Curated OER
Following the Leaders
Examine the historic election of Pope Benedict XVI and reflect on the challenges he faces as the new leader of the Catholic Church. This New York Times lesson investigates how other world leaders are chosen in different forms of...
Curated OER
Writing a News Article
Join the newspaper business with a series of lessons and exercises focused on elements of journalism. The packet focuses on distinguishing fact from opinion, writing effective headlines, sequencing events, and editing and...
Curated OER
Signature History
Students review the meaning and application of primary and secondary sources in research. They determine how researchers locate primary source documents before looking at signatures as a validating factor on many primary sources....
Curated OER
Newspaper on the Civil War
Students create historically accurate newspapers. In this Civil War lesson, students research Internet and print sources regarding the events, battles, and personalities of the war. Students collaborate to publish newspapers that feature...
Newseum
Today's Front Pages
Take a close look at a number of newspapers with collection of lessons and activities. Using a poster (which can be found under the materials tab), learners examine the hard copy of a local newspaper. This leads into an exploration of...
Curated OER
Johannes Gutenberg and the Printing Press
Young scholars use library or online resources to create time lines on the life of Johannes Gutenberg and tell the impact his invention, the printing press, had on the development of newspapers.
Curated OER
Films About World War II
Ninth graders focus on how filmmakers have changed their view of the Second World War. They create portfolios or their own documentary to investigate the various screen interpretations of the wartime era and explain different points of...
Curated OER
Will There Be a White Christmas This Year?
Students examine historical weather data, and create map and color key that illustrates the likelihood of a white Christmas in different locations across the United States.
Curated OER
Speaking Out About Kosovo
Invite your class to reflect on the responsibility of newspapers to act as vehicles for citizens to voice their opinions. Using an article to gain factual info. about gov't strategies in dealing with current events in Kosovo, learners...
Curated OER
Declare the Causes: The Declaration of Independence
Students study the Declaration of Independence and the process our founding fathers went through to get it written and signed. They analyze other similar historical documents and draft and present their own declarations.
PBS
African American History: Lunch Counter Closed
Young historians investigate and evaluate the effectiveness of the strategies the Civil Rights Movement used to end segregation in the United States. After watching an video interview with Carl Matthews and Bill Stevens who participated...
Curated OER
Basic Needs
Students examine the unique and diverse historical artifacts that people have designed to fulfill their everyday needs in extraordinary ways. They identify ways humans have used design throughout history to enhance the ways they meet...
Ford's Theatre
How Perspective Shapes Understanding of History
The Boston Massacre may be an iconic event in American history, but perhaps the British soldiers had another point of view. Using primary sources, including reports from Boston newspapers and secondary sources from the British...
Southern Poverty Law Center
Evaluating Online Sources
All sources are pretty much the same, right? If this is how your class views the sources they use for writing or research projects, present them with a media literacy lesson on smart source evaluation. Groups examine several articles,...
Curated OER
It's Your Birthday! Expository Writing Unit 2
Students create an expository essay. In this writing instructional activity Students are assigned a country and must conduct research surrounding a historic event that occurred in that country at the time of their birth.
Curated OER
Roaring Twenties: The Impact of High School on its Students Over Time
Eleventh graders compare the American high school experience of the 1920's to today. In this historical perspectives lesson, 11th graders examine surveys from 1924 high school students and then create their own surveys for today's high...
Curated OER
The Historic Record, Current Responsibility & Recognition of the Governor General
Students research the history of the Governors General in Canada. They examine the current Governor General of Canada and create a presentation of their research.
Curated OER
Political Cartoons
Students examine a variety of historical cartoons. They recognize a political cartoon and identify the main idea, symbolism, exaggeration and caricature in political cartoons. Students analyze a political cartoon by Benjamin Franklin.
Curated OER
When Work is Done
Eleventh graders create an album based on a thesis statement about life in the 20th century after completing the introductory lesson for a lesson on the web site "When Work is Done".
Curated OER
It’s Your Birthday! – Conventions: Revision and Proofreading
Happy birthday! Celebrate everyone's birthday with this writing activity, which prompts seventh graders to research historical events in a country at the time of their birth to create an essay. Working in pairs, they proofread each...
Curated OER
Design Explorations: Frieze Patterns
Middle schoolers will explore frieze patterns. A frieze pattern is a mathematical concept to classify designs on two-dimensional surfaces, which are repetitive in one direction, based on the symmetries in the pattern. They will explore...
Curated OER
For the Fun of It
Students view pictures of Amelia Earhart and discuss the social and historical context of her life. They read excerpts of Earhart's autobiography "The Fun of It" and analyze her purpose in writing it.
MENSA Education & Research Foundation
I Need a Superhero
Once the class learns about the hero's journey, they'll find it in every story and movie they see! Take characters from their humble beginnings to their atonement and apotheosis with a set of lessons about the hero's journey...
Curated OER
Ellis Island Online
Young scholars research their ancestors by visiting a number of online resources. They read personal immigration stories and begin creating their own family tree.