Curated OER
Lesson: Heroes: Then and Now
What is the difference between Hercules and Spiderman? Both are heroes, right? Kids identify the characteristics that make a hero, and analyze the differences between heroes of long ago and today. They write creative stories describing a...
Curated OER
Living and Working Now and Long Ago
Students visit an online museum and storybook to examine what life was like for African Americans during and after the Civil War.
Curated OER
Games Children Play: Then and Now
Second graders examine primary documents to discover similarities and differences in life today and life before. In this toys then and now lesson plan, 2nd graders complete a graphic organizer to show how things have changed or stayed...
Curated OER
What do you know about your town?
Students create a PowerPoint about the community they live in now and long ago. In this community lesson plan, students fill out graphic organizers about town events that have happened and create timelines as well.
Curated OER
Curiously Strong Stories
Young scholars study fairy tales and how the stories that were written long ago are still relevant today in this Art and Language Arts lesson best suited for the elementary classroom. Emphasis is placed on the creation of a fairy tale...
Curated OER
Language Arts: The Doctor Will See You Now
Learners are able to compare the treatments available for certain medical conditions during three different points in time during the last hundred years; list the medicines and drug therapies available now that have helped them and those...
Curated OER
Waste, Then and Now
Students discuss and compare the waste disposal habits of today with those of Native Americans of long ago.
American Museum of Natural History
Create Your Own Time Capsule
The corona virus pandemic is indeed a historic event. A time capsule activity permits young historians to document these days of social distancing, remote learning, and quarantine by collecting artifacts that capture what their lives are...
Curated OER
Understanding the Workplace
Now that your scholars have some career aspirations, it's time to explore the demand for these professionals based on labor projections. They explore the Law of Supply and Demand in a guided discussion, outlined here. There are some...
Fairfax Public Schools
Walter Dean Myers
If you are reading works by Walter Dean Myers in your class, this resource might be worth a look. Included here are activities and discussion questions for Malcolm X: By Any Means Necessary, Somewhere in the Darkness, Scorpions, Fallen...
Curated OER
History in the Painting
Students examine the topic of art history. They identify objects that were created long ago and the artists that made them. They create a tile design of their own to be displayed at school.
Curated OER
Now One Foot, Now the Other
Second graders, working as a whole class, with partners or small groups, use various Web sites to investigate the relationship between generations.
Curated OER
John Muir: Long Ago and Now
Students explore nature objects brought indoors such as rocks, seeds, leaves and shells to identify where the objects came from. They hear stories about John Muir's life and make booklets about nature areas they enjoy.
Curated OER
Fredrick Douglass' Speech on Women's Suffrage
“When a great truth once gets abroad in the world, no power on earth can imprison it, or prescribe its limits, or suppress it.” These words come from Frederick Douglass’ April, 1888 speech to the International Council of Women. One of...
Federal Reserve Bank
The Output Gap: A‘Potentially’ Unreliable Measure of Economic Health?
How can we accurately estimate what the economy should produce now and in the future? Have your pupils tackle this question as they learn about real versus potential GDP and as they review data regarding the output gap in the United States.
Curated OER
Sending Messages, Then and Now
Students analyze how patriots created ways to communicate during the Revolutionary War. After reading about and discussing ways patriots communicated, students create a chart analyzing the way messages are sent today with the way...
Curated OER
Viewpoint of the Native American
Students compare how Native Americans were treated long ago to how they are treated today. They write an essay from the perspective of a Native American from their time period explaining their side with details supporting their views.
Curated OER
Hands-on with Wool
Students understand how to spin wool. In this spinning wool instructional activity, students recognize how to ply and dye wool. Students understand that this is the process used years ago.
Curated OER
Fluency Passages, 3rd Grade
What would it be like to travel in a covered wagon? Learn about the life of a pioneer with a short informational reading passage. Kids read four paragraphs about traveling in a covered wagon and how it is different than traveling today,...
Curated OER
Life of a Logger
Students are introduced to the work and lives of 19th century lumberjacks through a living history slide show presentation. They compare and contrast life 150 years ago with the present. Students describe the history of logging in...
Curated OER
Reviewing Language
Eighth graders examine some of the basics of the writing process in order to improve long-term writing goals. They apply the concepts of using speech, prefixes, and suffixes. Students use and describe the different steps of the writing...
Curated OER
Wooden Toys
Students are asked what kinds of toys do they think people made a long time ago? They are shown pictures of some toy wooden soldiers that were made a long time ago. Students count the number of toy sailors in red jackets. They write the...
Curated OER
Family Life in the 1830s
Students compare and contrast family life today with family life in the 1830s. They conduct research on Old Sturbridge Village, read primary source documents, and develop a list of generalizations comparing/contrasting families of the...
Smithsonian Institution
Autobiography through Objects
Show youngsters how objects can tell a story! Here your class will learn about Cuban salsa dancer Celia Cruz by analyzing pictures of her dress, her shoes, and her marriage certificate. After describing Cruz's items and imagining what...