Curated OER
1960 America: Foreign Policy
The 1960's marked shifts in American culture, politics, and policy. Your class groups up to research a series of primary source documents resulting in a timeline and a 15 minute oral presentation. Active learning all the way.
DocsTeach
Benjamin Franklin: Politician and Diplomat
Benjamin Franklin was many things: a scientist, businessman, diplomat, politician. Learners explore facets of the legendary figure with a matching activity. By matching primary source documents to their descriptions, they analyze the...
Center for History Education
To What Extent Were Women's Contributions to World War II Industries Valued?
Women rose to the challenge when the nation's war effort called them—but were sent home when the GIs came back from World War II. Young historians consider whether the United States valued women's contributions during the war using a...
EngageNY
Connecting Ideas in Primary and Secondary Sources: What Led to the Attack on Pearl Harbor?
Let's make some sense of those thoughts! Scholars continue thinking about the different perspectives on Pearl Harbor. They analyze quotes from War in the Pacific, Day of Infamy, and Fourteen-Part Message. Readers tape each quote to chart...
Curated OER
Confino Primary Source Activity Lesson Plan
Students examine methods of accounting for historical events. In this local history lesson plan, students use primary sources to explore the story of a tenement house family in New York. Students discuss the sources they encounter as...
Curated OER
Holes
Students distinguish between primary and secondary sources when researching on the Internet and evaluating historical records. They recognize important features of a primary source such as the type of document, who created it, what is...
Curated OER
From Smithson to Smithsonian: Who Was James Smithson?
Students evaluate and examine primary and secondary source material as they relate to the life of James Smithson.In this "From Smithson to Smithsonian" lesson, students analyze documents looking for clues to the identity of James Smithson.
Curated OER
Brutal British
Students read and predict the outcome of a story set during the Civil War, then map the story. To prepare for the activity, students determine why it is important to look at historical events from all angles by using primary and...
Syracuse University
American Industrial Revolution
While the Industrial Revolution may have fueled America's rise to the top of world markets, the child laborers often faced dangerous conditions. Using primary source images and other information, scholars consider what these children...
Center for History and New Media
The Daily Experience of the Laurel Grove School, 1925
What was daily life like for those attending segregated schools in 1925? Modern learners fill out a KWHL chart as they explore historical background and primary source documents about the Laurel Grove School in Fairfax County, Virginia....
Center for History and New Media
Growing Up in a Segregated Society, 1880s–1930s
What did segregation look like in the beginning of the 20th century? Middle and high schoolers view images of segregated areas, read passages by Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois, and come to conclusions about how the influence of...
Los Angeles Unified School District
World History Medieval and Early Modern Times
A slew of graphic organizers, worksheets, and student activities are packaged here for your world history pupils. From comparing and contrasting the Qur'an and Sunnah, studying cultural diffusion across eastern nations, or examining...
C3 Teachers
Civil Rights: What Made Nonviolent Protest Effective during the Civil Rights Movement?
Sit-ins and boycotts, marches and speeches, songs and demonstrations were hallmarks of nonviolent protest of the civil rights movement. Young scholars research primary and secondary source documents to determine what made nonviolent...
University of Wisconsin
Why Did the Triangle Fire Occur?
An investigation of the 1911 New York City Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire leads class members to examine primary and secondary source materials related to the event and apply what they learn about the working conditions at the time to...
Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation
Where Is Angel Island? An Introductory Geography Lesson
Prepare young historians for a study of Angel Island Immigration Station with a lesson examining primary and secondary source materials, maps, and websites. Using what they have learned, individuals create a map of Angel Island, labeling...
National Woman's History Museum
Dolores Huerta: The Life and Work of a 20th Century Activist
Extra! Extra! High schoolers read about Dolores Huerta, the social activist who helped organize the United Farm Workers. Researchers read primary and secondary sources about Huerta's work and craft a headline, supported by three pieces...
Carolina K-12
The End of World War II: Pearl Harbor, Japanese Internment Camps, and the Atomic Bomb
The end of World War II saw major events that would forever change the global landscape and international relations. Using a fantastic PowerPoint presentation and several primary source documents, your learners will discuss the...
Curated OER
How Do You Know?
What is the difference between primary and secondary sources? Help your middle schoolers develop a knowledge of appropriate sources to use when doing accurate research. They develop unique ways to incorporate literature in historical...
Curated OER
All Aboard
Explore the U.S.S. Nevada. Researchers use primary sources, secondary sources, children's books and websites to study the naval ship. Their study commences with a class alphabet book on the ship. Intended to be part of a lesson on...
New York State Education Department
TASC Transition Curriculum: Workshop 11
You'll C-E-R a difference in classroom achievement after using a helpful lesson plan. Designed for economics, civics, government, and US history classes, participants practice using the CER model to craft arguments about primary and...
University of California
Roots of the Cold War
When and how did the Cold War begin? To answer this question, you will not find a better-organized, in-depth, activity- and inquiry-based resource than this! Executing best teaching practices throughout, each portion of this inquiry...
Curated OER
Primary and Secondary Documents for Colonial Times
Young scholars investigate the Colonial Era by completing a template on their computers. In this U.S. History lesson, students discuss the differences between primary and secondary sources and identify several different sources as...
Curated OER
Primary Source? What is That?
Students examine the use of primary sources. They read and discuss excerpts from the "Diary of Anne Frank," write journal entries, identify examples of altruism from the book, write an essay, and complete a worksheet.
Syracuse University
Erie Canal
While canals are not the way to travel today, in the first half of the nineteenth century, they were sometimes the best way to move goods and people. Scholars examine primary sources, including maps and pictures, to investigate the role...