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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

May the Best Character Win

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Running an election campaign takes money. Class groups must effectively budget money in order to design and purchase sufficient advertising aimed at procuring classmates' votes. After completing an online tutorial, they also write and...
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Activity
National Constitution Center

Town Hall Wall: College Exam

For Students 8th - 12th Standards
The college that directly affects young citizens' lives is not the university they're applying to. Learn about the Electoral College in a town hall activity in which class members debate the merits of the current system versus electing a...
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PPT
Curated OER

Kennedy Assassination: Cutting through Conspiracies

For Teachers 9th - 11th
First exploring the facts about the John F. Kennedy assassination, this impressive presentation dismantles many popular conspiracy theories about that fateful day. From Jack Ruby's motives to "the magic bullet" to Fidel Castro, the...
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Current Events Quiz #3

For Students 9th - 12th
Useful as a blast from the past, this current events activity is outdated (Fall 2001). Many global events are part of these fifty questions, but quite a few of them are very specific to pop culture and sports. This could be helpful in a...
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Assessment
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Balanced Assessment

Presidential Popularity

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
Media often misrepresent data and statistics to their advantage. This lesson asks scholars to analyze an article with misleading statistics. They use margin of error and mean data in their studies. Once they complete their analysis,...
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Lesson Plan
BBC

The Role of a Monarch (key stage 2 and 3)

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
What makes a good monarch? Elementary and middle schoolers examine popular symbols of the British monarchy before designing a television advertisement about the qualities needed in a monarch. Next, they write poems using metaphors and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Electoral Process

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students study the history and mechanics of the Electoral College and formulate opinions as to whether this institution should be preserved, modified or eliminated. They compare and contrast electoral and popular votes in the...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Trouble for the United States in the Middle East: The Reagan-Bush Years

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Learners examine U.S. foreign affairs with the Middle East during the Reagan and Bush presidencies. In this Middle East lesson, students watch video segments, examine maps, and listen to music regarding the relationship between the U.S....
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Website
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Smithsonian Institution

Korean War

For Students 5th - 12th Standards
North and South Korea: two regions divided. The story of the Korean War describes the events that occurred when these two regions' ideologies clashed. The resource uses various images and descriptions of artifacts, in addition to...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

May The Best Character Win

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students examine the financial committment to running a campaign. They discuss the difference between electroal and popular votes. They realize how involved a political campaign is!
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Union is Perpetual: Lincoln is Elected

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students view primary documents about the race for President in the time of Abraham Lincoln.  In this election lesson, students prepare arguments for and against Lincoln using an analysis sheet.  Students create a poster or cartoon to...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

"Breadline": The Great Depression Causes, Consequences and Recovery

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Young scholars compare prices of popular items of late 1920s to cost of those items presently, determine which companies are best in which to invest, analyze causes and consequences of stock market crash of 1929, and evaluate...
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Lesson Plan
Literacy Design Collaborative

A Pale Blue Dot: That's Here. That's Home. That's Us.

For Students 5th - 8th Standards
21st-century learners live in such a visual world that many are unused to letting their minds imagine the picture that words create. An excerpt from Carl Sagan's lecture, "The Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space,"...
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Lesson Plan
National First Ladies' Library

Impeachment!

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed
Young scholars investigate the impeachment proceedings against Andrew Johnson, Richard Nixon, and William Clinton. In small groups they conduct Internet research on one of the three Presidents, and present a "brief" on the case,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Presidential Trading Cards

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students use the internet to gather information about Presidents of the United States and create a trading card for one of them. They create a brochure with the president's information and accomplishments.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Election Is in the House: The Presidential Election of 1824

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students read an account of the election from the Journal of the House of Representatives, analyze archival campaign materials, and use an interactive online activity to develop a better understanding of the election of 1824 and its...
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Lesson Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

The 1828 Campaign of Andrew Jackson: Territorial Expansion and the Shift of Power

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Young scholars make connections between changes in voting participation and the election of 1828, and describe regional factors evidenced by the voting results of the election of 1828.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Let the Campaign Begin

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Learners differentiate between positive and negative personal attributes and select a fictional character for nomination who personifies the qualities of a good leader. They use the Internet to learn about the election process and write...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Opposing Views on the Vietnam War

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners consider opinions regarding the Vietnam War. In this Vietnam lesson, students compare Nixon and Johnson's policies about the war. Learners also research the anti-war movements as well as the sentiments of the those how supported...
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Unit Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

The 1828 Campaign of Andrew Jackson and the Growth of Party Politics

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers analyze changes in voter participation and regional power, and review archival campaign documents reflecting the dawn of politics as we know it during the critical years from 1824 to 1832. Students utilize worksheets and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Opposing Views on the Vietnam War

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students analyze the feelings of Americans regarding the Vietnam War. In this Vietnam War instructional activity, students collaborate to research Internet and print sources regarding the perspectives on U.S. involvement in the war....
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Interactive
Curated OER

James Garfield

For Students 8th - 12th
In this online interactive history worksheet, students respond to 4 short answer and essay questions about the accomplishments of James Garfield. Students may check some of their answers on the interactive worksheet.
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Interactive
Curated OER

Andrew Jackson

For Students 7th - 12th
In this online interactive history learning exercise, students respond to 6 short answer and essay questions about Andrew Jackson. Students may check some of their answers on the interactive learning exercise. 
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Interactive
Curated OER

James K. Polk

For Students 9th - 12th
In this online interactive history worksheet, students respond to 10 short answer and essay questions about James K. Polk. Students may check some of their answers on the interactive worksheet.