American Documentary
Comparative Religion Investigation: What Happens When We Die?
How do different religions offer explanations for what happens when we die? Invite your learners to consider the variance and complexity of religious beliefs, and to research and compare/contrast the concept of death and afterlife...
Curated OER
Akhenaton
Students look into the development of religious beliefs. In this ancient civilization lesson, students research the founders of several world religions including Akhenaton. Students use their findings to create world religion charts and...
Curated OER
The Noble Eightfold Path
Learners gain an introduction to Buddhist teachings about moral behavior by exploring a depiction of the Buddha and by writing a speech inspired by their interpretation of the Noble Eightfold Path.
Curated OER
Lincoln’s Political Theology
Students consider the weight of Lincoln's spiritual life on his political life. In this Abraham Lincoln lesson, students read excerpts from speeches delivered by Lincoln and determine whether they reveal information about Lincoln's...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Lesson 4 James Madison: Internal Improvements Balancing Act—Federal/State and Executive/Legislative
Who has the power? The founding fathers asked the same question when the United States was formed. Learners explore issues that arose during Madison’s presidency that raised constitutional questions. Through discovery, discussion, and...
Curated OER
Funeral Rites Research
Students compare their own cultural/religious beliefs and traditions of death and funerals with those of another culture. They conduct research, and write a research paper.
Curated OER
Abraham Lincoln, the 1860 Election, and the Future of the American Union and Slavery
Students examine Abraham Lincoln's political views about slavery. In this American Civil War lesson, students determine how Lincoln's beliefs led to the restriction of slavery in American territories. Student also analyze the party...
Curated OER
Hanal Pixan
Students research the culture of Mexico. In this Mexican culture lesson plan, students view a PowerPoint presentation about the culture of Mexico and the students take notes. Students write an essay about what they have learned.
Curated OER
Who Invented Religion?
Students explore religious controversies with the release of the film "The Passion of the Christ." In this current events lesson, students discuss religious beliefs and the place for violence in religious and historical films.
Curated OER
Lincoln is in the House! ("Name-Dropping" Poems and the Power of Connotation)
“What’s in a name?” Just about everything. Barack Obama, Vincent van Gogh, Justin Bieber. Famous names evoke a multitude of reactions and poets often use the names of famous people in their works precisely because names carry...
Curated OER
Please Ex-Planet
Seventh graders create a model of an earth centered solar system and a model of the sun centered solar system. As a class, they discuss why the earlier astronomers believed their model and why it changed when evidence arose that this...
Curated OER
Twenty and Ten
Fourth graders examine moral choices faced by Gentiles during the Holocaust and the role of the rescuer.
Curated OER
BUDDHISM
Students engage in a variety of activities that investigates the religious and cultural practice of Buddhism. The emphasis is upon students comprehending the Eightfold Path of Buddhism.
Curated OER
The Will Of Ebenezer Wells
Students discover that a is a good source of information about history. They see that a may also provide information or clues about attitudes, beliefs, practices, and economic conditions of the time period and place in which it was written.
Curated OER
Pope John Paul II
Students discover the accomplishments of Pope John Paul II. In this world history instructional activity, students research selected websites about the history of Poland, the accomplishments of Pope John Paul II, and...
Curated OER
Ray Frank on Gratitude and Repentance
Students explore Ray Frank's biography and achievements in relation to expressing gratitude and repentance. They create a list of the things they are grateful for and what repentance means to them. After listening to a Talmudic story,...
Curated OER
Uncovering The Truth
Students investigate the social and religious contexts that surrounded the Salem Witch Trials. The research is guided using the worksheets included in the lesson plan. The culminating assignment is writing an editorial of personal...
Curated OER
History's Heroes
Students compare two people who are considered to be heroes. In this heroes lesson, students read books or selections about two people who accomplished something special. They make a compare and contrast chart that includes nine...
Curated OER
Tuck Everlasting
Clearly written as an assignment for a higher-level education class, this formal lesson plan contains some fun and well-researched strategies for teaching the novel Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt. Among the best ideas included in...
Curated OER
Genocides of the 20th Century
Ninth graders research the causes of the major genocides of the 20th century. They participate in a jigsaw activity and complete a concept map of different genocides, watch and discuss excerpts from the movies "Hotel Rwanda," "The...
Curated OER
The Joy Luck Club
Students read The Joy Luck Club and analyze the effect of having to translate from one culture into another. Students trace patterns that link mothers and daughters in the novel, and write an essay comparing personal experiences to those...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Faulkner's As I Lay Dying: Form of a Funeral
Learners read and analyze William Faulkner's novel, 'As I Lay Dying.' They define Faulkner's place in American literary history, describe Faulkner's "South" in the context of the historical South and examine the Bundren family through...
Curated OER
A Fairy Tale: Italian Folklore
Students work in groups to write an original fairy tale in Italian. They research the components of a fairy tale, compare and contrast fairy tales with myths and follow an outline to write a complete, 15-20 page fairy tale.
Curated OER
Funerals and Burial Rites
Ninth graders research burial practices that originated in West Africa and then migrated to the South Carolina and Ohio. They compare and contrast burial practices in both places. As students collect information and data, they organize...