek (grades 3-5)
• The Making of a Class Carp Streamer (Japan)



Ungraded/Multiple Grade Levels



• "Reframing America: Photography through the Eyes of Immigrants explores aspects of immigration revealed through photographs taken by immigrant artists. Seven photographers from the Center for Creative Photography collection of the University of Arizona Foundation are featured: Alexander Alland, Robert Frank, John Gutmann, Otto Hagel, Hansel Mieth, Lisette Model, and Marion Palfi. These photographers came to America during the period between 1920�1950. Millions of people left their homelands during that time to seek a better life in America. Often fleeing war, revolution, and persecution, they came in search of freedom, as well as economic and artistic opportunity. The photographers in this exhibition were among these immigrants. Their work speaks of life in America and of their feelings and experiences as immigrants in a new land. Like the farmers, laborers, teachers, and musicians who came to America as immigrants, these artists had ideas and dreams about what their new country would be like. Partly because they looked at America with fresh eyes, and partly because the America they found did not always correspond to the America they expected, their photographs sometimes addressed issues that continue to haunt this country: poverty, injustice, and intolerance. At the same time, they recorded uniquely American themes such as the mass consumption of consumer goods, jazz, and our nation�s love of the automobile. These artists also brought European equipment, ideas, and training with them, which was to have a tremendous influence on American photography. The result was a startling new vision of America. Activities for Classes: Using images from the Center's collection, this educator's guide introduces issues about both composition (what the photograph looks like) and content (what the photograph communicates). Interactive questions accompany each image. Background information and image encourage classroom exploration of the social and artistic viewpoints of each immigrant photographer."
• Around the World in 80 Clicks: "Java guided tour of 80 of best live webcams from around the world."

East Asia

• East Asian Loan Words Crossword Puzzle: A crossword puzzle of English words that are of Chinese and Japanese origin.
• National Consortium for Teaching About Asia--Ohio's lesson plans for East Asia and for China, Japan and Korea.
• For a CD-ROM containing the lesson plans on East Asia created by the eleven Indiana teachers from the 2002 Study Tour to Japan and Korea, contact Anne Prescott, 800:441-3272.
• Access Asia: English: lesson plans for all grades about Asia
• Access Asia: SOSE: lesson plans for all grades about Asia
• Access Asia: The Arts": lesson plans for all grades about Asia
• Asian Resources: The Asian Educational Media Service, part of the Center for East Asian and Pacific Studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, has put together a guide for teachers who want to teach (or learn) more about different regions of Asia.This site features a searchable database of media resources on East Asia for K-12 educators. Entries include brief reviews of audio-visual materials, as well as purchasing information.
• Lesson plans from East Asian Studies Center of Indiana University (Bloomington)

Japan

• The "Japan Box" featuring a set of themed boxes containing items and artifacts is available on loan to Indiana teachers from the East Asian Studies Center of Indiana University Bloomington. For information on how to borrow it, click here.
• Lesson plans on Japan: The Clearinghouse for U.S. Japan-Studies provides a number of free lesson plans for teachers through a searchable online database.

China

• The "China Box" featuring a set of themed boxes containing items and artifacts is available on loan to Indiana teachers from the East Asian Studies Center of Indiana University Bloomington. For information on how to borrow it, click here.