Can a negative perception of a president's foreign policy harm his or her historical legacy? A project that winds the clock back to the date of Theodore Roosevelt's death puts students at the editorial desk of a fictional newspaper....

How much power should a president be allowed to exert? Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin D. Roosevelt exercised their power according to their interpretations of the United States Constitution, and these interpretations affected the...

Emanuel Leutze's painting Washington Crossing the Delaware. Alexander Gardner's photograph of Abraham Lincoln. What do these works of art tell us about the character of these American Presidents? After examining the techniques the...

Are executives as powerful as they sound? High schoolers find out about the US president and executive branch. A variety of activities include scaffolded reading sections, research assignments, and collaborative group work.

What are the job requirements for the office of president of the United States? What attributes should a candidate possess? Are the qualities needed to govern the same as those needed to win? What can an analysis of the...

Fourth graders study President Truman and the Whistlestop Campaign. For this US history lesson, 4th graders complete a KWL about President Truman and write letters to stops on Truman's Whistlestop Campaign. Students create a presentation...

If called, would you go? Should the US government have the power to impose a draft during any war? The Selective Service Act of 1917 (aka the Conscription Act of 1917) authorized the drafting of men into the military for only the...

Election years provide the opportunity to evaluate news media as well as the next prospective president. High schoolers read about the same event in several different news sources, varying in type, origin, and political leaning,...

For many people, Barack Obama's presidency was the next step in Martin Luther King, Jr's dream of America's future. Explore the dreams of Americans past and present, as well as the young Americans in your class, with a set of activities...

As you work through Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time, try out some or all of the 20 questions and activities included here. Useful for discussion questions, group assignments, or individual projects, this resource covers plot as...

“Ich bin ein Berliner.” Here’s the full text of John F. Kennedy’s famous address delivered to the people of Berlin on June 26, 1963. The resource could be used as part of a study of Kennedy’s presidency, of rhetorical devices, or as...

A great toolbox of ideas for any teacher preparing to teach the novel Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt, this resource includes a short biography of Natalie Babbitt, several discussion questions that could double as writing prompts,...

Looking for ideas on ways to recognize Veteran's Day? Check out this 92-page packet that includes exercises designed for all grade levels. Reading passages detail the history of the holiday, research projects get individuals involved in...

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...

Eleventh graders explore the various roles that Eleanor Roosevelt took on. In this US History instructional activity, 11th graders analyze the views that Eleanor Roosevelt held as an advocate for social justice. Students evaluate her...

Students examine the War on Terror. For this national security lesson, students read articles about the War on Terror and President Obama's foreign policy. Students respond to discussion questions and debate the presence of...

An inaugural address represents the first moments of a new beginning. Using John F. Kennedy's speech as a model for guided practice, groups examine the ingredients of an inaugural address. Individuals then repeat the analysis...

Young historians investigate how voting patterns have changed by comparing the outcome of the 1960 election to the outcome of the recent election. A creative final assessment has participants making a news show wherein they provide...

Students study President Bush's proposal for immigration policy in the US and examine various perspectives on immigration that are currently being debated. They read and discuss an online New York Times article.

Fifth graders explore leaders of the Civil War. In this history lesson, 5th graders use picture puzzles, vocabulary, worksheets, WebQuest, a Venn Diagram and role play activities in order to learn who the Civil War leaders were, what...

The house lights dim, the curtain parts, lights slowly come up, revealing the stage. Before the actors appear, before a word is spoken, the audience is drawn in by the lighting, by the colors, by lines of the set, by the props, and...

Learners analyze photographs for information about life in Virginia City Nevada in the late 1800s. For this Nevada statehood lesson, students work in teams to analyze photographs from Virginia City. Learners brainstorm adjectives to...

Third graders are introduced to the topic of habitat . They create a zoo exhibit fo a polar bear that is being donated to the Albuquerque Zoo. The zoo is not big enough for a brand new cage, so the students choose which of three...

Upper graders listen to a podcast on the EconTalk website featuring economist Keith Hennessey. The podcast focuses on the Budget Control Act of 2011, the national debt, and government spending. They read specifics about the BCA, then...