How the Kansas-Nebraska Act created Bleeding Kansas is complicated—until scholars research and examine documents from the time. After completing activities that include mapping, photo, document analysis, and discussion, learners...

Learners participate in class discussion to investigate how media affects the ideas of Americans (specifically in politics) and then research events in political history to analyze how the media may have influenced the government's...

A unit covers many aspects of the Civil War. Over six weeks, fifth graders delve deep into the history of slavery, the Civil War—before, during, and after—Abraham Lincoln, women's contributions, the Emancipation Proclamation, and...

Go West, young man! Scholars investigate the impact of African American settlers moving to the Nebraska territory, following the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act in the mid 1800s. Using primary sources, timelines, maps, and...

Did Western settlers receiving free land from the Homestead Act realize it wasn't really free at all? Scholars investigate the impact Western expansion had on Native American culture in the mid-1800s. They use documents, timelines, and...

What are the characteristics of an outstanding citizen? Nebraskan J. Sterling Morton contributed to the formation of societal and family values in his state. Learners gather information on Morton's life accomplishments from primary...

Have you ever wondered how your town was placed where it is? Scholars research the impact the advancement of the railroad due to the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act had on the formation of civilization in the Great Plains. Map...

Life in the great, wide-open spaces of the West! Scholars analyze the reasons behind the vast movement to the Great Plains after the passing of the Kansas-Nebraska Act and the Homestead Act. Using photographic, document, map, video, and...

Young scholars define and discuss sectionalism and popular sovereignty, analyze impact of popular sovereignty in creation of state of Kansas, compare issues in territorial Kansas to current politically divisive topic, and evaluate...

The 2018 film Anna, One Woman's Quest for Freedom in Early Washington, D.C., offers high schoolers an opportunity to examine the sacrifices one woman endured to gain her freedom from slavery.

Willa Cather's My Antonia might seem like a hard sell for today's teen readers. Rather than dramatic plot twists, trysts, and terrors, the novel celebrates the pioneer spirit that lead immigrants to a small Nebraska town. The Signet...

Fourth graders discuss early Nebraskan history. They view and discuss the painting "Sodhouse Family." Students are directed to the artistic elements of the painting, such as the horizon line. They follow a prescribed procedure to create...

Start a whole new life in a land known as the Wild Wild West! Learners analyze maps, personal accounts, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, songs, and video clips to uncover life under the Homestead Act. Using their new skills, class members role...

Included in this resource are a variety of activities to do while reading Willa Cather's My Antonia. The activities, which range from mapping out Nebraska to writing activities about pioneer living, are all designed with one...

Students explore and are able to explain how to read an old street map of downtown Omaha. Students review the names of schools in OPS as well as country names in Nebraska. They find out the names of graves in Prospect Hill Cemetery....

Students use their knowledge of Kansas history to support their position in support of or against slavery in Kansas.

Dr. Martin Luther King and Malcolm X were contemporaries. Both were gifted orators, both were preachers, both were leaders during the Civil Rights era, both were assassinated. But the two had very different views on violence and...

Students review the Kansas-Nebraska Act and the development of the Kansas territory Constitution. They complete a cause and effect worksheet and discuss the history of the Lecompton Constitution.

Fourth graders bring in a family photo from home. They compare their photo to the Rawding family photo. Students share their conclusions orally. They use Venn Diagrams to organize their thoughts and observations.

Thoroughly delve into My Antonia by Willa Cather with a plethora of activities. Engage scholars with videos and web sites in this week-long unit that explains the historical context and creates pioneers in the field of research. An...

Students study American settlers, how and where they lived by observing images. They investigate how the settlers used sod to build houses that were adaptable to the plains environment. They compare living in a sod homes with their home.

If you are previewing the film Glory for your young historians, this packet may help you spark ideas for discussion and offer some interesting facts and quotations that may add to your presentation of this Civil War narrative. It...

Second graders listen to various, grade appropriate stories about trees. They create their own construction paper trees and discuss the importance of trees to the ecosystem and the importance of taking care of them. Finally, 2nd graders...

Students listen to a book, "This is My House" and sing a song to the tune of Home on the Range. They use the internet to view examples of Frank Lloyd Wright's architecture. Students take pictures of architectural details of their homes...