Curated OER
HIT THE TRAIL
Students draw three cattle trails that passed through Indian Territory, using a written description of the trails and will create a diary of trail life. Students research a historical trail as assigned. Students share their information...
Curated OER
The Freeman School: Building Prairie Communities
Students examine this one-room school in Nebraska and consider the important role it played in the community during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. They compare their educational experience with those of rural students of...
Curated OER
Tobacco: Relationship between Race and Occupation
Eighth graders examine the relationship between race and employment in the tobacco industry. Using the text, they evaluate the impact of polical and economic changes on life in North Carolina. In groups, they research different...
Curated OER
Fun-Factory - NOT!
Students design a solution to a problem based on the Industrial Revolution. In this design lesson plan, students come up with architectural designs and present them to teachers in a simulated factory.
National First Ladies' Library
Who Wants to be a Pioneer?
Students write a story based on their research of the Oregon Trail. Using the Internet and traditional sources, they engage in research about pioneer's experiences on the Oregon Trail during westward expansion. Students write a story...
National Woman's History Museum
Inventive Women - Part 1
While a woman didn't invent the parasol, three women received patents for their improvements to the original design of umbrellas. In the first of a two-part series on inventive women, class members investigate the patent system to...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Tales of the Supernatural
Scary stuff! Whether approached as the first horror story or a "serious imaginative exploration of the human condition," Frankenstein continues to engage readers. Here's a packet of activities that uses Mary Shelley's gothic...
Curated OER
Crane, London, and Literary Naturalism
Students analyze "To Build a Fire" by Jack London and "The Open boat" by Stephen Crane. They write an essay in which they compare and contrast the narrators and plots in each story.
Curated OER
Critical Ways of Seeing The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in Context
Students complete a unit of lessons examining the cultural context of the novel, 'The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.' They write a critique of the novel, compare/contrast two published critiques, and explore various websites.
Curated OER
Learning Landscapes
Fifth graders analyze a landscape depicting Yosemite during the time of the Wild West. They compare their perceptions of the West from film and television to this representation. They observe the use of scale and color to depict size and...
Curated OER
Fall Plowing: Drawing to Scale
Young scholars explore coordinates and scale drawings. For this drawing to scale lesson, students discuss symmetrical and asymmetrical shapes, geometric, shapes and estimation of size. Young scholars recreate a portion of a drawing...
Curated OER
Hey Kid, Want To Buy A Bridge?
Learners study the building of the Brooklyn Bridge and the inventions of Thomas Alva Edison. They design an infomercial to sell a product or a service for an invention. They create an invention that improves the world and write an...
Curated OER
Images of the Parks
Students explore U.S. geography by completing a research project about the National Parks. In this scenery image analysis lesson, students identify the different national parks in our country and observe paintings and images by famous...
Curated OER
John Gary Evans and the Politics of Race
Young scholars read letters written by Evans and Gunton regarding race relations. In this Progressive Movement lesson, students interpret the intentions and tone of the letters to understand contemporary racial beliefs. Young scholars...
Curated OER
Pakistan: Country and Culture
Students explore the culture and history of Pakistan. In this Pakistan lesson, students compare their lives to the live of Pakistanis as they locate it geographically and research the lives of teens there. Students examine the culture of...
National First Ladies' Library
All the News That's Fit to Draw: Political Cartooning and the Presidency
Young scholars research, analyze and study the history of political cartooning in the United States. They recognize a political cartoon, be able to identify the main idea, the symbols and the exaggeration and caricature in political...
Curated OER
The Sahara: Home of the Tuareg
Young scholars study inhabitants of the Sahara. In this Tuareg culture lesson, students explore the how the Tuareg people adapt to their environment as they research specific Internet sites.
Curated OER
James Whitcomb Riley
Students describe James Whitcomb Riley's poems and identify the themes they portray. For this poetry lesson plan, students read the history of James Whitcomb Riley and read some of his poems.
Curated OER
Prairie Voices: German Immigrants Move to Iowa
Students create historically accurate travel journals. In this Iowa history lesson plan, students research the German immigration experience as they write travel journals that feature a German family's move into an Iowa county.
Curated OER
Farmers, the Populist Party, and Mississippi (1870-1900)
Students determine the cause and effect of a historical event. They draw conclusions about statistical data and maps and compose a campaign speech for a Populist candidate. They design a political poster and badge for the Populist Party.
Curated OER
Cotton Pickin' Before and After the Civil War
Students explore the impact of cotton. In this economics lesson, students listen to a lecture presented by their instructor on the Southern crop of cotton and its impact on the South prior to and following the Civil War. Students...
Curated OER
Railroads in Antebellum Augusta and Franklin Counties
Eleventh graders are divided up into groups and work on separate worksheets. They reassemble as a class and discuss the different articles and how the railroads affected people's lives.
Curated OER
Matthew Henson: Heroic Explore Who Conquered Racism
Students explore the concept of racism. In this character building lesson, students read a biography about a hero Matthew Henson. Students discover the challenges he, and others, faced during a time of unfairness.
Curated OER
Mount Auburn Cemetery
Learners use photos, maps and reading materials to examine the history and role of Mount Auburn Cemetery. They analyze the landscape of the cemetery, consider how it affects visitor's emotions and feelings and then design an original...