What do Abraham Lincoln and the Transcontinental Railroad have in common? Using a set of primary source documents, including pictures, maps, and treaties, class members link together the common themes of expansion into the American West....

What is the best way to get a point across: a petition or a protest? Using primary sources, including a petition from Susan B. Anthony and a photo of a White House protest from the early 1900s, young historians examine what women did to...

"Go West, young man!" is a familiar refrain in American history. But why did people leave their homes in the East to travel westward and what impact did that movement have on people already living in the American West? By examining...

Commonplace today, the zipper and button construction of blue jeans was a major innovation. Using the patent for the J.W. Davis and Levi Strauss innovation, individuals comb an image of the fly for clues. Afterward, they discuss its...

Some scholars consider the Civil War and Reconstruction a second American Revolution. Class members weigh in after examining primary sources, including a Congressional resolution calling for the Fifteenth Amendment and the credentials of...

Writing a resume is as easy as 1-2-3. Teens learn the basics of resume writing by viewing a PowerPoint and completing a KWL chart. Next, they type and submit their resumes. 

With the stroke of a pen, Thomas Jefferson roughly doubled the size of the United States. The Louisiana Purchase not only grew the new country, but also it gave rise to the legends surrounding westward expansion and accelerated the...

The 2020 election is not the only unpredictable one in history. The Election of 1800 highlighted an unforeseen event in a presidential election. The activity reviews documents from the elections and what happened when the electoral...

Fact or fiction: Women fought as soldiers in the Revolutionary War. The resource highlights the life of Deborah Sampson Gannett, a woman who disguised herself as a man to fight during the war. Academics decipher a legal document and...

Just how alike are some historical documents? Discover the similarities between the Magna Carta and the United States Bill of Rights in a fast-paced activity. Historians learn the importance of both documents and the lasting impact they...

Practice analyzing primary sources in a thought-provoking lesson on the impact of slavery. Young historians read a petition regarding the Fugitive Slave Law and answer a series of questions to understand the importance of the document....

What freed enslaved people? The answer, it turns out, is complicated. Using a set of online documents and writing prompts, young historians examine a series of primary sources, including a letter from a woman asking if she was freed and...

While Juneteenth was more than 150 years ago, today Americans debate whether it should be a national holiday. Using a military declaration proclaiming the last of the enslaved people in Texas free, individuals look at the significance of...

The legacy of Reconstruction and the Freedman's Bureau is complicated. Using an interactive web resource, learners literally weigh the evidence using an online program in primary sources such as labor contracts and marriage records to...

What do a photo of Abraham Lincoln, a map for the Battle of Antietam, and the Dred Scott decision all have in common? Learners consider the broader question as they examine documents related to civil rights during the Civil War and...

When women demanded their right to vote, did the Constitution already protect it? The New Departure Strategy in the women's suffrage movement made this claim through court hearings. Using documents, such as transcripts from Susan B....

African Americans fought in the Civil War, and they were recruited by both the Union and the Confederacy! By comparing the wording of posters—one directed at freedmen and another to the owners of enslaved people—young historians discover...

Get hands on virtually with recruitment posters for African American soldiers during the Civil War with an interactive online resource. By highlighting key phrases in the posters using an Internet tool, learners discover how African...

Just who was Clara Barton? Using an archive photo from the National Archives, class members consider the legacy of the founder of the American Red Cross. The activity includes the photograph, along with prompts to help young scholars...

Very few outsiders get to see the Hopi "Butterfly Dance." However, using approved footage from the tribe, class members consider the importance of symbols in Hopi culture by watching the dance and analyzing lyrics from its songs....

What's in a name? Historians consider the question as they examine places important to the Hopi people and the meanings of their place names. Included worksheets include maps and charts to help class members examine the geography of Hopi...

The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution propelled America's involvement into a bloody conflict—and it was based on a fallacy. Using the resolution and other documents from the Vietnam War, including declassified documents, young historians...

Ratifying the Constitution was no simple task. Using primary sources, such as classic writings from the Federalists and Anti-Federalists, young scholars examine the arguments for and against the Constitution. They then decide: Would they...

While the Constitutional Convention lay the foundation of the new government for the United States, the protections given under the Bill of Rights were controversial. Using documents, such as James Madison's and Thomas Jefferson's...