Curated OER
The Roman Calendar: The Fabric of Our Time
Fourth graders explore the Roman origins and evolution of our calendar.
Smithsonian Institution
Ceramica de los Ancestros
Scholars join a field expedition team to unearth a plethora of treasures from Central America. Artifacts listed in alphabetical order come with an informational blurb and a picture designed for participants to color. Activity pages...
Curated OER
Oklahoma Stone Soup
Class members complete activities related to the story "Oklahoma Stone Soup." First, pupils read, discuss, and answer questions about the story. Next, to incorporate math into the lesson plan, learners make stone soup using a variety of...
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Measuring Pots
Students use an activity sheet to construct analogies about possible function of ancient or historic ceramics and compute circumference from a section of a circle as they study measuring pots.
Channel Islands Film
Cache: Lesson Plan 2 - Grades 4-6
Class members will dig this activity that has them trying their hand at recovering artifacts. Groups are assigned a section of a sandbox, carefully uncover the artifacts in their section, and then develop theories about who might...
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Daily Life in Ancient Egypt
Students explain how artwork can inform about a culture and its traditions. They pretend to be archaeologists who have just opened a tomb. They interpret the past based on what they discover.
El Museo del Barrio
Dia de los Muertos Educator Resource Guide
What are the origins of el Dia de los Muertos, and how is this tradition observed in contemporary celebrations? With a variety of lesson plans and suggested hands-on activities, here is an excellent resource to reference as you...
Curated OER
Textured Metal Boxes
Discuss the art process called repousse with this lesson. Learners discuss the history of this artistic method, talk about the technique, and create their own examples. They use boxwood tools, paper mache boxes, and sandpaper to create...
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Rock Art
Fourth graders examine and interpret rock art to illustrate its importance in the cultural heritage of a people and as a tool for learning about the past. They create their own rock art that is a symbol of their culture.
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Talking Rocks
Artists imitate the symbols used by tribes of the Southwest or use their own word pictures that communicate something about themselves. This lesson is a perfect blend of visual art and social studies. Students create a beautiful piece of...
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Early American Oral Tradition Lesson Plans
Students open their minds to the relevance of early American myths and legends by sharing their own family stories.
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The Old North Trail
Students engage in a lesson to find information about the old trails of North America that were used by Native Americans. Specifically, they conduct research to find the history of The Old North Trail. The teacher shares several theories...
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Inference By Analogy
Students infer the use or meaning of items recovered from a North Carolina Native American site based on 17th-century European settlers' accounts and illustration.
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Honoring Leaders
Learners design and compare monuments that honor an imaginary Roman emperor and a future American president. They explain how the monuments reflect the attributes of the person being honored.
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Reconstructing Artifacts
Young scholars investigate artifacts and reconstruct them. In this artifact activity, students research archaeologists and Native American groups. Young scholars plan a design for a clay pot which represent the Native American artifact.
Curated OER
Tennessee Activity
In this Tennessee instructional activity, students read a selection about the history of Tennessee, then complete a set of 10 true/false questions.
Curated OER
What is Halloween?
In this Halloween worksheet, students listen to a description of the origins of Halloween. Students answer fifteen questions related to the history. One worksheet has the story and questions. Another worksheet just list the questions...
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The Eight Immortals
Young scholars compare and contrast the Eight Immortals with American super-
heroes, such as Superman, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman while examining the literary genre of folktales and its connection to art.
Curated OER
Labyrinths
Whether studying metaphors or Greek mythology, this labyrinth project is a fantastic lesson plan to add to your unit. It includes two versions of the labyrinth; making it with yarn or stone. If your materials are limited, you can even...
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Memorializing September 11, 2001
Young scholars use the Internet to research monuments. They design models of appropriate memorials which would honor the victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York. They complete oral presentations...
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Consumerism and Holidays
Students explore the free enterprise system and the role that buying and selling of holiday goods have upon the economy. They recognize and demonstrate that advertising design influences one's life.
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Artifact Puzzles
Pupils role-play the position of archaeologists to determine the different types of artifacts. They cut out a drawing of their object and connect them with their classmates objects. They write an essay about their object and where it was...
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When Clay speaks
Young scholars listen as the teacher reads "When Clay Sings," by Byrd Taylor. They discuss clay, and view a variety of clay items. Students watch a video clip "Interests in One of a Kind Pots." They watch a demonstration on working with...
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Texas Treasures
Learners explore the meanings of the word "treasure," and examine the use of clay in the construction of buildings in San Antonio, Texas. They examine clay artifacts, and watch a video about pottery artist, Harding Black. Students then...