Curated OER
Carl Sandburg's "Chicago": Bringing a Great City Alive
Carl Sandburg composed poetry that conveyed a time and place in American Literature and history. Learners identify the literary techniques he uses to describe the historical and cultural context of living in Chicago. They define the...
Curated OER
Duke Ellington: Great American Musician and Composer
Students delve into the life and music of Duke Ellington as a major American musician and composer. The elements that made the sound of his orchestra unique and the talents of his band members are explored in this lesson.
Curated OER
The Great Seal
Students study patriotic symbols of America. In this American history instructional activity, students construct a KWL chart on United States symbols and examine visuals of the Great Seal and bald eagle. Students create another symbol...
Curated OER
Music of the Great Depression
Eleventh graders take a closer look at the music of the Great Depression. For this 1930's America lesson, 11th graders read and analyze the provided lyrics of 6 songs from the era. Students then compose their own lyrics for songs that...
San Francisco Symphony
By the Great Horn Spoon!
By The Great Horn Spoon is a fantastic novel for introducing learners to life during the California Gold Rush. First, kids research and analyze American folk songs, then they connect to the text as they listen to symphonic pieces written...
Digital Writing and Research Lab's – Lesson Plans
Teaching Close Reading through Short Composition/Revision
This activity may have writers evaluate short compositions, but their subjects are quite tall: great Americans. Pupils read one another's compositions and closely examine how specific phrases and diction contribute to shaping American...
Illustrative Mathematics
Overlapping Rectangle
Challenge young mathematicians' ability to compose and decompose shapes with this fun geometry puzzle. The goal is simple, locate all of the rectangles shown in a picture of three overlapping rectangles. Perform this activity as a whole...
Curated OER
Creating an Original Opera
This may be a lot to ask of a high schooler, but then again, who knows? Pupils work in groups to explore, write, and then perform an original opera. They view versions of The Magic Flute and La Traviata, then compose a plot, characters,...
Curated OER
Migrant Workers Through the Lens of Dorothea Lange
Students explore the lives of migrant workers during the Great Depression. For this Great Depression lesson, students examine photographs and song lyrics to gain an understanding of the conditions for people living in the era. Students...
Curated OER
James Brown: Life and Times
Students trace James Brown's rise from "Little Junior" in Depression-era Augusta, Georgia, to the "Minister of the New Super Heavy Funk" and create a collage that captures his impact on American music.
Curated OER
Woodrow Wilson and American Involvement in the Great War
Students examine American involvement in World War I. In this World War I instructional activity, students investigate Wilson's policy of neutrality as they read excerpts from his messages to Congress. Students respond to questions...
ReadWriteThink
Designing Museum Exhibits for The Grapes of Wrath: A Multigenre Project
Challenge readers of John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath to create a museum exhibit that uses artifacts to focus on one issue raised by the award winning story of the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, and the Joads.
Curated OER
Dos mapas de Florida, el Caribe y parte de Sur America
What can maps tell us about the past? Find out with a Spanish lesson that incorporates geography. After examining maps individually, comparing two old maps of Spanish Florida and writing notes in the provided Venn diagram, pupils pair up...
Curated OER
Musician Extraordinaire Based on the DC Quarter Reverse
Students develop an understanding of the role of a musician, composer, and conductor. In this musician lesson, students examine the District of Columbia quarter and see that Duke Ellington is on the reverse side. They define performer,...
Curated OER
Streamlines and Breadlines
Students explore the Great Depression. In this Great Depression lesson plan, students research selected websites and analyze primary sources to conduct inquiries regarding the depression, northern migration, and urbanization. Students...
Curated OER
Great American Families
Fifth graders wrote essays, interviewed family members, took photos of their activities, and tape recorded narration to accompany the photos.
Curated OER
Writing With Punch
Students watch the series "Unforgiveable Blackness". They examine the media's response to Jack Johnson in the film. They role-play the role of reporters to compose poems of headlines.
Curated OER
Grand Canyon Suite
Take a trip to the Grand Canyon! Lesson one explores how Ferde Grofe painted a musical landscape of America when he wrote the Grand Canyon Suite. Learners then examine art that shows the Grand Canyon in lesson two. Finally, lesson three...
Curated OER
What Made George Washington a Good Military Leader?
Young scholars identify the qualities of an effective military leader. In this Revolutionary War lesson, students view several Internet resources about George Washington's life. Student groups research one of four battles, and document...
Curated OER
A Renaissance of Jazz and Poetry
Students explore, analyze, study and read a variety of poems and listen to jazz that have their roots in the Harlem Renaissance. They then discuss the similarities and differences of themes in the works of different poets and composers.
Curated OER
Confucianism in a Changing Society
A great instructional activity promotes thoughtful discussion, global perspectives, and links between economics and culture. Learners view four clips showing how Confucian teachings have shaped Chinese culture and how filial piety plays...
Curated OER
Writing as a group activity
Did you know that 50% of all Americans can trace a relative who traveled through Ellis Island? Relive these journeys with your class and then provide sentence strategy templates for them to use to compose their own informative...
Curated OER
Speech in the Virginia Convention
“. . .different men often see the same subject in different lights. . .” but the great orator Patrick Henry used all the skills at his command to craft a speech to convince listeners to see things as he did--that liberty was worth dying...
Curated OER
An American Legacy-Lewis and Clark’s Corps of Discovery Study
Fifth graders travel with the Corps of Discovery. For this ancient civilizations lesson, 5th graders research print and Internet sources about the Lewis and Clark expedition. Students prepare PowerPoint presentations to share their...