Newspaper Association of America
Using the Newspaper to Teach the Five Freedoms of the First Amendment
Of all the amendments found in The Bill of Rights, the First Amendment contains some of the most important freedoms for American citizens. A unit plan on the First Amendment features interactive lesson plans designed to teach about those...
PBS
Figurative Language and Foreshadowing in The Outsiders
S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders is still relatable to teenagers today, even though it was written more than 50 years ago. Explore how the figurative language of the story works to establish characterization, and how foreshadowing lays out...
Curated OER
Organizational Strategies for First Year Composition Writers
Identify and analyze deductive reasoning through genuine texts. Compare cultural practices and beliefs about national ID cards. Look for another example of a deductive argument and prepare a brief paragraph analyzing the audience,...
Curated OER
Active and Passive Voice: Finding Examples Online
Incorporate technological fluency with a search for examples of active and passive voice in online resources. Discuss how use of active or passive voice influences mood or tone and contributes to author's purpose. List of...
Curated OER
National Love Our Children Day
Have your class discuss National Love Our Children Day worksheet. Learners complete activities, such as reading a passage, matching phrases, filling in the blanks, choosing the correct word, spelling, sequencing, asking questions,...
Curated OER
Civil Liberties And National Security
Students experience profiling first-hand through creation of a Class ID, and daily persecution of a selected group of students. They examine the tension between the concern for national security and for the preservation of civil liberties
Digital Writing and Research Lab's – Lesson Plans
Teaching Close Reading through Short Composition/Revision
This activity may have writers evaluate short compositions, but their subjects are quite tall: great Americans. Pupils read one another's compositions and closely examine how specific phrases and diction contribute to shaping American...
Curated OER
Exploring Values Towards Conservation
Students read First Nation story, identify values expressed in it and discuss how those values relate to conservation issues faced today. Students then seek out stories relevant to climate change from their own Elders and respected...
American Press Institute
Newspapers in Your Life: What’s News Where?
Big news isn't necessarily newsworthy everywhere! How do journalists decide what to cover with so much happening around them? A instructional activity on media literacy examines the factors that affect the media's choice of stories to...
Curated OER
4-H Citizenship Activity Page
In order to understand how our government works, students need to delve into the intricacies at both the local and federal level. Using this 20 question activity learners explore how government affects their daily life.
PBS
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
What rights are guaranteed to students? Do they align with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was approved by the United Nations in 1948? Middle and high schoolers present persuasive arguments about the rights they believe...
Curated OER
Introduction to Age of Absolutism
Who were the absolute monarchs of Europe and what effect did they have on their countries? Young historians begin by naming qualities they believe are important for a monarch to possess. They then take notes on four key factors leading...
Blake Education
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
The motto for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry warns that one should never tickle a sleeping dragon, but learners will definitely be tickled by the activities in a packet of materials designed to accompany a reading of the...
Curated OER
National Handwriting Day
In this National Handwriting Day worksheet, students complete activities such as reading a passage, phrase matching, fill in the blanks, choose the correct word, multiple choice, spelling, sequencing, scrambled sentences, asking...
Curated OER
The First "Colored" World Series
Students utilize reading and listening skills in order to discover the key issues in American history and Black baseball history. Students investigate the beginning of the Negro Baseball Leagues and its signature historical baseball...
Curated OER
Thomas Jefferson's Library: Making the Case for a National Library
Students examine the need for a national library. In this Library of Congress lesson, students analyze primary sources to investigate the persuasive techniques that Thomas Jefferson used in a letter meant to show his support of the...
Curated OER
The Art of Communication
Students research the Morse Code created by Samuel F. B. Morse in 1838. They participate in decoding messages on a printable student activity sheet. They write their own Morse Code message and have a peer try and decode it.
Curated OER
The Roots of Prohibition: Examining the Effort to Prohibit Alcohol in America
Five segements from Ken Burns' documentary series Prohibition, easily accessed on the PBS website, are at the center of a terrific short unit on the roots of America's ambivalent relationship with alcohol. Engage your secondary class...
PBS
Baseball: The Tenth Inning
Bring the historical relevance of baseball into the classroom, as pupils discover the lessons learned from the breaking of baseball's color barrier by Jackie Robinson. Learners view video and analyze Robinson’s character, as well as his...
Scholastic
Writing to a Historical Poet
Poetry is a very personal and introspective art form. Give your class the opportunity to understand how a poet's voice can speak to them on a personal level, and that every reader can respond to an author differently. After a poetic...
Curated OER
A Look at the History of Book Banning in America
Why do books end up on the banned book list? How do these banned books contribute to the literary canon? Start by showing the photo slide show, and discussing notably banned books. Then focus on some of the most popular objections:...
National Constitution Center
Born in the U.S.A: Music as Political Protest
Though often used in shows of patriotism, Bruce Springsteen's 1985 song "Born in the U.S.A." is critical of America's role in the Vietnam war and its treatment of American veterans. High schoolers analyze the song's lyrics in an activity...
PBS
Broadway and The American Dream
Considering a unit study of American Musical Theatre? What better way to start than at the very beginning. Eight pairs of cards provide class members with background information about the genre from 1893 through 2004. The cards are...
Curated OER
FDR's First Inaugural Address
Students, in groups, describe a photo to the class. They determine which New Deal program is depicted in each of the images based on the research they conducted.