DocsTeach
Analyzing a Letter to Congress About Bloody Sunday
The brutality of Bloody Sunday—when non-violent protesters who supported voting rights for African Americans were beaten by police—captured a nation. Young historians examine the letter of one horrified American to Congress to consider...
DocsTeach
Analyzing a Letter from Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Before her career as a Supreme Court Justice, the Notorious RBG was a legal activist for women's rights. Using a letter from then-Professor Ginsburg, young historians carefully examine a letter from Ginsburg to a member of Congress...
Middle Tennessee State University
A House Divided: The Civil War Home Front in Tennessee
To broaden their understanding of both the short term and long terms effects of the Civil War, class groups examine primary source materials and then assume the role of a family member and draft a letter to a soldier describing life at...
PBS
Extranjeros and Expansion
A three-part activity gives light to the Unites States expansion from the view of Texans, New Mexicans, and Californians. Through videos and written activities, scholars work collaboratively to research specific individuals and their...
Library of Congress
Thomas Jefferson's Library: Making the Case for a National Library
The United States Library of Congress, the largest library in the world. But such was not always the case. The library was destroyed during the War of 1812. In a persuasive letter to Samuel H. Smith, Thomas Jefferson offered to sell his...
Constitutional Rights Foundation
Unauthorized Immigration and the US Economy
As part of a study of immigration and the U.S. economy, class members assume the role of newspaper editors to determine which submitted letters to print on their paper's editorial page to present a balanced view of the debate.
Louisiana Department of Education
Out of the Dust
The Grapes of Wrath may be the most famous novel set during the Dust Bowl, but what other stories cover the same time? The unit focuses on the Karen Hesse novel Out of the Dust. Learners keep a timeline of the Dust Bowl, maintain a...
Curated OER
Draft Dilemmas
Consider the possibility of a new U.S. draft with this lesson, which encourages class debate and persuasive arguments. Middle and high schoolers discuss how such a draft might be enacted and how they would feel about it. They write...
Children's Commissioner for Wales
Special Mission — Our Rights
Introduce young learners to the list of children's rights as defined by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) with a series of activities that get class members thinking about what they need to grow up safely and happily.
Northshore School District
American Voices and Their Audiences
Those new to teaching an AP level language and composition prep course and seasoned veterans will find much to treasure in a unit that is designed to help young language scholars develop the skills they need to analyze the language...
Curated OER
Making a Difference #1
Students study homelessness. In this homelessness lesson, students brainstorm ideas about the well-being of individuals. Students write a letter to parents and their community asking for donations for homeless care kits. Students also...
K20 LEARN
How Did We Get Here? Native Americans in the United States
High schoolers imagine what their lives would be like if they had no access to potable water and watch a morning news show about the water situation on a Navajo reservation. Groups investigate the policies that lead to the lack of water...
Curated OER
All Those In Favor
Students share opinions about measures recently passed in their school, vote on and argue for and against hypothetical school policies, and respond to a "president's" decision to pass or veto the measures.
Curated OER
Slavery Issue And Views North Versus South Around 1850s
Tenth graders compare and contrast the opinions of northerners and southerners about the issue of slavery in the 1850's. They study how the legislation that was enacted by Congress addressed the issues. As they investigate, they create a...
Curated OER
A Life in Politics
Learners answer a quiz about congressional leaders. They research former majority leaders and create charts about them. They write letters to the current majority leader about a current issue.
Curated OER
Republic of Texas
Fourth graders brainstorm about methods of communication that existed in Texas in the 1830's, leading them to comprehend that handwritten letters were the major means of communications. They write to a member of the current Texas...
Center for Civic Education
Women's History Month Word Clouds
What a great idea for celebrating Women's History Month and discovering the amazing efforts that individuals have put forth on behalf of women's rights! Learners take a closer look at the speeches and other primary source documents of...
Curated OER
Signature History
Learners review the meaning and application of primary and secondary sources in research. They determine how researchers locate primary source documents before looking at signatures as a validating factor on many primary sources....
Curated OER
Slavery Issue And Views North Versus South Around 1850s
Students explore the views of both sides of the Civil War. Through class discussion and debate, they look at how each side justified their position during the Civil War. Students write a letter explaining one of the viewpoints from the...
Curated OER
The Earth's Rain Forests
Students study the importance of the world's rain forests. In this rain forest lesson, students read about the role of the rain forests in the world's environment. Students then write a formal letter to a member of Congress or Senate...