Being a historian requires serious sleuthing. They examine primary source documents and look for evidence, for clues that reveal who wrote the document, when, and why. After watching two historians model the process, young history...

Teach the class about the predecessor to Declaration of Independence—the Virginia Declaration of Rights. Using the foundational documents, scholars examine the two writings to consider how they are similar and how they are different. A...

Planning on using primary source materials? Introduce your class members to SOAPS, a worksheet that models how to analyze and reflect on primary source materials. Readers name the document, identify the subject (S), the...

When in the course of a course on historic American events, it becomes necessary for learners to examine, with decent respect, the Declaration of Independence, it becomes evident that there are six separate and equal parts of that...

Today, many young people find it hard to understand why it took over 150 years for women in the United  States to get the right to vote—why there was even a need for the suffrage movement. As they read a series of primary source...

Calling upon the legacies of Joan of Arc, Elizabeth I, and Catherine the Great, Esther Reed rallied Southern women to support the American Revolution. Using a broadside by Reed and other primary sources, such as poetry, young historians...

How did women use President Wilson's ideals and rhetoric in their bid for suffrage? To answer this essential question, class groups analyze primary written documents and visual images.

Designed as a PowerPoint presentation for AP English class, this resource provides a detailed analysis of the content, format, and purpose of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr’s “Letter from the Birmingham Jail.” Because much of the...

When and how did the Cold War begin? To answer this question, you will not find a better-organized, in-depth, activity- and inquiry-based resource than this! Executing best teaching practices throughout, each portion of this inquiry...

Following an online activity, scholars complete a Grafitti Wall in which small groups write words and phrases on chart paper pertaining to Pilgrims, the Mayflower, and Thanksgiving. Pupils perform a close reading then answer a series of...

What led to the success of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and how might historians approach this question differently? This rich series of lessons includes a short introductory video clip, analysis of six primary source documents, and...

World War II not only resulted in major loss of life, but it also displaced thousands of people. An eye-opening activity uses primary documents to explore the refugee crisis during World War II. Scholars compare the event to modern-day...

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...

After reading a series of primary source documents, groups compare the lives of and opportunities available to rural and urban women in the 19th century to rural and urban life in the 21st century. As an exit ticket, individuals craft a...

As a reading comprehension assessment, ninth graders are asked to use evidence drawn from The Glass Menagerie to support an analysis of how Tennessee Williams uses specific lines to develop Amanda's character as well as her...

"Promises Denied," the second instructional activity in a unit that asks learners to consider the responsibilities individuals have to uphold human rights, looks at documents that illustrate the difficulty the US has had trying to live...

Learners with special needs create Summary of Performance (SOP), a written document which describes their disability, its impact on their daily life, ways they have learned to compensate, their personal strengths, and their goals. The...

While World War II was a pivotal moment in history, historians debate its importance to the civil rights movement. Class members consider the implications of segregation and the war using a series of documents and a jigsaw activity....

Looking for a new and exciting way to teach young historians the art of primary source analysis? Jazz up your instructional activity with a resource that asks class members to analyze photos, travel documents, and letters written by some...

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...

Twenty insightful questions follow a read aloud of the story, Amos and Boris by William Steig. Scholars then show what they know through completion of a cause and effect chart, reading fluency assessment, and a written...

With throngs of Americans out of work and hungry, Franklin D. Roosevelt made the bold move to establish a social safety net with programs such as Social Security. The move was—and still is—controversial. Using documents from the 1930s,...

Did Scopes violate the Butler Act? Why did so many Americans follow the Scopes trial? See analytical reading in action with a fantastic five-day lesson plan in which class members consider the historical context that provoked public...

Camille Seaman's photoessay, "Witnessing Icebergs" documents just a tip of the problem of climate change through images of icebergs in both the Arctic and Antarctic polar regions. After viewing the haunting images, viewers respond...