Primary sources are valuable for understanding the context of historical events, but the diction and dialect in these documents can be difficult to understand. Middle and high schoolers participation in a transcription process in which...

Varve: a deposit of cyclical sediments that help scientists determine historical climates. Individuals analyze the topography of a region and then study varve datasets from the same area. Using this information, they determine the...

Scholars examine the strategy of making a story map or outline to identify the main elements of a story. They discuss the who, what, where, when, why, and how of a story, in an outline form. As a class they read a short story, answer the...

Earth scientists answer five multiple choice questions about the topographical map atop the worksheet. Use this as a quick assessment of understanding after having taught how to read contour lines and topographic maps. 

Students write a story.  In this writing style and illustration instructional activity, students review elements of Dr. Seuss' writing and illustration style and read a few more books written by him, examining the writing...

Students visualize census data on a map and use a map key to read a population map. For this census lesson, students use a map of the Virgin Islands and corresponding worksheets to gain an understanding of population density.

Students examine how to read maps for historical information. They listen to a lecture on the history of D-Day, analyze a historical map of the invasion of Normandy, and answer discussion questions.

Students identify a variety of topographic map symbols. They make generalizations about an unidentified community by reading and interpreting map symbols.

Students investigate the Manifest Denstiny. They explore how the idea was evident in 19th century American maps. Students brainstorm the relationships between maps and national expansion. They review a map from 1816 that called for...

For this mapping skills worksheet, students read an excerpt that describes three different types of scales and how to calculate distance on a map. They respond to two short answer questions using the map provided on the sheet and to...

Sixth graders are introduced to the concepts of a compass rose and how it used in relationship to reading maps in geography. The lesson is meant to build upon prior knowledge and skills.

Which i sound is used in the word icky? Kindergarteners and first graders listen to the short /i/ sound. They practice shaking their fingers to indicate icky when they hear the target sound. Then they practice reading a poster with the...

Here's a bright inference instructional activity that can enlighten the study of any text. Readers fill in a thought bubble with what they know about a story, then map on a scroll clues they found in the text, and record their...

Charon, the largest of Pluto's moons, was discovered in 1978. Lesson is a walk through of how to solve for the phases of Charon. It uses two different points on Pluto and takes into account the tilt of the pole, the rotational axis, and...

Picture someone's excitement of seeing a horse for the first time. How about a cow? The Columbian Exchange changed life for not only Native Americans, but also for Europeans and the entire world. The second lesson of a 22-part series...

It's all about the plot, main events, and story mapping with this lesson. As the class reads the novel James and the Giant Peach, they create an excitement graph that actually charts key events and moments of excitement. After...

United States expansion into Western territories impacted much more than just lines on a map. The seventh installment of a 22-part series about America's history puts scholars into the lives of those making the journey westward as well...

How much does the environment affect how and what man creates? Children explore the effect of the environment on primitive man as they research raw materials from a specific location. They use their findings to write a short essay about...

Just how long was the Long Drive? Learners investigate the movement of cattle in the Great Plains during the mid-1800s. They incorporate photographic, newspaper, video, and primary source evidence into their posters, artwork, and written...

Letters have long been prized by historians as primary sources for what they reveal not only about events but also about the emotional responses of the writers to these events. "My Dear Little Boys," a letter written by Leonard Isacks on...

The Berlin Blockade may not take up as much space in the history books as other events of the Cold War, but for the citizens of west Berlin in 1948—and the events to follow between the Soviet Union and the United Stattes—those 318 days...

All it takes is a little adventure to interrupt a quiet, simple life. A study guide for The Hobbit explores the adventures that disrupt Bilbo Baggins' quiet life. Questions discuss key events found within J.R.R....

Think back to the aftermath of an family dispute. The awkwardness of having to make up, get along, and move forward can be very difficult. The tenth lesson of a 22-part series on American history examines the Reconstruction Era following...