Curated OER
Immigration and Ancestors
We are all immigrants to this country and the study of immigration can help students connect to history in a personal way. Students will listen to audio clips from the Ellis Island web site, discuss the treatment of immigrants in the...
EduGAINs
Migration—Push and Pull Factors
What causes people to move from one place, one city, or one country to another? Using the provided migration questionnaire, learners interview family members about the factors that cause them to be pushed from an area or pulled to...
Roald Dahl
Matilda - The Third Miracle
Magnus takes a visit to the classroom in the 20th chapter of Matilda. Or does he? After reading, learners interview the person in the hot seat to get a detailed account of what happened during this chapter. Then, they write individual...
Curated OER
Analyzing a Writer's Stance
Should college admissions decisions be based on whether whose family members attended? Secondary students read and respond to a New York Times article on the issue of 'legacy preferences' in college admissions. Following class...
Curated OER
Lesson: David Goldblatt: Structures and Normativity, looking at Photography
Art can be a vehicle for social change and cultural expression. Upper graders examine the art of photographer David Goldblatt, as it pertains to apartheid, South Africa, and the AIDS epidemic. Discussion questions and image links...
Alabama Department of Archives and History
Alabama's 1901 Constitution: What Was at Stake?
Who should be able to vote? As part of a study of the 1901 Alabama Constitution, class members examine primary source document that reveal the reasons the authors gave to support their positions on this question and their assumptions in...
Breaking News English
More People to Stick to New Year's Resolutions
What makes a good New Year's resolution? Practice goal-setting and reading comprehension with a set of language arts activities. English learners work on cloze passages, synonym matches, interviewing exercises, and...
Curated OER
Oral Histories
Students investigate the theme of what it means to be American in a pluralistic society. They conduct oral histories with a family member and create a presentation of the interview. Students develop a better comprehension of their own...
Curated OER
Quilting the Past and Present
Students construct a quilt using symbols of the past and present. In this communities lesson, students interview an older adult and discuss the history of their community. Students create a quilt.
Curated OER
Exploring Nonprofit Careers
Students interview members of nonprofit organizations about their careers. In this nonprofit careers lesson plan, students research nonprofit careers, prepare questions to ask, and interview those who have those careers.
Curated OER
Harvesting the River Lesson Plan: Taking an Oral History
Pupils practice researching history through oral traditions. In this U.S. History lesson, students examine an online exhibit titled Harvesting the River, in which pupils interview someone from the story. Students utilize...
Curated OER
Collecting My School Family Data
Pupils are tasked with collecting data on their school. In groups, they collect data on various aspects of school life along with social and economic backgrounds and charactertics of their hair and eye color. They draw two pictures,...
Curated OER
History - Up Close And Personal
Students identify national origin and population movement across U.S. of ancestors and/or community residents, explain historical development of major local industries, identify local social patterns/economic development as provided by...
Curated OER
Food and Culture: Exploring the Flavors of Your Community
Students brainstorm the types of food they eat at home, discussing and comparing with the class. Students brainstorm and make a chart of questions that came out of the activity and their discussions. Students interview someone who...
Curated OER
Stories of the American Experience
Students identify a veteran to interview. This could be a family member of one of students or someone contacted through an organization in the community. They use a storyboard to plan their movie about their subject.
Curated OER
Honoring Neighborhood Heroes
Read biographies and use the internet to research stories of courage.Young writers compare and contrast characteristics that societies value. They write reports about their family and community's heroes.
Curated OER
Back In The "Old Days"
Fifth graders collect data during their worker interviews while in groups to compile job changes. They analyze the data to determine the categories of changes, patterns/trends of change and future projections. Each group then develops a...
Curated OER
Campaign Signs and Pranksters
Students interview a selected candidate and find out his or her views on important issues and what he/she hopes to convey to voters. They write and design campaign flyers. Students create final mock-ups of the materials.
Curated OER
South Korean Women at the Turn of the Century, with a Focus on the Modernity
High schoolers consider the role of women in South Korea. In this global studies lesson, students examine articles and interviews regarding women and educational achievement. High schoolers discuss women's issues in South Korea and...
Curated OER
Immigration/Migration: Today and During the Great Depression
Eleventh graders compare experiences of their families to those living through the Great Depression using famiy interviews, photographs, films and document from the Library of Congress.
Curated OER
Background for The Outsiders: the 1960s
As background for a reading of S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders, groups rotate through four stations (video, music, website, information) to gather information on the 1960s. In addition, they interview family members about the 1960s and...
Curated OER
Miss Rumphius
Students engage in a literature study in order to appreciate the world around them and create an innate instinct of working for the cause of conservation for the environment. They answer guided questions that use the story as a resource.
Curated OER
Funerals and Burial Rites
Ninth graders research burial practices that originated in West Africa and then migrated to the South Carolina and Ohio. They compare and contrast burial practices in both places. As students collect information and data, they organize...
Curated OER
Discovering Your Heritage
Students interview a family member about their heritage. They listen to and record part of their family's oral history. Students also create and label a family tree going back a minimum of two generations and compare and contrast...