Curated OER
Frederick Douglas and Abraham Lincoln
Students discuss the significance of the announcement of the Emancipation Proclamation and the assassination of Lincoln. They analyze how historians use evidence and develop differing interpretations. Students examine historical bias and...
Curated OER
Changing Perspectives on the Japanese Internment Experience
Students explore the issue of Japanese-American internment. In this World War II lesson, students analyze historical biases regarding Japanese-American internment as they analyze literature, research print and Internet sources, and...
Curated OER
Friar Margil and the Spanish Missions
Learners examine the concepts of diversity and assimilation. They identify the validity of sources and recognize bias, and create original illustrations from the students' point of view which show the impact of the Spanish friars on the...
Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media
Analyzing Political Campaign Commercials
Imagine a lesson that models for learners how to separate facts from opinions. How to detect bias. How to evaluate a source of information. How to identify propaganda. Although designed for middle schoolers, the activities in this packet...
Curated OER
Dragonwings: Evaluate Chapters 10-12
As your class finishes the novel Dragonwings, use these culminating projects. A vocabulary list is given for chapters eleven and twelve and either an epitaph or letter activity concludes the book. The final project consists of creating a...
National Wildlife Federation
Conceptualizing Module II - Putting It All Together
"Creativity is just connecting things." - Steve Jobs. After weeks of researching climate change, the ninth lesson in a series of 21 combines the data and analysis to address essential questions. It covers natural phenomenon, human...
Crafting Freedom
F.E.W. Harper: Uplifted from the Shadows
Young historians discover the life of an incredible African American woman who, as an anti-slavery lecturer prior to the Civil War, defied stereotypes of what women could accomplish. Pupils explore the concept of stereotyping, read...
Adult Fiction by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Ghost Boys: Educator Guide
The spirit of the Civil Rights Movement lives on in a more literal than figurative way in Ghost Boys. A focused lesson plan features Jewell Parker Rhodes' novel about ghosts of slain black teenagers, including the main character, Jerome,...
Center for History Education
Blockbusting: Social and Economic Change through Real Estate
"Redlining," "Blockbusting," and "White Flight" may not be terms familiar to young historians. Here's a lesson that introduces middle schoolers to these terms and the actions associated with them. Class members examine a series of...
Museum of Tolerance
My Experience with Injustice
As part of their preparation for a visit to the Museum of Tolerance, individuals are asked to write about a time when they witnessed or experienced unjust, biased, or prejudicial treatment. A great way for writers to make a personal...
Curated OER
History Did Happen in My Back Yard!
Eighth graders interpret historical evidence presented in primary resources. In this Louisiana history lesson plan, 8th graders research their parish history using the LOUISiana Digital Library resources. Students create multimedia...
Curated OER
Choosing the Best Candidate
Who would win an election between Napoleon and Julius Caesar? Group your class up to analyze and discuss which of their given choices would make the best presidential candidate, given specific criteria. The potential candidate list...
Curated OER
Eloquent Words
Logan’s Lament, a speech delivered by Mingo Chief Logan in 1774, provides pupils with an opportunity to not only study the historical events surrounding the battle between Native Americans and the Europeans for the West Virginia...
Alabama Department of Archives and History
Alabama's Economic Contribution to the Confederacy
With a presentation and guided questions, help elementary historians understand the role Alabama played in the Confederate economy during the Civil War. The resource concludes with a newspaper article writing assessment.
Prestwick House
Reading Nonfiction: Analyzing Joseph McCarthy's "Enemies from Within" Speech
Looking for a lesson plan that teaches class members how to analyze nonfiction? Use Joseph McCarthy's famous "Enemies from Within" speech as a instructional text. Worksheet questions direct readers' attention to the many historical...
Curated OER
Interpreting Christopher Columbus
High schoolers compare historical interpretations. For this research skills lesson, students use Internet and print resources to research the controversy regarding Christopher Columbus's work as an explorer. High schoolers use their...
Curated OER
Fear, Civil Rights and Personal Freedoms
High schoolers write and perform a one-act play. They present constitutional, personal and cultural issues of the internment camps of the 1940's. They research and present a historical examine internernment camps.
Curated OER
Southern Perspective on Reconstruction
Students analyze historical perspectives. For this Reconstruction lesson, students compare and contrast the Northern and Southern views on Reconstruction as they analyze letters from Robert E. Lee and read Confederate Military History.
Curated OER
Historical Witness - social Messaging
High schoolers examine and develop artwork that shows women's roles during different eras. In this women's role lesson, students look at artwork that shows women at work during the mid-nineteenth to early twentieth century. They design a...
Rockefeller Archive Center
Understanding Mass Media News
In an age of fake news and photoshopped images, it is vital that 21st century learners development the skills they need to evaluate mass media and assess its validity. A great way to launch such a study is with a carefully crafted lesson...
Curated OER
Using Primary Source Documents
Students examine copies of primary source documents and determine the document's value to a researcher. They analyze and evaluate the document for bias or contradiction. They know the difference between a primary and secondary source.
Curated OER
Emmett Till: A Classroom Sonnet
Who is Emmet Till? An important historical figure, your kids will be shocked by his story! Discover the details of his life and collaborate to write a crown of sonnets in the style of Marilyn Nelson.
Walters Art Museum
The Symbolism of Allegorical Art
Introduce learners to allegorical art with four bronze sculptures by Francesco Bertos. After modeling how to recognize bias and allegory in Bertos' Africa, class groups examine the other three sculptures in the series before creating...
Curated OER
Infusing Equity by Gender into the Classroom: Those Ancient Greeks
Students compare the treatment of men and women in Athens and Sparta. In this gender roles lesson plan, students research daily life in the Greek cities and create charts that compare the lives of women and men in both of the cities.