Pre-K and Elementary School
- Living Wisdom of the Far North: Tales and Legends from Chukotka and Alaska
This free ebook compiles several traditional oral stories of the aboriginal peoples of the Russian and North American Far North, including two new stories created in the spirit of those traditions. There is also ethnographic information about the indigenous peoples of those areas.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/hmdwzgf5cv2a77o/Living_Wisdom_WEB.pdf?dl=0
By Alexander Dolitsky, illustrated by Tamara Semenova and Leigh Rust
Age range: 2nd-5th grade
- Do the Right Thing: Reading about Social Justice around the World Instructional Materials
This resource for educators can serve as a guide to addressing the important topic of social justice issues within the classroom through English Language Arts and Social Studies. The unit plan was written by a multidisciplinary team and was created using the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills standards. The resource contains lesson plans, class materials, additional resources, and more. In order to tailor this unit to studies on Southeastern Europe, the following book was recommended from this unit plan:
My Name Was Hussein, by Hristo Kyuchukov (Age 4-8)- Bulgaria
https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/hemispheres/curriculum/social_justice.php
Age Range: 3-8th grade
Creator: Sally Dickson; Lindsey Engelman; Rachel Meyer; Christopher Rose; Rebekka Sherman-Loeffler; Hemispheres, The International Outreach Consortium at the University of Texas at Austin
- The Electrical Wizard: How Nikola Tesla Lit Up the World
The unit uses the book The Electrical Wizard: How Nikola Tesla Lit Up the World by Elizabeth Rusch, a biography of Nikola Tesla, to teach students about electrical energy and basic scientific design, answer geographical questions about his travels, and write narrative compositions.
Age range: 3rd-5th grade
Author: Sarah Knepper
- The Magical World of Russian Fairy Tales
This lesson plan for third-graders focuses on fairytale elements in the timeless Russian fairytales Vasilisa the Beautiful, Prince Ivan and the Grey Wolf, The Frog Princess, Fenist the Bright Falcon, and The Story of Baba Yaga. Students will listen to the stories read aloud and read independently, demonstrate comprehension by working in small groups to retell the stories through a variety of media, and then analyze themes and motifs of the fairytales.
https://edsitement.neh.gov/lesson-plans/magical-world-russian-fairy-tales
Age range: 3rd-5th grade
Author: Constance Vidor
- Maňa: One Girl’s Story
This multidisciplinary unit plan aligns with Common Core standards and contains 4 lessons, PowerPoint presentations, handouts, and other materials necessary to teach this unit on history, geography, and document analysis. The unit follows the life of Maňa and her family in 1922 as they travel from Kolin, Czechoslovakia to Cedar Rapids, Iowa. This unit can be complemented with a trip to the National Czech & Slovak Museum and Library in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. This unit plan won the Leadership in History Award from the American Association for State and Local History in 2017.
https://www.ncsml.org/education/mana-one-girls-story/
Age range: 1-4th grade
Creator: National Czech & Slovak Museum and Library
- The Noisy Paintbox: The Colors and Sounds of Kandinsky's Art
This interdisciplinary lesson plan is centered around the picture book, The Noisy Paintbox by Barbara Rosenstock, about the childhood of Vasily Kandinsky. Students will listen to the book read aloud, write a letter to young Vasya (Kandinsky), and illustrate the sounds of Russian ballet.
The Noisy Paint Box, Written by Barb Rosenstock, and Illustrated by Mary Grandpré
Age range: 1st-3rd grade
Author: Kelsey Shrewsbury
- Reading List from University of Kansas' Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies
This list is divided into three age groups: 4-10 years, 9-13 years, and teens. Books are from all across Eurasia/East Europe/Russia and are available through inter-library loans or commercial publishers.
https://crees.ku.edu/literature-and-activities
Age range: PreK-12th grade
Compiler: University of Kansas' Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies
- Slavic Story Time
This is a collection of hour-long lessons centered around reading a story from Russia/Eastern Europe, doing a craft or activity, and sometimes singing a song.
https://publish.illinois.edu/reeec-curriculum/slavic-story-time-form/
Age range: K-3rd grade
Author: Jennifer Bylsma, Assistant Outreach Coordinator of REEEC (2010-2013), UIUC