This column provides an updated list of thirty online lesson plan sites. Some are general, some specific, and some are geared toward one age level or another. The sites described cover topics ranging from American History to Physics to Astronomy.

Presents a pathfinder to help elementary school teachers connect to the Internet. Includes basics of the Internet; links to other helpful Web sites; lesson plans ready to use in the classroom; sites with resources for teachers to create their own lesson plans; North Carolina resources; and print resources. (LRW)

Describes projects and learning activities on photography that are useful for elementary and secondary school teachers. Highlights include Web sites; workshops; two specific projects; lesson plan sites on the Internet; photography contests; and trends relating to photography. (LRW)

Recent remarks by Maryland's governor Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. referring to multiculturalism as "bunk" have rekindled the debate on multicultural studies as "soft" history and social science. Richard Vatz of Towson University, as reported in The Washington Times (23 May 2004), noted that "People support it (multiculturalism) without knowing what it…

Presents an instructional program for improving the use of videos in the classroom: (1) prepare yourself; (2) prepare the environment; (3) prepare the audience; (4) present the material; (5) provide the follow-up; and (6) evaluate. Presents a sample lesson appropriate for a unit on the geography of the Atlantic coast and its influence on the…

Discusses teaching students literary appreciation and how to teach the appreciation of other media. Suggests comparing a book and video version of the same story and includes a literary review unit guide for middle school or junior high school students, as well as a sample lesson on comparing stories in two mediums. (LRW)

Presents a learning activity plan for teachers or librarians that helps students comprehend the author's craft element of "point of view." Focus is on first and third person point of view. Outlines student motivation methods, the procedure, extension/application activities, and assessment. Includes an activity worksheet. (AEF)

This article, the first of a two-part series, introduces the living history program. This yearly, weeklong program features living portrayals of famous people, which becomes a catalyst for teaching curricular standards, as well as providing the spark for inquiry. Here, the authors describe how the yearly living history program was implemented and…

Reviews Web sites for current events news that are appropriate for students of various ages. Discusses the possibilities for second language learning and curriculum connections and lists television sites, news magazines, classroom magazines, newspapers, and lesson plans. (LRW)

Describes a four-volume reference set for elementary and middle school students called "The Middle Ages: An Encyclopedia for Students" edited by William Chester Jordan. Provides a sample lesson which includes library media skills objectives, curriculum objectives, grade levels, resources, instructional roles, activity and procedures for…

Provides a school library media activity for elementary grades using the "Guinness Book of World Records" in print and CD-ROM format. Lesson objectives, librarian preparation required, student activities, and evaluation are included. (EAM)

Describes a librarian/teacher coplanned fourth-grade unit at Central Elementary School (Indianapolis, Indiana). The lesson focused on wolves and pack behavior and incorporated the tale of the Big Bad Wolf and the Three Little Pigs to teach the media literacy concepts of point of view, message, stereotype, and bias. Sample worksheets are included.…

Discusses "Information Literacy Standards" for school library media specialists that were included in the 1998 edition of "Information Power" and presents a lesson plan for middle school students on global warming that focuses on the standard addressing perspective, or point of view, and incorporates an information process…

To help students understand that references are tools used to locate specific information, one librarian has her third-grade students create their own reference toolboxes as she introduces dictionaries, atlases, encyclopedias, and thesauri. Presents a lesson plan to introduce print and nonprint thesauri to third and fourth graders and includes a…

To teach computer skills to kindergartners, classroom teachers and library media specialists can take them on a multimedia field trip to the zoo. Provides a lesson plan that lists library media objectives, resources, instructional roles, activity and procedures for completion, class instructions, evaluation, and follow-up. (PEN)