Teacher.org
Christmas Around the World Part 1
A creative lesson shines a spotlight on Christmas celebrations throughout six different countries. Scholars read an informative text and share their new-found knowledge with their peers. After hearing about each country, pupils choose...
Curated OER
Critical Thinking Strategies
Teach your readers to be critical thinkers. A strategy is outlined that can be used to compare and contrast entities. An example lists four states. The learner removes one state that "does not belong" in the list for some reason, and...
Curated OER
Simon Says "Who Are You?"
Students explore their similarities and differences. In this getting to know you instructional activity, students play a variation of "Simon Says," according to various personality and physical traits.
Curated OER
The Flow of Women's Work: How Cultures are Alike and Different?
Students examine gender roles in various cultures. In this flow of women's work lesson, students compare water related work in rural Africa to that in their own households.
Curated OER
Good Apples
Students choose an apple from a larger group of apples and examine it closely. They return their apples to the group and then attempt to identify their own. They discuss how this activity applies to human similarities and differences.
Curated OER
The Civil War: From Different Perspectives
Fifth graders look at the Civil War from different perspectives. In this Civil War instructional activity, 5th graders are divided into groups and take on the role of fictional characters with a real perspective that existed in the Civil...
Curated OER
Conquest of the Americas
Students study the Aztecs and Incas. For this Aztecs and Incas lesson, students discover their similiarities and differences and how the Spainards defeated both. Students create a picture book about one of these empires.
Curated OER
Similarities and Differences Between the American Revolutionary War and the American Civil War
Fifth graders describe three similarities and three differences between the American Revolutionary War and the American Civil War. They play a game comparing the two wars.
National Endowment for the Humanities
La Familia
Young scholars identify at least one country where the Spanish language is spoken, describe similarities and differences between Spanish, Mexican, and Puerto Rican families, and practice speaking the Spanish words for several family...
National Park Service
A Tale of Two Men
Theodore Roosevelt and the Marquis de Mores were both born in 1858, and both came to the Dakota territory in 1883, but they influenced the developing country of America in different ways. Elementary and middle schoolers apply written and...
Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation
Making a Patriot Inquiry: Are Independence, Freedom, and Liberty the Same Thing?
As part of a study of the American Revolution, class members engage in an inquiry-based lesson that has them watch a scene from the play Slave Spy, examine multiple primary source documents, and then discuss the similarities and...
Curated OER
Justice for All
A reading of Roald Dahl’s Lamb to the Slaughter opens a discussion of justice and fairness. Using a Venn diagram and an Idea Wheel graphic organizer, class members consider the similarities and differences in these two terms. They then...
Curated OER
GOOD APPLES
Students consider society. In this respect lesson, students discover the importance of recognizing the positive aspects of people having similarities and differences. They discuss this concept as a class and participate in an activity...
Curated OER
Historical Agency in History Book Sets (HBS)
Study historical events by combining the study of historical fiction and non-fiction. Learners read about true past events in historical fiction novels and then research non-fiction accounts of the same events. What are some differences...
Curated OER
Winter Holiday Celebrations
Students understand how holidays revolve all around light. In this winter holidays instructional activity, students find the similarities and differences between the winter holidays. Students discuss the winter solstice and how it...
Curated OER
Lesson: Deities & Superheroes
Here's a twist on the old compare-and-contrast lesson. Budding art historians compare an Assyrian limestone relief to comic book superheroes. They discuss the similarities and differences in the three-dimensional relief to...
Curated OER
Splish-Splash: Daily Use of Water
Young scholars explore the daily use of water in Kenya and Ghana. In this Peace Corps lesson, students compare similarities and differences between water use by people in Kenya and Ghana and their own communities as they create books...
Curated OER
A Brief History of Fairfax County
Young scholars brainstorm a list of things they already know about the history of Fairfax County, Virginia. After reading a primary source document, they discuss the similarities and differences between their prior knowledge and what...
Curated OER
Different, Yet the Same
Students explore cultural differences. In this cultural differences lesson, students complete a webquest traveling to different countries. At the conclusion of the webquest students create a slide show on KidPix.
National First Ladies' Library
"Just a Little Bit Different": Inclusive Classrooms, Inclusive Schools
Learners explore visible and invisible differences, those of language, religion, dress, ethnicity, gender, etc. with their classmates. They play Bingo with a created list of classroom differences. Afterward, they write a short paper...
Curated OER
What Do They Have In Common?
Fifth graders use a database to gather information on the United States last five Presidents. Using the information, they identify their similarities and differences and what characteristics made them a good leader. In further detail,...
Curated OER
Cultural Awareness/Sharing Traditions
Students examine and explore cultural traditions that make their own families unique. In groups, they discuss traditions, write about the similarities and differences in the group, and interview other students.
Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media
What Brought Settlers to the Midwest?
Drawn by promises of fertile land, thousands of settlers poured West because of the Homestead Act of 1862. By examining images of the ads that drew them westward, learners consider the motivations for movement. They also consider how the...
Curated OER
Project EMPOWER: Awareness of Differences
Students explore the differences of others. They examine ways in which they can respect the differences between individuals. Students explore the ways in which people are similar and they recognize stereotypes they make.