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The Great Gatsby: Primary Sources from the Roaring Twenties

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students research the Roaring Twenties. In this 1920's America instructional activity, students analyze primary sources to develop an understanding of lifestyles and values of the era as they read F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great...
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Political Cartoons: Finding Point of View

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Students examine political cartoons. In this colonial America lesson, students analyze political cartoons pertaining to the Stamp Act.
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To Kill a Mockingbird: A Historical Perspective

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students research the Great Depression. In this Great Depression lesson plan, students analyze primary sources to develop an understanding of life in the American south during the depression era as they read Harper Lee's To Kill a...
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The Grapes of Wrath: Scrapbooks and Artifacts

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary sources. In this Great Depression lesson, students read John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath and use ethnographic research processes...
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Labor Unions and Working Conditions:United We Stand

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Young scholars examine primary documents about the establishment of labor unions. In this organized labor instructional activity, students research the working conditions that contributed to the growth of the labor union movement. Young...
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Local History: Mapping My Spot

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Students explore maps to discover historical information about their local area.  In this mapping and history lesson plan, students use panoramic maps of their own town/city to interpret historical information.  Students also...
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Out of the Dust: Visions of Dust Bowl History Lesson Overview

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Learners complete activities with the book Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse. In this literature lesson, students read this story and view the Dust Bowl history from the eyes of a child. They discover the Great Depression and life in...
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Twentieth Century Entertainment: When Work is Done

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students determine how Americans enjoy leisure time. In this 20th century America lesson, students research primary sources to study how Americans gained leisure time during the century and what they did with it.
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Women in the Civil War: Ladies, Contraband and Spies

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary resources. In this American Civil War  lesson, students research diaries, letters, and photographs of women involved in the war.
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American Lives in Two Centuries:What Is an American?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Young scholars decide what it means to be an American. For this historical perspectives lesson, students read Crevecoeur's "Letter from an American Farmer," and interviews with everyday Americans from the Works Progress Administration....
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Billy the Kid: Perspectives on an Outlaw

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students examine the life of Billy the Kid. In this Westward Expansion lesson, students use Internet and print sources to research the contributions of gunfighters to the settlement of the American West.
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Immigration and Migration: Today and During the Great Depression

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students conduct interviews, analyze primary sources including docuements and images to gain an inderstanding of the causes and effects of he Great Depression and immigration.
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Around the World in 1896

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers work in groups to plan, take and document a trip using an Internet Database of primary sources "Around the Wolrd in the 1890's." This enables students to break old western perspectives of other nations as they analyze...
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The Declaration of Independence: From Rough Draft to Proclamation

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students discover the purpose of the Declaration of Independence. In this colonial America lesson, students compare the original draft by Thomas Jefferson to the final draft of the Declaration of Independence.
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Thomas Jefferson's Library: Making the Case for a National Library

For Teachers 7th - 11th
Students examine a letter written by Thomas Jefferson. In this lesson on the Thomas Jefferson Library, students discover a methodology for creative writing by examining Jefferson's letter to congress explaining why they should purchase...
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The U.S. Constitution:Continuity and Change in the Governing of the United States

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary resources. In this U.S. Constitution lesson, students examine and analyze primary sources regarding the plan for U.S. government.
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French Canadian Immigrants in New England

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary resources. In this immigration lesson, students conduct research related to the movement of French Canadians to England. Students use their...
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The Immigrant Experience: Down the Rabbit Hole

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Students relate the immigrant experience to Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. In this immigration experience instructional activity, students read Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and relate it to the...
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Immigration: Our Changing Voices

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students identify how immigration affects the family and or community. For this Immigration lesson, students examine traditional migration and how immigration has changed over time. Students will consider their own families and history...
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Immigration History Firsthand

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary resources. In this immigration lesson, students conduct research regarding Ellis Island and the American immigrant experience. Students use...
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Japanese American Internment

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students create a presentation based on the primary sources they have researched about the Japanese Americans that were held in internment camps during World War II. In this Japanese Americans lesson plan, students read different points...
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Drake's West Indian Voyage 1588-1589

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers investigate several maps detailing Sir Francis Drake's voyages.  In this geography lesson, students practice reading maps and locating the precise locations of where Sir Francis Drake visited.  Middle schoolers...
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Waldseemuller's Map: World 1507

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Students investigate the 1507 word map. In this world geography lesson, students examine the details of each section of the map and then draw conclusions about how the people of 1507 understood the world. Students are evalated on...
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How Transportation Transformed America

For Teachers 11th
Eleventh graders focus on the role of transportation. In this transportation lesson, 11th graders look at the lives of Americans at the turn of the centuries. They compare and contrast 2000 to 1900.