LEARN NC

K–12 teaching and learning · from the UNC School of Education

CEU courses open for enrollment

e-Learning for Educators - Classroom Assessment Enhanced by Technology
Discover effective principles of classroom assessment at all grade levels and subject areas. You'll review formative and performance assessment, backwards design, and various methods including rubrics and electronic portfolios.
Take this course: Begins April 21.

From the education reference

school choice
Legal structure allowing families and children to select a school other than the one assigned by their district. Schools of choice may be established by private firms or organized groups of families or educators; these groups receive public funding on a per-pupil basis.
magnet school
Public school of choice that emphasizes a special curricular program designed to attract students from outside an attendance zone in order to enhance desegregation efforts and diversify student populations.
charter school
A public school of choice, usually created by parents or educators seeking an alternative to traditional public schools. Developers create a contract, or charter, with a sponsoring agency (either state or local school board). In exchange for autonomy from many state and district requirements, charter schools are expected to offer financial responsibility, academic accountability for student performance, as well as innovative and challenging educational practices.
site-based management
Organizational structure that decentralizes authority and increases the autonomy of individual schools. Responsibility and accountability are at the school level, and the decision-making process includes teachers, administrators, parents, and community members.
school improvement plan
Comprehensive school-based plan outlining goals and objectives for ongoing school improvement. Specific measures are determined on a state-by-state basis.

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Kindergarten walk
This is an introductory lesson in a series of lessons on our community and community helpers. Rosie's Walk by Pat Hutchins will be used as the pattern to plan our own walk around our school playground. Students will then create a simple map of our school playground.
Format: lesson plan (grade K Mathematics and Social Studies)
By Michelle Hensley.
Story map: The gingerbread manhunt
The purpose of this lesson is to present a fun, memorable way for children to learn where the secretary, principal, nurse, janitor, cafeteria, playground, and other grade levels are located while matching a face and job with each of these locations and its importance to the functioning of the school.
Format: lesson plan (grade K Social Studies)
By Tina Baker.
Improving your technology utilization
A quick review can help you determine whether your school is making the most of its technology budget.
By Chris Hitch.
Rockingham County Historical Village
An original tobacco factory, a barn, a one-room school house, and a corn crib have been restored and make up the Rockingham County Historical Village.
Format: article/field trip opportunity
The end (for now)
In The First Year, page 4.5
I was a first-year teacher, driving to school and thinking about a thousand things I should have done yesterday and a thousand more that required my attention as soon as possible. If I hadn't needed both hands on the steering wheel, I would have started adding...
By Kristi Johnson Smith.
Let's be firefighters!!!
In this lesson, we will look at firefighters and the role they play in our community. This lesson will familiarize the students with the types of equipment used by firefighters, the special clothing worn by firefighters, and the responsibilities each of them have in our community.
Format: lesson plan (grade K Social Studies)
By Lavonne Holland.
About LEARN NC
LEARN NC, a program of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Education, provides lesson plans, professional development, and innovative web resources to support teachers, build community, and improve K-12 education in North Carolina.
Format: article/help
LEARN NC Virtual Mentoring Program
LEARN NC mentors are experts in their subject matter and have effectively mentored teachers in their own school systems. Whatever the challenge, LEARN NC will be there from the first day of class through the final bell of the year.
Valentine's Day: Love it? Or love it not?
In The First Year, page 3.5
Don't let holidays overwhelm the focus on learning.
By Kristi Johnson Smith.
Connecting with community through oral history
In Oral history in the classroom, page 5
Through interviews and photographs, Harnett County students learn about their community's agricultural past.
By Jean Sweeney Shawver.
Mapping life in a colonial town
In Colonial North Carolina, page 6.14
From a detailed map of colonial Edenton, North Carolina, we can learn a great deal about daily life and community life on the eve of the Revolution.
Format: activity
By L. Maren Wood.
Community and Government
This sampling of instructional resources will help students from elementary through high school learn about their communities, the federal, state, and local governments, and how to be responsible and effective citizens.
Format: bibliography/help
LEARN NC Local Coordinator Job Description
This page explains the duties expected of district-level coordinators for LEARN NC.
Format: article/help
Mix and match ecology: Human impact
This high-school biology lesson uses a group activity to teach students about the impact of human actions on natural resources.
Format: lesson plan (grade 9–12 Science)
By MaryBeth Knight Greene.
Latrelle MacAllister on desegregation
Latrelle MacAllister is an African-American woman who attended West Charlotte High School in Charlotte, North Carolina from 1973 until 1976, during the first years of integration. She speaks about her experiences of both segregated and integrated schools during...
Format: audio/interview
Postcards of the past
Students will participate in Heritage Day activities that will enhance students' awareness of their heritage. They will take digital pictures of activities to include on a web page, and research and report on information gathered. Students will create a web page to present their information.
Format: lesson plan (grade 3 English Language Arts, Information Skills, and Social Studies)
By Karol Leaptrott, Rebecca Watt, and Regina Welsted.
Latrelle McAllister oral history excerpt
Latrelle McAllister is an African-American woman who attended West Charlotte High School from 1973 until 1976, during the first years of integration. She speaks about her experiences of both segregated and integrated schools during her interview, and compares...
Format: audio/interview
Making connections for environmental education
How can you get students fired up about environmental education? Get them outside and get them involved in local issues through activism, service learning, and teaching others.
Format: article/best practice
By Carolyn Moser.
Bladenboro Historical Society Museum
Step back into the past at the old Bladenboro Farm Life School and discover the history of Bladenboro, North Carolina.
Format: article/field trip opportunity
Creating a community
Students will design a community and take into consideration the structures and human resources necessary for a balanced community. They will evaluate their community as they evaluate differences between wants and needs.
Format: lesson plan (grade 2 Social Studies)
By Helen Byrd.