Give budding historians a guided exploration of the Declaration of Independence, historic photos, videos, and more as they deepen their understanding of the American Revolution and the attitude of the colonists leading up to...

When in the course of a course on historic American events, it becomes necessary for learners to examine, with decent respect, the Declaration of Independence, it becomes evident that there are six separate and equal parts of that...

What's missing from most studies of the American Revolutionary War is information about the role African Americans played in the conflict. To correct this oversight, middle schoolers research groups like the Black Loyalists and ...

Did you know that the United States Constitution was adopted after many state constitutions were already in place? Young scholars examine facts about the influence of states through an informative and interesting resource. Groups then...

What were the conditions that led to the American Revolution? What are the conditions that lead to revolution in other times and places? Class members examine primary source materials and use evidence drawn from these documents to craft...

Sit back, relax, and transport to 1787! This lesson on the Constitution begins with guided imagery of the Constitutional Convention. The class reads A More Perfect Union: The Story of Our Constitution in an...

While the Spanish claimed to bring civilization to California indigenous peoples, in reality, they also brought violence and forced assimilation to European values. Primary sources, such as the reports of Catholic priests and Europeans...

The Civil Rights Act of 1866, which granted citizenship to all males in the U.S., resulted in the first African Americans to be elected to Congress. Class members research 11 of these men, the challenges they faced, and craft...

Use this twelve-day lesson plan to teach about the causes and courses of WWI. Each day scholars attend lectures, complete creative activities, and hold round table discussions on what they've learned. Web links and resources are...

What educational opportunities were available to women during the colonial era in American history? How did the opportunities available to women differ from those for men? To answer this question, class members examine a series of...

Voices from the past. Young scholars listen to a podcast interview with a historical re-enactor as they continue their research in the eleventh instructional activity of this unit on colonial trade. Applying their close reading skills,...

Improve class understanding of colonial times by reading an informational text and filling out the accompanying graphic organizer. Class members work with a partner to read, take notes, make inferences, and synthesize information.The...

The role of women before and during the American Revolution changed dramatically. To gain an understanding of these changes, middle schoolers analyze primary source documents, including letters from women that supported the patriot cause...

Have you ever wanted to do something so perfectly you wound up not doing it well at all? Young historians use primary and secondary documents to analyze the United States involvement in the Vietnam War. The issues surrounding the...

Fourth graders work in small groups to become experts on different colonial trades in the eighth instructional activity of this unit. Working toward the long-term goal of writing a piece of historical fiction, young scholars read...

Following the formative assessment of this unit, young scholars present the information they gathered on their specific colonial trade to the rest of the class. Working in groups, learners create posters describing the particular job...

What was life like for women in Colonial America? What restrictions were placed upon them and what opportunities were they afforded? A case study of Elizabeth Murray offers high schoolers a chance to investigate primary source...

High schoolers examine slavery in the revolutionary and colonial eras of the United States. In this slavery lesson, students investigate the presence of slavery in early America, the language of the Constitution, and the intent of the...

From indentured servitude to involuntary race-based servitude, slavery has taken many forms in American history. Class members examine three manumission petitions that reveal how the rights of African Americans and African American...

Teach your class about colonial America through an examination of primary documents. First though, start vocabulary notebooks for content-specific and academic vocabulary. Pupils can keep this record during the entire module. Once this...

Here is a fine lesson on reading and understanding expository text designed for 4th graders. With a partner, learners read a passage of text about a machine called a wheelright. This machine was commonly used in the colonial...

A strong thesis statement not only identifies the subject of an essay but also presents a claim that must be supported with evidence. After researching how nursing has evolved in the United States since the Colonial era, young writers...

In the tenth instructional activity of this unit, young scholars learn to categorize information as they continue researching their colonial trade. During guided practice, the teacher models how to read informational text slowly while...

The twelfth instructional activity of this unit builds on the skills developed in the previous instructional activity, as fourth graders continue their quest to become experts on colonial trade by listening to interviews with historical...