Twelfth graders name some of the parties in the political system of the United States. They identify the two main parties along with key information, issues, events, elections and/or people for each system. They then break into groups...

Explore the origin of political parties in the United States. Learners work in groups to read and analyze copies of the "Report on Manufactures" written by Alexander Hamilton. Then, they complete a worksheet comparing the Federalists to...

Here is an interesting topic. Learners examine the economics that led to the founding of the First Bank of America. They participate in a reader's theater experience depicting the debate between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson...

Students research and discuss the consequences of the Sedition Act. They illustrate the difficulty of balancing security needs and personal freedom using an example from John Adams's presidency.

Students research a political party and prepare a report about its history, philosophy, and the party's position regarding two major political issues. They complete a variety of additional creative activities regarding their party, as well.

Learners conduct research on the events of the end of the 18th century in order to identify critical factors leading to the development of the Federalist and Democratic-Republican political parties. They summarize the key positions of...

Tenth graders examine the Election of 1912. In groups, they identify the roles of the Democratic and Republican parties along with any third party mentioned. Using the internet, they describe the main issues of this election and discuss...

Learners investigate the beginnings of the political party system in the US. They determine the key positions of both the Federalists and the Democratic-Republicans. They compare the views of the early political parties with those of today.

Ninth graders examine the origins and functions of political parties.  In this American Government lesson, 9th graders create a party platform to address political issues that are likely to arise during a national election. ...

Students explore the history of third-party politics in America. They research the impact of one third-party or independent candidate for president and develop a poster and stump speech representing that candidate's motivation for running.

Pupils establish how the first political parties were formed.  In this U.S. History lesson, students work in groups to share their personal viewpoint on various topics provided by the teacher, then they are assigned to bring a...

Students examine the history of the Populist Party as it relates to its reforms and economic plight. In this Populism and the People's Party lesson, students explore why farmers experienced financial difficulty at the end of the century....

Students examine primary sources. In this lesson on political parties, students view historic documents, speeches, and photos to trace the rise and fall of particular political parties. Students will be looking at the success of each...

Seventh graders examine the first years of the U.S. under the U.S. Constitution. They identify the main themes of the Federalist and Republican parties, conduct research, and write a campaign speech and create a campaign poster.

Pupils examine the history of African American voting rights. In this voting rights instructional activity, students listen to a lecture on African American voting rights between the years 1890 and 1965. Pupils respond to discussion...

Students examine why the Founders of our country thought a republican government was best. They discover the Founders based our government on the government of Rome after much research and explore the advantages of a republican government.

Students explore historical political parties and their platforms. After studying the origins and functions of political parties, students create their own platform to address current issues. In groups, students design an ad campaign...

Pupils research and discuss the provisions in the Constitution that supported the arguments for and against the Sedition Act. They articulate objections to and arguments in favor of the Sedition Act.

Pupils identify factors that caused African Americans to shift party loyalty from the Republican Party to the Democratic Party. They review ways in which African Americans benefited from New Deal programs. Students analyze primary...

Students evaluate the impact of the Republican party in creating a Southern philosophy of secession. They analyze causation concerning the Southern philosophy of secession.

Students discover how Internet altered the public's involvement in the 2000 Democratic and Republican conventions, and synthesize their evaluations of convention sites to design their own pages for a convention-related Web site.

Eighth graders interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary resources. In this Reconstruction instructional activity, 8th graders research the role of Reconstruction in South Carolina by simulating the environment of...

Students examine the process by which candidates for U.S. president are nominated by the Democratic and Republican parties. They identify the differences between primaries and caucuses and key terms and issues related to the primary...

Young scholars conduct inquiries and research-acquiring, organizing, analyzing, interpreting, evaluating, and communicating facts, themes, and general principles operating in American history. They use the Declaration of Independence to...