Introduce young musicians to the history of and different styles of music with an inquiry-based learning activity that asks them to play detectives to determine the similarities and differences among the sheet music found at a series of...

They say you gotta pay to play, and postsecondary education is no exception! High schoolers learn how to research and analyze the cost of postsecondary education as well as the different ways to pay for schooling. Learners then work...

While the Black Death wiped out a third of Europe's population during the Middle Ages, its destruction paved the way for better wages for workers and even an early form of modern capitalism. The relationship between the cataclysmic...

Just how long did it take the framers to write the Constitution? What role did the drafting process play? Scholars examine various drafts from the Constitutional Convention to gain a better understanding of its formation. Interactive...

Race played a key role in the war in the Pacific during World War II. Using images from both American and Japanese sources, learners consider racial propaganda and how leaders used it to rally popular support during the conflict. After...

Women and children played key roles during the Civil War, even if their voices are often lost in history. By studying letters and personal testimony from them, budding historians get a glimpse into the day-to-day life of civilians during...

Was what happened in 1886 at the Haymarket riot a crime or a case of xenophobia? Using political cartoons from the time, young historians consider the role the media played in anti-labor sentiment during the time and how that influenced...

In American democracy, majority rules but what prevents the voices of the few from being crushed? Using excerpts from Alexis de Tocqueville's writings, young historians explore cases where minority rights were trampled upon. Extension...

The Hopi refer to corn as their children, demonstrating its importance to the Native American group. Class members consider the role of literal and figurative language by examining poetry from this indigenous group. The resource includes...

A 12-piece primary source packet sets the tone for a study of the role women played in the origins, development, and impact of blues music. Legends like Bessie Smith, Gertrude "Ma" Rainey, Mamie Smith, and Ida Cox are featured, as are...

A poem carved on Angel Island's walls is the guiding text of a lesson that challenges scholars to put movement into a written piece of art. After warm up-activities, learners play a game of "Pass the Clap" and "Pass the Line," in which...

In today's political rhetoric, many forget the pivotal role the Republican Party played in the causes of the Civil War. The party's formation was the final straw for Southerners who saw the enslavement of people of African descent a...

The second module in a series for high school seniors focuses on tracking the central idea of a text across genres and from multiple author and character perspectives. Twelfth graders read a speech by Benazir Bhutto entitled "Ideas Live...

Class members begin their study of Romeo and Juliet by examining the words Shakespeare chooses in the Prologue to Act I to create the tragic tone of his famous play about star-crossed lovers.

As a mid-unit assessment, class members craft an in-class essay response to the prompt: "How does Shakespeare’s development of the characters of Romeo and Juliet refine a central idea in the play?"

Romeo and Juliet, Act 5, Scene 3, lines 139-170, is the focus of this day's lesson plan. Readers examine the dramatic irony in Juliet's comments and consider how "lamentable chance" caused by a "greater power" plays a role in the tragedy.

The accusations begin in Sophocles' Oedipus the King, with troublemakers and enemies abound. As learners delve deeply into the sights unseen, they review textual evidence from their readings to write about the importance of timing in the...

As Oedipus the King approaches its tragic conclusion, high schoolers discuss Oedipus' reaction to seeing his wife's body. They also examine how Sophocles structures the scene to contribute to the central idea of his play.

How does Shakespeare further develop Macbeth's character using the interaction between Macduff and Malcolm? Pupils write responses to the question. They continue their analysis of Macbeth with a masterful reading and guided whole-class...

Is it better to be dead than to "dwell in doubtful joy," as Lady Macbeth suggests in Act 3.2 of Shakespeare's Macbeth? Using the resource, scholars work in small groups to discuss how Lady Macbeth and Macbeth begin to unravel following...

How do directors' choices emphasize different elements of a drama? Scholars participate in a discussion about the Royal Shakespeare Company production of Macbeth and Akira Kurosawa's Throne of Blood. Finally, they write an analysis of...

Pupils first participate in a drama circle as they continue reading Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream aloud with classmates. Next, scholars move around and discuss text-dependent questions about the play with a Three Threes in a...

After finishing Act I, scene 1 from Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, class members study the theme of control as it relates to the play and start an Evidence of Control note-catcher worksheet.

How do authors play to people's moods? After briefly reviewing mood using a Conditional and Subjunctive Mood handout, learners practice identifying conditional and subjunctive sentences in the Montgomery Bus Boycott speech before reading...