Curated OER
Lady Liberty: The New Colossus
Students research the history of the Statue of Liberty and the symbols associated with it. They read and discuss Emma Lazarus' poem and why it should persuade people to donate money to bring the statue to America. Students role-play as...
Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary
Benjamin Franklin and the Long Struggle for Independence
Students explore U.S. history by reading biographical material in class. In this Benjamin Franklin lesson, students identify the life of Franklin and the events that led him to become one of America's first heroes. Students complete an...
Curated OER
Agriculture: Oklahoma's Legacy
Sixth graders explore agriculture as it relates to crops over the course of a series of historical events. They read and create a timeline of the 50-year increments that depict important cause and effect events. Students then use...
Curated OER
Evolution and the Fossil Record
Engage young biologists with four laboratory activities that explore the fossil record. Learners examine fossil images, a fossil kit, the rock record, and geologic time scale. They even experiment with the oxygen production of an Elodea...
Foreign Policy Research Institute
Imperialism, Arab Nationalism and World War I
Continued conflict in the Middle East makes this lesson relevant, and the inclusion of a critique of Lawrence of Arabia might increase student interest in a potentially challenging topic. The resource includes a solid...
Curated OER
Leaders, Laborers, and Other Perspectives of World War II
How did the women in France feel about their country’s involvement in World War II? Class groups are assigned a country involved in WWII, and individuals within the group adopt the point of view of leaders, laborers, businessmen, women,...
Curated OER
No More Freedom Fries?
Students discuss the May, 2007, French presidental election of pro-American, right-wing candidate Nicholas Sarkozy. They reflect on both the historical and contemporary relationship between France and the United States. Students work...
Curated OER
Oral History: Interviewing Elders
Sixth graders examine oral history traditions. They interview family members about their childhoods and compare them to their own. Students use the collected information to make posters, letters, essays, or poems about their research.
Curated OER
A Sample of What?
Students are introduced to the connection between women and the textile industry. Using primary source documents, they complete a handout on how gender roles have changed over the years. They examine a sampler which is connected to the...
Curated OER
Lily and Miss Liberty
Learners discuss ways to earn money and why they might need it. Students create crowns to wear all day like in the story. Learners create a play using characters in the story. Students interview "eyewitnesses" at the unveiling of the...
Curated OER
The United Nations: Fifty Years of Keeping the Peace
Students examine the work of the United Nations. In this United Nations lesson, students listen to their instructor present a lecture regarding the history of the United Nations. Students respond to discussion questions...
Curated OER
Ice Cream
Open this instructional activity by giving a brief history of ice cream. Using liquid nitrogen to lower the temperature, preteens make their own confection. The accompanying activity sheet queries learners about freezing point, the...
Curated OER
European Explorers of North and South America
Sixth graders explore the connection between the geography of America and the migration of the Native Americans to the American continents to the future conquering of the continents by the Europeans. They discuss the causes and effects...
Curated OER
Three Wars Equal One New Country: Part 3
Students explore the many reasons why and how Germany became a country.
Curated OER
Three Wars Equal One New Country: Part 1
Young scholars explore how and why Germany became a nation.
Curated OER
Au Revoir to All That
Young scholars take a close look at the president of France, In this French history instructional activity, students visit selected websites to take in French culture, investigate the 2005 riots, and predict what President Sarkozy's...
Curated OER
High Profiles
Students research and write newspaper articles about current world leaders, using a New York Times International article as a model. They research a current world leader's personal background and political history.
Curated OER
Taking It to the Streets
Students read about a protest in France, led by students against the government's labor laws targeting youth. They research student-led protests over the past 50 years and role-play student protesters, reporters, and government officials.
Curated OER
Alexis de Tocqueville’s America
Students analyze de Tocqueville's America. In this democratic history lesson, students use primary sources to determine what de Tocqueville found to be so unique in the America. Students analyze artifacts, maps and documents through...
Curated OER
The Alien and Sedition Acts
Students discover the conflicts that arose between the political parties over issues of foreign policy and economics. Using the Internet, they research the Alien and Sedition Acts and how they relate to the U.S. Constitution. They...
Curated OER
U.S. Entry Into WWI
Middle schoolers identify the reasons why the United States entered World War I. In this world history lesson plan, students are given a lecture on Woodrow Wilson and analyze documents (specifically, Woodrow Wilson's speeches). Middle...
Curated OER
Ruling Wisely? British Rule after the Conquest
Students research and write an essay comparing the Royal Proclamation of 1763 and the Quebec Act of 1774 in the context of the events surrounding the times.
Curated OER
100 Years War and Joan of Ark
What events led up to the Hundred Years War? In small groups or pairs the class discusses several critical thinking questions and then writes a fictional dialogue that depicts both an English and a French point of view.
Curated OER
Liberty, Equality, Uniformity?
Learners examine the French draft law to ban religious symbols from public schools. They research "secularist" and "pluralist" positions regarding this ban, debate the topic in class, and draft a position paper on the ban.