Draw on what learners know about conflict resolution and the situation in the Middle East to build understanding of the Camp David summit meeting beginning on July 11, 2000. They develop an understanding of the functions of summit...

Get a global perspective and examine the challenges facing Mahmoud Abbas, the newly elected president of the Palestinian Authority. Thoughtful classroom citizens write letters to Mr. Abbas, asking him questions and suggesting advice....

Pose the question to your historians: who really freed the slaves? They critically assess various arguments, using primary sources as evidence. In small groups, scholars jigsaw 5 primary source documents (linked), and fill out an...

Young historians consider the cause and effects of the Emancipation Proclamation. They use handouts, response sheets, and class discussion to build an opinion about the subject after viewing the PBS documentary Abraham and Mary Lincoln:...

Literacy tests, poll taxes, grandfather laws? Scholars study the systematic ways African-Americans were kept from voting even after it was made a law. They analyze a series of primary source documents, complete a worksheet, and engaged...

Social Studies and role-playing can go hand in hand. Learners use supporting evidence found in primary and secondary source material to develop a character from the Five Points neighborhood in the 1850s. Each student takes on the role of...

Use this cross-curricular history lesson to work on your students' informational writing skills. After listening to songs and stories related to Sultana, they engage in a several activities to boost their understanding of slavery and...

This resource is amazing. It is a full project including teacher notes, handouts, procedure, and worksheets. It introduces learners to the GAP project, a social environmental group working to bring irrigation, assistance, and increased...

Based on a New York Times article, "The College Drop-Out Boom," participants in a fishbowl discussion formulate and express opinions about the correlation between level of education, career options, and economic mobility. Ample...

Integrate geography with literature in this interdisciplinary lesson. Begin by reading a poem such as The Time We Climbed Snake Mountain by Leslie Marmon Silko. On a large map, place push pins in the cities or states mentioned. An...

As your class finishes the novel Dragonwings, use these culminating projects. A vocabulary list is given for chapters eleven and twelve and either an epitaph or letter activity concludes the book. The final project consists of creating a...

Create a glossary of tax-related vocabulary and clip New York Times articles that present tax procedure in action, in preparation for participating in a tax quiz bowl. Young economists explore allegations that "Survivor" Richard Hatch...

This wonderful art lesson invites students to design and “mint” coins bearing their own symbols. A simple carving andcasting process using Blick Wonder-Cut®linoleum and modeling clay is described in the plan. Coins can be one or 2-sided,...

Begin this lesson plan by estimating the cost of a college education and comparing it to actual data. After reading an article, high school seniors discuss the processes of the college loan corporations. They listen to a lecture about...

Is health insurance a luxury? The class examine the increasing number of uninsured middle class Americans; they then research and present information on various aspects of medical coverage and care at a classroom forum entitled "The...

Students investigate child labor during the Great Depression. In this US policy lesson, students evaluate multiple layers of the social, economic, and political affects of policy during the Great Depression. Students will engage in 5...

Design and construct buildings with rooftop gardens. Junior engineers work in groups to build two buildings and then perform experiments to determine whether or not a garden affects the building's temperatures. They graph and interpret...

This teaching packet is for grades five through eight, and it is organized around geographic themes: location, place, relationships, movement, and regions. There are four full lessons that are complete with posters, weblinks, and...

Students explore the usage of primary sources, what they are and how they originate. Artifacts are compared and contrasted as part of this historical inquiry as questions are formulated and conclusions drawn.

Learners write 1-4 sentence answers to the Time Travel worksheet (available online). They design period costumes, orally present their perspectives to the rest of the class, and explain why this war played an important role in the...

Students identify a topic for an open-ended question and evaluate the question. After developing ideas that lead to inquire, they investigate and research this topic on the Internet, and then create an iMovie.

Young scholars participate in a class discussion about jazz music, compare improvisation with regular conversion, listen to various jazz musicians and compare and contrast their individual sounds.

Who doesn't love fashion, especially when it can be applied to economics, supply, demand, market trends, and price equilibrium. Curious young consumers examine market scenarios to determine their effect on the demand and price for...

Middle schoolers examine the United States Constitution and how the application for due process differs in two amendments. They research the changing definition of the term since the Civil War. They use the internet to research press...