Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

The Effect of the Great Depression on Children

For Teachers 4th - 6th Standards
How did the Great Depression affect children? Sometimes studying the Great Depression means only studying about how it affected adults, however, relating the experiences of children and peers their age to themselves may make the...
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

A Lifetime of Responsibilities: Child Labor in Alabama

For Teachers 6th - 11th Standards
Imagine children working long hours in factories, coal mines, and in the fields. Class members examine a series of pictures and read about early attempts to regulate child labor and current child labor laws.
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

Alabama's Secession in 1861: Embraced with Joy and Great Confidence. Why?

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
From December 20, 1860 to June 8, 1861, eleven states seceded from the Union. Alabama seceded on January 11, 1861. Why did so many white Alabamians want to secede? Why did they believe the South could win the war? These are the essential...
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

Alabama's Economic Contribution to the Confederacy

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
With a presentation and guided questions, help elementary historians understand the role Alabama played in the Confederate economy during the Civil War. The resource concludes with a newspaper article writing assessment.
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

World War II Home Front - Mobilization in Alabama

For Teachers 6th
Ships, tanks, and planes—what does a military need to fight a war? An interesting lesson explains the government's military mobilization efforts in Alabama during WWII. Class members look at a PowerPoint presentation and discuss how the...
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

Alabama's New South Era

For Teachers 11th - 12th Standards
The industrialization and urbanization of Alabama during the New South era (1865-1914) is the focus of a lesson plan that asks class members to use primary source documents to examine the impact of industrialization on Alabama workers...
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

From Alabama Farmer to Civil War Soldier

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
As part of a study of the Civil War, class members conduct a WebQuest to create a timeline of battles fought by the 10th Alabama Infantry Regimen. They then use Google Earth to pinpoint these battles of the Civil War on a map of Alabama.
Lesson Plan
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Alabama Department of Archives and History

World War I and Alabama's Rainbow Division

For Teachers 6th Standards
As part of their study of World War I, class members investigate the role of Alabama's 167th Infantry Regiment, part of the Rainbow Division, in World War I.
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

Settlement of Frontier Alabama

For Teachers 4th
What comes to mind when the class imagines settlers traveling out West? The instructional activity teaches pupils about the western frontier of Alabama and what life was like for people traveling West—in wagons with few possessions....
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

The Wrong Side of History: How One Group Justified Its Opposition on the Freedom Riders and Civil Rights for African Americans

For Teachers 11th - 12th Standards
Designed as a supplement to the study of the Freedom Riders, this resource uses primary sources to reveal the views of those who opposed the Freedom Riders. After careful study of the arguments presented by the members of the Montgomery...
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

What Would the Ladies Think? An Alabama Secession Story

For Teachers 6th
Alabama voted to secede from the Union preceding the Civil War. What did women think of the decision? The lesson uses letters and newspaper articles to explain women's views on the secession and how they participated in the celebration...
Lesson Plan
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Alabama Department of Archives and History

Alabama and the Treaty of Versailles

For Teachers 6th - 11th Standards
As part of a study of the treaty that ended World War I and the seeds of resentment it planted, class groups compare President Wilson's Fourteen Points and the articles of the Treaty of Versailles.
Lesson Plan
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Center for Civic Education

The Power of Nonviolence: The Children's March

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
What was the Children's Crusade and how did it impact the civil rights movement in the United States? Your young learners will learn about this incredible event through a variety of instructional activities, from reading a poem and...
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

Alabama's 1901 Constitution

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
"We, the People of the State of Alabama. . ." Did you know that the Alabama State Constitution has 357,157 words while the US Constitution has only 4,400? And that it has 798 amendments while the US Constitution has...
Lesson Plan
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Alabama Department of Archives and History

Alabama Farm Life in the Great Depression

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
The Great Depression not only impacted city folk and factory workers, it also had a profound effect on farmers. Young historians examine primary source materials that document the struggles of Alabama farmers during this time and...
Lesson Plan
PBS

Out of the Shadows | Black America Since MLK: And Still I Rise

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed Standards
Two powerful video clips launch a study of race relations in the United States after the Selma, Alabama riots, the passage of the Votings Rights Act, and the riots in Watts, California. 
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

An African American Represents Alabama during Reconstruction

For Teachers 4th Standards
The era after the Civil War saw a flourishing of African Americans exercising their rights. Using graphic organizers and Internet research, pupils consider the legacy of Benjamin Sterling Turner, who sat in Congress. Afterward, they...
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

La Mobile: A Case Study of Exploration and Settlement

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
The Le Moyne brothers, Jean-Baptiste and Pierre, were among the first explorers of the Gulf Coast. Class members read biographical information and journal entries about these men, study maps showing where the settlements they established...
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Alabama Department of Archives and History

Women of the Movement: Civil Rights Movement in Alabama

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Many know of Rosa Parks involvement in the Civil Rights Movement, but who were other female leaders? The instructional activity focuses on female Civil Rights leaders and their achievements. Scholars complete research, participate in...
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

World War II - Life on the Home Front in Alabama

For Teachers 6th
What was life like for civilians who were home during WWII? The lesson uses a PowerPoint presentation with photos to explain life on the home front was like during World War II, including shortages of food, collecting scrap metal, and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Special Traits: Alabama quarter reverse

For Teachers 2nd - 3rd
Who knew a state quarter could say so much? Alabama's quarter is embossed with an image of Helen Keller, pupils will use this image to think about what the phrase "Spirit of courage" means. They will use a graphic organizer to...
Organizer
Curated OER

The Official Quilt of Alabama- The Pine Burr Quilt

For Students 8th - 10th
In this quilting worksheet, students follow the directions to re-create the official quilt of Alabama, The Pine Burr Quilt. They use geometric shapes and stitching directions to make quilt squares.
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

Camp Aliceville: The Story of WWII Prisoners of War Who Came to Alabama

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
POW camps in the United states? In Alabama? The German POW camp in Aliceville, Alabama is used as the focus of a study of the more than 700 camps built in the US during World War II.
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

How Would You Feel? The Bravery of Civil Disobedience

For Teachers 6th - 8th
As part of their study of the US Civil Rights Movement and the Montgomery bus boycott, class members read Dr. Martin Luther King's "Integrated Bus Suggestions." They then craft a short story about the first week of Montgomery...