Curated OER
Negro Leagues Baseball
Students write a one page paper on one of the following players: Fleetwood Walker, Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson, or "Cool Papa Bell". They listen to the taped selection of Black Diamond by McKissack and McKissack and write a one page...
Curated OER
Mental Mapping Hangman
Students participate in mental mapping hangman activity. They choose the name of a country from a hat, draw that country on the board including at least one physical feature produced by nature or humans while not using any speech while...
Curated OER
Race and Political Representation
Students explore different perspectives dealing with race and politics.
Curated OER
Canadian History: The Seven Oaks Incident
Pupils examine primary source documents about the Seven Oaks Incident and consider the different perspectives written about it. They present their findings to the class orally or by creating posters.
Curated OER
Native American Poetry
Fourth graders locate the poetry section of the LMC. They produce a hand written transparency based on the poem Hiawatha by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Students illustrate a poem from their poetry section. It is a mystery to them what...
Curated OER
Exploring History Through Photographs
Fifth graders compare and contrast photographs from the 1800s to those of 2003. In groups, they create drawings of how society has changed over time and use maps to locate local streets. Individually, they practice measuring the...
Curated OER
A River Runs Through Our Town
Pupils conduct an interview with a town resident, asking them to describe the history, use, and their memories of a river common to their community. They create a drawing of the river using information from the interview, and write...
Curated OER
The Saturday Night Massacre
Students look at the actions taken by Nixon from several perspectives. They explain the Constitutional issues involved with the firings and the concept of Presidential privilege as it evolved during this period. Students draw conclusions...
Curated OER
The Battle of the Little Bighorn
Students assess how point of view can change a story. In this content area reading lesson, students read about the Battle of the Little Bighorn from three different sources. Students answer questions based upon their reading and draw...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Mark Twain and American Humor
“The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” is famous, in part, because it established a uniquely American form of humor. For this famous story, Mark Twain combines the tall-tale, the dialect story, and satire. Here is a resource...
Curated OER
Noncombatancy and the Seventh day Adventist Church
Upper graders investigate how the Seventh Day Adventists are objectors to the practice of war. The lesson covers the Civil War and examines the church's position about the practice of war. The research extends to modern wars and learners...
Syracuse University
Ancient World Writing System
Most twenty-first century pupils don't know how to interpret cuneiform. Examining images of cuneiform and papyrus writing and using a chart and Venn diagram, young historians extrapolate what life may have been like for people who lived...
Syracuse University
World War I
World War I was known for its gruesome battlefields and horrific injuries. Using photographs from a battlefield surgeon's scrapbook, scholars see first-hand what life was like in the trenches. After creating a timeline of the war using...
Syracuse University
World War II
During World War II propaganda was as important to the war effort as the soldiers in the field. Scholars consider how the government communicated messages of patriotism with propaganda by examining pieces from World War II. Then, they...
Museum of Tolerance
Essential Vocabulary and Concepts
Genocide. Scapegoat. Propaganda. Words are powerful. Words carry the weight of history. To prepare for a visit to The Museum of Tolerance, class members consider the weight of meaning in words related to intolerance.
Center for History Education
How Did the Public View Women’s Contributions to the Revolutionary War Effort?
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...
Curated OER
Sanctuary: Quail Island Banks
Students explore visual arts by examining a diorama in class. In this geography lesson, students examine an island off the coast of New Zealand and identify the physical attributes of the land. Students answer study questions regarding...
Curated OER
Northwest Ordinance
Young scholars examine the area where the Northwest Territory was located. They discover the steps territories need to follow to become states. They create a map of the Northwest Territory and label the states that came out of that region.
Curated OER
U.S. foreign policy in the early Republic
Students research various events during the War of 1812 and then create magazine articles with supporting illustrations, students are in control of their learning.
Curated OER
"Chinese in the Frontier West: An American Story"
Students substantiate a generalization by providing supporting details. They apply visual and oral information to a piece of written work and formulate at least three generalizations they think may characterize the experience of...
Curated OER
Late 19th Century U.S. Foreign Policy
Eleventh graders discover that many of the issues the United States faces today elicit the same type of political, philosophical and moral debate that has divided the country in the past.
Curated OER
Non-Violence Means "Doing Nothing"
Learners reflect on violence and non-violence. In this World History lesson, students read an article by Gandhi then write an essay as to whether they agree or disagree with his thoughts. Learners then share all their ideas as a class.
Curated OER
The Battle Over Reconstruction: The Aftermath of Reconstruction
Learners examine the Reconstruction Era. In this American history lesson, students explore the condition of the United States following the Civil War as they read statistical data. Learners analyze the Reconstruction policies to...
Curated OER
Are You Ready for Personal Independence?
Third graders discover what independence means to different individuals. They write two paragraphs. In the first paragraph they describe how they are independent. In the second paragraph they describe how they are still dependent.