Curated OER
All the President's Men and Women
Learners research responsibilities, programs and government departments of leaders that make up the presidential cabinet, in the form of a Web Exploration, after reading "Dueling Power Centers" from The New York Times.
National First Ladies' Library
The President's Assassin: Motives and Outcomes
Students investigate the assassinations of four American presidents. Through research, groups create a dossier on one of the four men who were the assassins. After presentations of the dossiers, the class looks for common traits in...
University of California
The End of the Cold War (1979-1991)
Scholars use primary and secondary documents, as well as video evidence, to investigate the end of the Cold War. After completing the final installment of an eight-part series, class members better understand the issues surrounding...
Alabama Department of Archives and History
Conflict in Alabama in the 1830s: Native Americans, Settlers, and Government
To better understand the Indian Removal Act of 1830, class members examine primary source documents including letters written by Alabama governors and the Cherokee chiefs. The lesson is part of a unit on the expansion of the United...
National Endowment for the Humanities
“Read All About It”: Primary Source Reading in “Chronicling America”
Can investigative journalism become too sensationalistic and accusatory, or is it vital for the survival of a democracy? Middle schoolers analyze primary source documents from early 20th-century newspapers as well as Theodore...
Curated OER
Cast of Personalities - The Louisiana Purchase
The origins of the state of Arkansas are the focus of this history lesson. Elementary schoolers to high schoolers identify persons associated with the development of the state from the very first European contact to statehood in 1836....
Anti-Defamation League
The Gender Wage Gap
"Equal pay for equal work!" may sound logical but it is not the reality. High schoolers begin a study of the gender wage gap with an activity that asks them to position themselves along a line that indicates whether they strongly agree...
Curated OER
The Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln
"The Gettysburg Address" is the basis of a series of activities that not only model for learners how to conduct a close reading of a text, but also how a close reading can help them comprehend a difficult text. The detailed, step-by-step...
Curated OER
POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT: THE CASE OF LATVIA
Students compare the powers of a U.S. president to those of leaders of other countries. They pretend they are presidential advisors and make decisions as a group as to what the president has the right do in different situations.
Curated OER
The Missouri Compromise of 1820
Students use a map of the Missouri Compromise to explain the geographical changes it brought to the U.S. and why the changes provoked a debate over the expansion of slavery in the U.S.
Curated OER
An Early Threat of Secession: The Missouri Compromise of 1820 and the Nullification Crisis
Students examine the controversies over slavery's expansion and how the federal tariffs further entrenched the dividing line between northern and southern interests.
Alabama Department of Archives and History
Military Conscription in World War I: Alabamians Express Their Opinions
If called, would you go? Should the US government have the power to impose a draft during any war? The Selective Service Act of 1917 (aka the Conscription Act of 1917) authorized the drafting of men into the military for only the...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Slavery and the American Founding: The "Inconsistency Not to Be Excused"
High schoolers examine slavery in the revolutionary and colonial eras of the United States. In this slavery lesson, students investigate the presence of slavery in early America, the language of the Constitution, and the intent of the...
Curated OER
The Mission of Lewis and Clark
Students comprehend the various aspects of the Lewis and Clark expediton. They complete an idea web. Students work in small groups. They recall some important aspects of the Lewis and Clark expedition by performing the Corps of...
Curated OER
A Wolf by the Ear
Students examine Thomas Jefferson's view of slavery. In this slavery lesson, students watch segments of the video "Slavery and the Making of America." Students respond to discussion questions as they watch the video and make inferences...
Curated OER
Indian Removal: The Cherokees, Jackson, and the “Trail of Tears”
Young scholars examine executive power. In this Indian Removal lesson plan, students listen to their instructor present a lecture regarding the "Trail of Tears". Young scholars respond to discussion questions regarding the...
Curated OER
What Do They Have In Common?
Fifth graders use a database to gather information on the United States last five Presidents. Using the information, they identify their similarities and differences and what characteristics made them a good leader. In further detail,...
Curated OER
Suspect Sources at the Republican Debate
Young scholars explore and analyze statements made during a televised presidential debate. In groups, they research and test the validity of the statements made by the presidential contenders. Students examine sources and draw...
National First Ladies' Library
The Civil War Revisited
Students move beyond the generals and battles approach to the Civil War and explore, instead, the issues, ideals, and outcomes of the great conflict that left a president dead, a region destitute, and a nation in shambles.
Curated OER
Case Studies in Journalistic Ethics No. 2
Learners use texts on media ethics and various Web sites to explore real world examples of media law issues. For this media ethics lesson, learners examine the Food Lion case using a transcript from the...
Curated OER
America: Influenced by the Enlightenment
In this Enlightenment influence study guide worksheet, young scholars read 5 quotes from the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution and then respond to 5 reflection questions.
Curated OER
Heritage: Famous People of the West
Fourth graders investigate the impact of Brigham Young and Jim Bridger on westward expansion. They conduct research, develop a class information chart, and create a cartoon strip depicting what happened when Jim Bridger and Brigham Young...
Curated OER
Keeping the Home Fires: The lives of Western women
Fourth graders explore the various trails that settlers took West from Missouri. They examine the reasons that people took these trails as well as the kind of people who made the journeys. They examine the Oregon, the Mormon, the Santa...
Curated OER
How Women Won the Right to Vote
Students consider how women gained the right to vote in America. In this suffrage instructional activity, students investigate major events of the suffrage movement and conduct research. Students also role play petitioning to...