Curated OER
Evaluating Eyewitness Reports
Students consider the advantages and disadvantages of eyewitness accounts as records of history. They research several accounts of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 and then compare and contrast each version to arrive at a final picture.
Curated OER
Teaching Justice: Schooling and the Four Waves of U.S. Immigration
U.S. immigration is the focus of a unit on social justice. Over the course of a school year, young historians read a variety of texts to learn about four waves of immigration that have occurred over time in the U.S. An emphasis on...
K20 LEARN
The Tulsa Race Massacre
The 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre is the focus of a lesson that explores the causes and consequences of the destruction of the Greenwood section of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Pupils examine primary source images, a video clip covering the riots, and...
Curated OER
A Soldier's View of the American Civil War
Study and research the American Civil War in this explanatory writing activity. Middle schoolers complete six activities to learn about the American Civil War and soldiers' views of the war. The activity includes several options to...
Curated OER
Lesson: After Nature: Visions and Visionaries
Build visual literacy, discussion, and critical thinking skills with an innovative art lesson. Young analysts discuss the use of decalcomania, surrealism, and automatism in various contemporary pieces, discuss constructed truth, and...
NASA
Cosmic Microwave Background
Begin your next class with a BANG! Pupils discuss the formation of our universe and its expansion before proceeding with an activity designed to demonstrate what most likely occurred billions of years ago. They conclude with a discussion...
Curated OER
Down to the Sea in Ships...Really!
Students discuss the travel of ancient sailors and the use of ships. They complete a Venn diagram, and compare and contrasts the two points of view on ancient ship travel.
Museum of Tolerance
Citizenship Then and Now: Comparing Ancient Rome and Contemporary American Society
Class members research citizenship in Ancient Rome and in the United States and use the provided graphic organizers to compare the rights and responsibilities of citizens in these two democracies.
Curated OER
First Meeting of the Indians and the Europeans
Your class hears a Native American Indian point of view of Europeans' arrival in Louisiana. They assess how cultural perspectives (especially an insider's view) and native language can shape a story. Each pupil identifies the...
Curated OER
Meet the Underground Railroad
Students research and learn about the Underground Railroad. In this Underground Railroad lesson plan, students take 2 weeks to research an individual, complete journal writings, read passages in small groups, list major events, and more.
Mary Pope Osborne, Classroom Adventures Program
Dinosaurs Before Dark
Young readers travel back to the time of the dinosaurs in this literature unit based on the story Dinosaurs Before Dark. Intended for use with upper-elementary special education young scholars, this resource provides reading...
Curated OER
Paul Revere's Ride-Fact or Fiction?
Young scholars discuss Paul Revere's ride. In this social studies lesson, students read Paul Revere's Ride and compare the differences between the poem and the historical event.
NPR
This Isn't Right: Women Reform Leaders
The 20th century saw many new possibilities open up to women in America, thanks to many well-known female historical figures — and some women who are not as famous but who are equally accomplished. Learn about the women who contributed...
West Virginia Department of Education
Intelligence of Authentic Character - News Coverage and John Brown's Raid
The resource, a standalone, shows how news coverage of John Brown's Raid began when the event happened and how that reporting shaped perception in West Virginia history. The resource includes interesting anticipatory discussion...
Smithsonian Institution
Women's Role in the War Effort
Did you know that many women were Confederate spies during the Civil War? The resource focuses particularly on the important role women played for both the Union and Confederacy. It uses exercises such as a discussion, video, analyzing...
Channel Islands Film
Santa Cruz Island - Writing for Information
After re-viewing a documentary segment on the restoration of Santa Cruz Island,, individuals craft an essay in which they compare the views of the various stake holders featured in the video and identify the point of view they find the...
Time Warp Trio
My Big Fat Greek Olympics
The Olympic Games are indeed a significant and far-reaching cultural component in our international community today, but from where do they originate? Where do our traditions stem from, and how do we choose the sports that constitute...
Curated OER
Comparative Genocides
Students examine genocidal events throughout history. Using the internet, they research these events and compare and contrast them with the Holocaust. They analyze the amount of inhumanity towards others throughout history. In groups,...
Curated OER
The Pursuit of Truth: Comparing Roger Williams and Martin Luther King Jr.
Fifth graders compare the life and times of Roger Williams and Martin Luther King Jr. In this life comparison lesson plan, 5th graders explore the key events that happened in each of their lives and fill out worksheets, write essays, and...
Curated OER
Historic Population Chart
Learners examine the changes in the population in Idaho over a specific amount of time. In groups, they use the digital atlas to identify the trends in the population and describe why and how they exist. To end the lesson, they compare...
National History Day
“War Is Hell. We Know it Now.” American Soldiers in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive
Understanding the soldier's experiences during World War I sometimes takes a newscast. Learners see the importance of understanding multiple points of view with a newscast project surrounding the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. Compare and...
Carnegie Library
Creative Writing: Middle School Lesson Plan
Enhance a unit on historical fiction with an engaging writing lesson. Learners bring the Industrial Era to life as they compose their own historical fiction pieces based on primary source images of Pittsburgh steel workers.
Curated OER
Comparing/Contrasting Northern Life to Southern Life
Young scholars compare and contrast the lives of African Americans who moved North vs. those who stayed in the South during the era of Jim Crow Laws.
Curated OER
Fueling Around with Energy: A Comparative Study of Conventional and Renewable Energy Use Among Nations
Students compare and contrast renewable and conventional energy sources. In this energy lesson, students research about conventional fuel and present a persuasive argument about their stand on the issue.