Mr. Nussbaum
Fort Sumter Reading Comprehension
The Battle of Fort Sumter was both the first and the least deadly battle of the American Civil War, with no soldiers lost during the lengthy bombardment. Learn more about the first shots of the Civil War with a short reading passage and...
Curated OER
Understanding Other People's Decisions
Students analyze people's choices from different points of view. They read different scenarios and explain how they would react personally in that situation. Then they analyze what they would do in another character's position and...
Education Bureau of Hong Kong
Mental Models
Critical to responsible decision making is becoming aware pre-conceived notions and biases that influence our perceptions. A colorful slide presentations asks viewers to consider these mental models that factor into their assumptions and...
Curated OER
Interpreting Behavior: Expanding Our Point of View
Young scholars study the importance of understanding behavior from the perspective of the culture in which that behavior is the norm. They determine that understanding another culture involves being able to interpret behaviors, customs,...
Constitutional Rights Foundation
The Lincoln-Douglas Debates — Springboard to the White House
The Lincoln-Douglas Debates saw two primary political candidates debating seven different times about one of the most important social movements in United States history. Middle and high schoolers read an article that describes the...
Curated OER
Perspectives on Paraguay
Students locate the country of Paraguay on a world map. As a class, they brainstorm how their lives might be different from someone living in Paraguay. After reading an article, they compare the two cultures and compare it with their...
Curated OER
Art Basics Scavenger Hunt
Hand out this learning exercise and lead your class on a scavenger hunt. Pupils look for examples of shape, form, balance, pattern, perspective, space, and depth. They draw and write about the examples they've found. A great...
Inside Mathematics
Snakes
Get a line on the snakes. The assessment task requires the class to determine the species of unknown snakes based upon collected data. Individuals analyze two scatter plots and determine the most likely species for five...
Curated OER
Who Fought for the Union?
Learners read New York Times articles, letters, and listen to songs written from a soldier's perspective during the Civil War in order to understand who was fighting in the Union Army. This is a great lesson, complete with weblinks,...
EngageNY
Building Background Knowledge About Physical Environment: What Makes it Hard for Some People to Get Books?
How far would your pupils go to be able to have access to books? Revisit Heather Henson and David Small's That Book Woman and challenge class members to take on the role of Cal or the Book Woman. By putting themselves in someone else's...
Curated OER
William Apess and the Mashpee "Revolt" of 1833
Prompt your class with the following question: What was the status of American Indians in Massachusetts during Jackson's presidency? To answer this question, class members will read a series of primary source documents (attached),...
Curated OER
What Makes a Novel a Novel?
They always say to write what you know. This approach is used to get middle schoolers prepared to write novels of their own. Using a favorite book as a model, potential novelists respond to prompts that ask about characters, plot, main...
Curated OER
A Goldfish is the Best Pet
Provide your class with a list of possible topics (three are included here, but they're not exactly gripping), and polish their persuasive writing skills. This plan really emphasizes the prewriting process, and several graphic organizers...
Maryland Department of Education
The Concept of Identity Lesson 4: The Psychological Approach
Readers apply Sigmund Freud's theories of the unconscious mind and the psychological approach to literary criticism to analyze and evaluate the relationship between two characters in A Separate Peace.
Anti-Defamation League
Bias, Bullying and Bad Behavior in the NFL
A 2014 case of locker room behavior in the National Football League offers high schoolers an opportunity to get involved in the conversation of bullying and abuse. Class members read about the case and analyze quotes that reveal...
Curated OER
Of Human Bondage
How does the particular point of view in a situation affect the way it is presented? Focusing on perspectives on slavery during the Civil War, middle schoolers use research to write narratives from the points of view of their historical...
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
Creating Compassionate Communities
Have you ever lost someone? Middle and high school learners journal about a time they experienced the loss of someone through death, divorce, moving, or another type of change. They share their responses and discuss an article relating...
Curated OER
Weighing the War
Study opposing viewpoints with this lesson, which examines President Bush's September 2004 address at the United Nations. Middle schoolers study the text of the address, and then stage formal debates arguing for or against the reasons to...
West Virginia Department of Education
Editorials: The Guiding Voice of Authority?
How much can opinion influence a news story? A standalone resource discusses the importance of John Brown's Raid through the lens of journalism. Learners analyze two different texts, one from the perspective of the North and the other of...
Curated OER
Columbus Day (Native American Perspective)
Teach your class the perspective Native Americans had on Christopher Columbus. They will examine the effects of Christopher Columbus' exploration on the Native Americans using a reading theater and a carousel brainstorming activity. They...
Road to Grammar
Fame
Smile for the camera and find out how your English language learners feel about fame! Class members read three different points of view on fame and then discuss ten questions about the topic.
West Virginia Department of Education
The Debate - John Brown: Martyr or Madman?
Did he die for a cause, or was he crazy? Although the resource discusses John Brown and West Virginia history, many historical figures have the same reputation. Teach learners about different perspectives and highlight the importance of...
Teaching Tolerance
Using Photographs to Teach Social Justice | Exploring Identity
Even without captions, photographs can tell amazing, involved, and complex stories. Viewers analyze two photos, consider what the pictures reveal about the subjects' identity, and determine the social justice issues represented in the...