Smithsonian Institution
Solomon G. Brown: Letter Writing
Personal correspondence in the form of letters is not as common as it once was. This resource presents an opportunity for you to introduce your class to letter writing and cover topics in social studies. Learners read a letter written in...
Common Core Sheets
Reading a Timeline
Sometimes the most important details of an informational text aren't within the text at all. Teach your class how to read timeline with a set of activities that prompts them to find specific dates and events on the timelines, as well as...
Encyclopedia Britannica
Meta-Study: Political Brains
Are there differences in the brains of liberals and conservatives? That is the question young political scientists are challenged to answer. Class members examine studies, consider how the results are presented, and how the studies were...
US Institute of Peace
Responding to Conflict: Active Listening
Did I hear you right? You need a great lesson on active listening? Through large- and small-group activities, learners differentiate between poor and excellent listening skills. The resource, 7th in a series of 15, focuses on active...
MENSA Education & Research Foundation
It’s Greek to Me: Greek Mythology
It's no myth: this packet on Greek mythology is an excellent addition to your social studies curriculum. With writing activities, such as short answer responses and biopoems, and reading activities, which include creation stories and...
Center for Civic Education
What Basic Ideas Are in the Preamble to the Constitution?
Introduce young historians to the US Constitution with this upper-elementary social studies lesson plan. Beginning with a general discussion about the role of government in society, students go on to work in small groups identifying and...
Curated OER
Social Studies Activity Sheets
In this social studies activity, students complete social studies activity sheets including changing the world, historical women, travel, and more. Students complete 52 sheets.
Facing History and Ourselves
Citizen Watchdogs and the News
To conclude their case study of media coverage of the shooting of Michael Brown by a Ferguson, Missouri, police officer, class members consider the role of citizen watchdogs in a democratic society, develop strategies for combating...
Visa
Financial Forces: Understanding Taxes and Inflation
Take the opportunity to offer your young adults some important financial wisdom on the way taxes and inflation will affect their lives in the future. Through discussion and review of different real-world scenarios provided in this...
Speak Truth to Power
John Lewis: Non-Violent Activism
After comparing and contrasting non-violent and violent social movements, your young historians will take a closer look at the work and influence of John Lewis on the civil rights movement. They will then choose a current social justice...
Curated OER
Lesson: Emory Douglas: Art and Activism
Visual literacy can be experienced in many different ways. Learners discuss the times, graphic art, and cultural significance of activism in art as they explore artist and Black Panther, Emory Douglas. This is a discussion-based lesson...
K20 LEARN
But What About Me?: Teaching Perspective In The Social Studies Classroom
How would the story of the discovery of America be different if indigenous people told it through their eyes? Individuals compare the conventional account of this moment in history to an account given by one of the native peoples. After...
Historical Thinking Matters
Social Security: 5 Day Lesson
Did the New Deal fundamentally shift the role of the American government in the economy? Your class members will examine the interpretations of various historians in answering this question, and use a variety of primary and secondary...
Curated OER
Social Studies Wonders: An Exploration
Help middle schoolers conduct Internet research and develop a working definition for the discipline of social studies. From a list of websites, they develop classification skills and differentiate between primary and secondary sources....
Museum of Tolerance
Can It Happen in America?: Taking Social Action
Class members investigate the Jim Crow Laws, Executive Order 9066, the Chinese Exclusion Act, and the Indian Removal Act to gather information about not only the challenges encountered by diverse groups of Americans, but their...
Teaching Tolerance
Using Photographs to Teach Social Justice | Advertisements Promoting Activism
Activism can create real change. Class members examine a series of photographs that represent a different form of activism. Individuals then craft a persuasive speech in which they argue why the photo they chose is the best example of...
NEST Family Learning
Thomas Edison: Resource and Activity Book
What other inventions was Thomas Edison responsible for besides the telegraph and lightbulb? Incorporate a set of worksheets into your study of Edison and other inventors. The 48-page packet includes all types of activities from word...
Teaching Tolerance
Digital Activism Remixed: Hashtags for Voice, Visibility and Visions of Social Justice
It's time to discover hashtag activism! Using an engaging resource, learners explore viral hashtag campaigns relating to diversity, identity, and justice. Next, they either design their own hashtag campaigns or respond to existing ones.
Curated OER
Math and Social Studies Real- World Investigation- Comparisons
In this real-world investigation math and social studies activity, 6th graders use the internet to research world records such as the world's largest pumpkin or smallest insect. They write a description of three interesting facts about...
Teaching Tolerance
Using Photographs to Teach Social Justice | Showcasing Your Understanding
The final instructional activity in the series asks class members to demonstrate what they have learned about how photographs can revel injustice and how they can encourage people to take action against injustice. Either as a class, in...
Teaching Tolerance
Digital Tools as a Mechanism for Active Citizenship
How is technology a useful tool for active citizenship? Pupils assume the role of technology consultants reviewing citizenship projects. Small groups collaborate to make recommendations about how to incorporate technology to improve...
PBS
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
What rights are guaranteed to students? Do they align with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was approved by the United Nations in 1948? Middle and high schoolers present persuasive arguments about the rights they believe...
Ohio Center For Law-Related Education
Four Activities: Thurgood Marshall and the Nomination and Confirmation of Federal Judges
The process of nominating and confirming federal judges can sound like a lot of bureaucratic hoops, but a resource breaks down the steps of the Supreme Court nominations in a simpler manner. Learners participate in four activities that...
Curated OER
Social Movements and Constitutional Change: Women's Suffrage
The class analyzes a series of documents intended to show the events that lead to women gaining the right to vote. They play a Tic-Tac-Toe style game, make a time line with sequencing cards, and review the 4 steps of social change....