The New York Times
Crossing the Line Online: Sexual Harassment and Violence in the Age of Social Media - NYTimes.com
Sexual harassment and sexual violence are by no means new issues. What has changed is the role of social media in these issues. This powerful and troubling activity uses a specific rape case to launch research into a discussion of the...
Curated OER
Establshing Class Rules
Second graders review the importance of rules, the consequences that follow broken rules, and the establishment that everyone plays an important role in order for the classroom or community to be safe and orderly.
Curated OER
Working Together As a Team
Learners examine the need for rules to keep order at home, in school, in communities, and in the country using trade books and teamwork activities. They work in cooperative groups to define a positive learning community by writing a...
Curated OER
Dictating the Future
Read the article "Bush Lays Out Goals for Iraq: Self-Rule and Stability" and examine the keys points from President Bush's speech. Whether presented in written text or as an audio bite students will work in groups to research world...
Curated OER
Getting Down to Business
Three lesson plans are shown on this site, two of which pertain to Read 180. Start the year with the first instructional activity by having your learners create a brochure about themselves. In the computer lab, they find clip art and...
Curated OER
Playing By Different Rules
Students explore the concept of American imperialism by researching and analyzing historical examples of American imperialism. They draft a set of laws that would govern the actions of powerful nations in other countries.
Curated OER
A Peaceful Classroom
Students complete activities to analyze and create a peaceful environment. In this peaceful living lesson, students read about Sadako and how she is associated with peace. Students practice making paper cranes, discuss their beliefs...
Curated OER
War Fair
Students gather a general understanding of terms related to international rules of warfare and human rights, then discuss hypothetical applications of those rules. They write letters expressing their opinion on the current application of...
Judicial Learning Center
The U.S. Supreme Court
How do Supreme Court justices determine which cases to consider? What happens when the Supreme Court decides not to take a case? The lesson explores important questions and others in the field of criminology. It focuses on the...
Curated OER
Anatomy And Physiology
Students investigate the male and female reproductive anatomy. The terminology is defined by them and the goal is to make them more comfortable using it in the classroom for academic purposes. Students conduct class discussion of the...
Curated OER
Understanding The Preamble
Students explore the Preamble of the U.S. Constitution. In this government lesson, students write a preamble to encourage cooperation in their classroom as they study the Preamble of the U.S. Constitution.
Curated OER
Let's Travel!
Students review the rules and expectations, they earn points each day by making the correct behavioral choices. They read maps and do Internet reserach, students become aware of United States and or world geography. Students check...
Curated OER
The Government: From Different Perspectives
Fifth graders investigate the importance of government by conducting a debate. In this U.S. Government instructional activity, 5th graders utilize their classroom as the setting for a two sided debate based on whether government is...
Curated OER
Corporate Governance
Examine the role of the Securities Exchange Commission. Upper graders watch a short Bill Moyers video, analyze a political cartoon, complete a graphic organizer on the SEC, and develop SEC reform strategies to rebuild investor confidence.
Curated OER
Virginian Contributors
Students examine the contributions of native Virginians to the United States. For each person, they read excerpts of a book about their contributions and organize the information in a chart. In groups, they become an expert on one of...
Curated OER
Gun Control and Terrorism: Laws or Loopholes?
Students examine the Second Amendment of the Constitution. They research and organize key arguments and other fundementals of gun control. They participate in a debate defending the wording of the Second Amendment.
National Constitution Center
Fourth of July (Grades 3-5)
Bring history to life for your young scholars with a Fourth of July lesson series. After a class reading of the Declaration of Independence, students translate this pivotal document into layman's terms before working in small...
Curated OER
For The Sake Of Security: U.S.A. Patriot Act & Bill of Rights
A substantive New York Times article about the U.S.A. Patriot Act, military tribunals, racial profiling, and the Bill of Rights forms the basis for a discussion of the complex interplay of fundamental American rights and the aftermath of...
Curated OER
Designing a Civilization for an Art Room
Students discover the ideas of civilizations by researching Gandhi's philosophies. In this art decoration lesson, students investigate Gandhi's opinions on civilizations, community and ethics. Students collaborate by...
Curated OER
Negotiating And Resolving Conflict
Young scholars study the art of negotiation and review problem-solving strategies. They use this information to solve problems that relate to school, United States, and world issues.
Curated OER
Class With Character
Third graders participate in a variety of activities in order to promote the concept of being a good citizen. The foundation of this unit is found in the character trait of respect for self and others in society.
Curated OER
Writing Process
Fourth graders identify the benefits of using a field guide for nature observations. They then field trip to a natural setting to prepare for writing. They record their observations, and write a journal entry using the steps of the...
Foreign Policy Research Institute
Propaganda - 9/11 and the War on Terrorism
Propaganda is an important topic that most high school social studies teachers address. Here, students compare and contrast methods of public persuasion during WWII with those used in the contemporary War on Terror. Research, discussion,...
Curated OER
The Mayflower Compact
Fourth graders explore the events leading up to the Mayflower Compact. In this government lesson, 4th graders have a teacher-led class discussion on the importance of government, then complete a worksheet on the topic.