Students study pictures and artifacts of the one-room schoolhouse. For this compare and contrast lesson,students list similarities and differences in schools of today and one-room schoolhouses. Then students use this analysis to...

Students research and gather information on immigration, synthesizing the data they find.

Students define and discuss sectionalism and popular sovereignty, analyze impact of popular sovereignty in creation of state of Kansas, compare issues in territorial Kansas to current politically divisive topic, and evaluate primary...

Young scholars develop an analytical perspective of how historians record, preserve, and interpret data. In this US history lesson plan students read and interpret personal accounts of the Great Depression. They discuss how...

Students read various personal accounts of children during the Holocaust. Using special identification cards, they relate the Holocaust to historical events in their lifetimes. Examining primary source documents, they describe how they...

Fifth graders examine significant events in Post-Civil War America. In this Post-Civil War lesson, 5th graders investigate the important events after the war in 19th century America. They read primary source documents about six topics...

Learners use a photograph analysis sheet to analyze primary sources (photographs) of the Great Depression in small groups. They then write a poem about kids in the Depression Era that reflects their comprehension of the period and...

Students take a closer look at 9/11 memorials. In this public memorials lesson, students prepare for a visit to the National Constitution Center by analyzing photographs taken by Jonathan Hyman. After students visit the exhibit, they...

Eleventh graders explore the African American culture and history of Kentucky. They observe how an author's personal bias can define the argument of his/her publication. Students analyze primary source documents.

Students study grocery receipts to simulate the archaeological activity of classifying items. They discuss the receipts as if they were find lists.

First graders are introduced to using a database as a primary source. Using the internet, they choose a site of artifacts and practice navigating through the site. They identify an artifact and draw them on a large piece of white...

Pupils will use the internet to access information about artifacts to justify their use as primary sources of information. The activities can be done as a whole class or in groups. The differences between primary and secondary sources is...

First graders examine a database to explain the use of primary source documents.

On every July 4th, we watch fireworks and celebrate our independence, but how is the history of the American Revolution preserved? Four social studies lesson guide learners through different memorials, commemorative objects, and restored...

Introduces the class to the idea of searching a list by building a script. Learners modify a guessing game script that will find a number in a list. 

The Battle of Yorktown was an important battle of the American Revolutionary War for all sides. Learners read everything from the point of view of the British, the Americans, and finally, the French. After reading, they answer...

What would be your class's ideal world 30 years in the future? What about 100 years? Use a series of activities to discuss globalization, sustainability, scientific contributions to society, and the global community of which your...

Sojourner Truth’s “Ain’t I a Woman?” speech has reverberated through American history, giving voice to women of color who had not previously been heard. Learners analyze the tone, audience, purpose, occasion, and speaker of the speech’s...

Students imagine what it would be like to travel back in time. In this creative writing lesson, students watch parts of the film Back to the Future and examine artifacts from the past. Students write a short story in which they travel...

Learners investigate modern transportation in the 19th century by examining artifacts.  In this U.S. history lesson, students read the story Joseph's Railroad Dreams, and discuss the Golden Spike used in the first transcontinental...

Students analyze and discuss illustrations of the New World by John White. They examine the images, answer questions about each one, and write an essay.

Fourth graders interview a Native American and write a newspaper article or letter that expresses concern about robbing archaeological sites.

Students practice analyzing skeletal remains for clues by using the Internet.  In this scientific investigation lesson, students research the La Belle shipwreck using the Internet and written materials, later completing a Skeletal...

Fifth graders create and modify a database using information from cereal labels.