Peoples history Lesson Plans

Fourth graders study the geography, people, history, governments, and economies of the Middle East. They develop a basic vocabulary of Arabic terms and work with various materials in creating an aesthetically pleasing, easy-to-understand board game for their own use (and for use by their peers).

Students research the country of Honduras by visiting various Internet websites. They examine its geography, people, history, and land and view photographs and videos, exploring information about the ancient Mayan civilization.

Students explore South African history from pre-colonial times to today. They create a timeline of important events in South African history and reflect on connections between this timeline and the existence of tribal traditions in the country.

Learners conduct research on the Alamo by visiting the website "Alamo de Parras: The Untold Story of the Alamo's Early History". They read questions and comments that have been posted and evaluate the posted responses. After choosing one of the posted questions, they complete a more thorough analysis and write a report about it.

Fourth graders recognize that the Ojibwa lived in a serene environment which shows in their legends. In this songs, myths and games lesson, 4th graders recognize characteristics of the Ojibwas culture through the study of their games, myths and songs.

Third graders study American national holidays, symbols, songs and landmarks. They appreciate the meaning and significance of our nation's ideals of liberty, justice and equality.

Students examine the dynamics of change and compare and contrast it with other cultures. They cite examples of how people change over time and explain why it is necessary. Students organize a skit, Webpage, or Powerpoint presentation to demonstrate how they can personally effect change.

Learners use information from the U.S. Bureau of the Census to create a bar graph, a picture graph, or a circle graph showing the country of origin of U.S. Hispanics.

Students study the Battle of the Alamo in depth. In this research skills lesson, students visit the Alamo de Parras website to examine issues related to the battle that took place in 1836. Students analyze comment strands on issues in the War Room at the website and then conduct their own research on those issues.

Students, in groups, develop a proposal on how to best help a developing country. They research the country, design a multimedia presentation of their proposal and attempt to persuade the audience that they have the best plan.