Curated OER
Childhood in Early 19th-Century America
Students interpret and analyze primary source documents and compare and contrast childhood today with that of the past.
Curated OER
Early Jazz
Learners gain an understanding of early jazz. They study Dixieland and the Roaring Twenties. They examine the American historical significance and cultural implications of early jazz.
Rutgers University
African-Americans in WWII
Using transcripts of interviews of African-Americans who served in WWII, class members work in pairs to understand their experience. Prior to the group work, the teacher provides background on WWII and the African-American experience....
Curated OER
Deerfield Families
To understand the consequences of the 1704 attack on Deerfield by combined French and Native American forces, groups research primary and secondary resources related to four Deerfield families involved in the attack.
Curated OER
A Practical Experiment In Colonization
Role-play and simulation exercises are fantastic ways to help learners understand the reality behind many social and historical events. Pretending they are colonists, upper graders choose a location, create a history, establish laws, and...
DocsTeach
Statues of Christopher Columbus
Scholars compare statues of Columbus and discuss how each memorial captures his personality. Academics also complete a worksheet and discuss how some people have called to remove statues honoring Columbus.
Curated OER
The Federalist Defense of Diversity: Extending the Sphere
How did early Americans ensure expansion while also securing the rights of citizens? Alexander Hamilton and James Madison, two of our early leaders, considered the problem of faction to be the "mortal disease" that created unstable...
Scholastic
Pilgrim and Wampanoag Daily Life
A instructional activity looks at the Pilgrims and Wampanoag tribe during the first Thanksgiving. Scholars compare and contrast information presented by an online activity then discuss their findings. Learners examine the two group's...
Scholastic
Pilgrim and Wampanoag Daily Life for Grades 3-5
Thirteen steps make up a lesson that challenges pupils to compare and contrast the daily lives of Pilgrims and the Wampanoag tribe. Learners revisit the Graffiti Wall then break into small groups for an investigative reading assignment...
Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary
Lists to Live By: Developing a Self-Improvement Plan
Ben Franklin was a man with a plan. Learners investigate his plan for self-improvement using excerpts from Franklin's autobiography. Then, pupils develop their own plans and discuss how to sell them to others using the two-session lesson...
Mr. Nussbaum
THE Founding Father
Who is the founding father—George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, or Benjamin Franklin? Scholars decide which of three early Americans, should be crowned the founding father of America based on research. Then, they compose a persuasive...
Curated OER
Nov. 8, 1960 | Kennedy Is Elected President
Using the presidential election of 1960 as background information, learners consider the push of electoral reform. They read about the events and issues surrounding President Kennedy's win in 1960 and compare them to the same issues...
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
One Land, Many Trails: English Language Development Lessons (Theme 5)
English is not the only subject that requires its own set of vocabulary words—geography does too! A series of language development lessons designed to be used with Theme 5: One Land, Many Trails helps introduce readers to key vocabulary...
Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary
Franklin’s Philadelphia: Another Point of View
The impressive story of Benjamin Franklin, including his rise from a printer’s apprentice to a statesman, color upper-level scholars’ understanding of the possibilities of life in colonial Philadelphia. But not everyone had the...
Curated OER
Fill-In l Remembering Dick Clark
Your scholars may have an idea of who Dick Clark is, but do they understand the role he has played in American history for over 50 years? Give learners some practice with media literacy as they read an article about Clark's life and fill...
Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary
The Junto Meets Again
Out of the classroom and into the streets! With Ben Franklin’s Junto society as inspiration, learners develop their ideas for improving their communities and put them into action. After analyzing meeting notes to discover what the Junto...
Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary
Benjamin Franklin: Master Diplomat for One Last Time
At 81, Benjamin Franklin was the oldest delegate to the 1787 Constitutional Convention, where he exercised significant influence in shaping key elements of how the United States operates. The class examines his role, using “The Scene at...
DocsTeach
Analyzing a Map of the Louisiana Purchase
With the stroke of a pen, Thomas Jefferson roughly doubled the size of the United States. The Louisiana Purchase not only grew the new country, but also it gave rise to the legends surrounding westward expansion and accelerated the...
Center for History Education
Why is John Adams Standing on Thomas Jefferson's Foot?
Was it a bromance, or were they frenemies? Young historians use a controversial portrait and letters between Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and others to evaluate the relationship between the two Founding Fathers. Examining the primary...
Curated OER
Evacuation: The Japanese Americans in World War II
Students examine Japanese internment camps of World War II. In this World War II lesson, students use primary and secondary sources to research the evacuation process and life within the internment camps. Students discuss the racial bias...
National Endowment for the Humanities
American Literary Humor: Mark Twain, George Harris, and Nathaniel Hawthorne
Nathaniel Hawthorne as a humorist? Really? The three lessons in this series focus on the the storytelling style, conventions, and literary techniques employed by Hawthorne, George Washington Harris, and Mark Twain.
Curated OER
A Historical and Educational Perspective on American Sign Language
Using Sign Language to Communicate with Your Special-Needs Students in the Classroom
Curated OER
Intermediate Guided Reading Lesson Plan for: Corn is Maize The Gift of the Indians
A lovely guided reading lesson awaits you and your students. They read the book,Corn is Maize: The Gift of the Indians, by Aliki, summarize the important events of the story, and describe how corn has helped develop culture in America.
Curated OER
Dressing in Early American Times
Fifth graders, by doing research and seeing actual and simulated artifacts, gain knowledge of and make comparisons about clothing in the Colonial and early Republican eras with attire of present time.