On April 4, 1967 Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his speech "Beyond Vietnam." The controversy that followed is the focus of a three-lesson unit that asks class members to consider the political and social implications of King's...

Here is a fantastic primary source analysis activity regarding Frederick Douglass' speech delivered at the unveiling of the Freedmen's Monument in 1876. The follow-up discussion questions and activities highlight Douglass' discussion of...

A discussion of the Supreme Court’s Opinion of Tinker v. Des Moines generates a discussion of the Bill of Rights and the First Amendment. Although the key elements of this lesson are based on a video that is not included, the activities...

Judge Learned Hand's "Spirit of Liberty" speech delivered during the July, 1944 "I Am an American Day" celebration is the subject of a close reading activity that models for learners how to approach a dense, difficult text.

Speaking of the Internet. The culminating lesson for the unit on the Internet challenges pupils to prepare short, two-minute speeches on an issue facing society. The pupils chose from three topics that connect the Internet and...

Have your class learn the essentials of public speaking. They compose a speech for their fifth grade celebration using iPods and presentation software. This would be a great end of the year activity for any grade level.

Are you looking for ways to enhance a persuasive writing or speech unit? Use this lesson to prompt your young writers to investigate a school recycling program. After conducting research, they present a persuasive, well-organized speech...

Talking in front of others can be intimidating, especially when you aren't speaking in your native language. Put your English language learners at ease before a class presentation. They can follow these tips to give relaxed and effective...

The CROWN Act (Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair) is the subject of the lesson that asks groups to research the stories of five different women and share their insights in a jigsaw activity. Participants then craft...

Young scholars write a proposal for a speech. Students prepare appropriate visuals for use in the proposed speech. Young scholars produce one or more graphs that summarize the results from the experimentation. Students deliver an...

Students examine and discuss how volume, stress, pacing, and pronunciation help deliver an effective oral presentation. They listen to a speech by Nolan Ryan, identifying why he is a good speaker, then practice reading their own short...

Students examine the elements of a persuasive speech and brainstorm topics related to school that they think should be changed. They compose and deliver a three to five minute persuasive speech to their classmates using the key...

Students demonstrate the appropriate classroom public speaking and listening skills that would be necessary to influence or change someone's mind or way of thinking about a topic. They define the elements of persuasion and recognize the...

Students write a response to a diagnostic assessment determining what they need to work on to become good public speakers. They listen to the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. speech, I Have A Dream, and identify what makes a good speaker.

Eighth graders complete a reading of Lois Lowry's, The Giver, and determine a social problem the effects the "utopian society." They research information about the social problem using a number Internet, print, and media resources. They...

Franklin D. Roosevelt's April 14, 1938 Fireside Chat on economic conditions provides young historians an opportunity to polish their primary source comprehension skills. A great resource to add to you curriculum library.

Young historians will learn not to fear primary source materials (or fear itself, for that matter) thanks to this resource that uses Franklin D. Roosevelt's March 4, 1933 Inaugural Address to model how to conduct a close reading of such...

Get high school historians to step outside their own shoes by responding to JFK's inaugural address from the perspective of a civil rights activist, a soviet diplomat, or a Cuban exile. After a class discussion about the address,...

Dr. Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech provides the text for a study of how to analyze a speaker’s content, delivery and attitude. Visual learners identify specific lines that reveal King’s purpose and point of view while...

For this online interactive English worksheet, students watch a video of Martin Luther King delivering the "I Have a Dream" speech and then respond to 30 fill in the blank questions about the text of the...

Young scholars analyze current events and write and deliver extemporaneous speeches to the class. They define and discuss extemporaneous speeches, conduct research and deliver their speech, and participate in a peer evaluation of...

Students listen to President Obama's speech, and discuss its meaning. In this President Obama lesson students learn about the president, about how to deliver a speech, and the ways they can make a difference. They create posters, write...

Young scholars research current environmental problems in order to develop and deliver an oral presentation. The presentation persuades the audience to act on the student's point of view on the issue.

Students explore the content of Abraham Lincoln's First Inaugural Address. In this Abraham Lincoln lesson, students analyze the text of the speech to determine how Lincoln sought to preserve the Union from secession attempts.