Lesson Plan
Curated OER

"Getting Away with Torture?"

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students discuss what they know about the abuse of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib. They research policy memos and assess their influence on military personnel. They identify the Geneva Conventions rule on the treatment of prisoners as well.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Seeking Civil Rights

For Teachers 5th - 12th
Learners explore the impact of the Plessy v. Ferguson case. In this social justice lesson, students examine the case, Jim Crow laws, and non-violent forms of protest. Learners write essays to persuade the government regarding unjust laws.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Juvenile Justice-Disposition

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Young scholars explore the dispositional hearing as a part of the juvenile justice system. After a brief discussion of the parts of the disposition hearing, students work in groups to review case studies involving juveniles in Utah's...
Lesson Plan
Advocates for Human Rights

The Right of Indigneous Peoples in the United States

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
The sovereignty of U.S. Native American nations is the focus of a resource that asks class members to compare the Right to Self-Determination in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples with a fact sheet that...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Soundtrack of One's Life

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students gather important information about a historical figure. They write a short biography, including illustrations. Students collect songs from the time period when the person lived. They create a play list in iTunes. Students...
Lesson Plan
Alabama Department of Archives and History

Alabama's Steps to Statehood

For Teachers 4th Standards
To demonstrate their understanding of the steps Alabama took to become a state, groups create a poster that identifies what the United States Constitution and the Northwest Ordinance required of a territory to become a state.
Lesson Plan
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C-SPAN

Judicial Review and Marbury v Madison

For Teachers 6th - 8th
The Supreme Court case Marbury v. Madison may not be widely recognized but the landmark case is particularly significant because it established the precedent for judicial review and that the Supreme Court had power as an interpreter of...
Lesson Plan
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School Improvement in Maryland

Political Systems: Advantages and Disadvantages

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Every political system has advantages and disadvantages. To gain an understanding of these differences, groups investigate the political system of another country—oligarchy, monarchy, dictatorship, parliamentary—and prepare a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Bill of Rights

For Teachers 8th - 10th
US history classes explore constitutional rights as they relate to court cases involving teens. Your class must already be familiar with the Bill of Rights before beginning this series of exercises. In preparation for a debate-style...
Lesson Plan
Friends of Fort McHenry

Privateers in the War of 1812: Soldiers or Thieves?

For Teachers 8th Standards
Do governments have the right to authorize individuals to perform illegal acts during times of war? Did the US government really employ pirates? Use the War of 1812 as your vessel to answering these questions through class discussion and...
PPT
Curated OER

19c European Liberalism

For Teachers 9th - 11th
If you'd like to prompt some great discussions in your history class, this presentation will surely get your class talking. Addressing 19th century liberalism in Europe (including influences from England, France, America, and Ireland),...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Molly Pitcher -- "Out of Many, One"

For Teachers K - 4th
Young scholars research, brainstorm and analyze the events that lead up to the Revolutionary War. They critique a piece of artwork depicting a scene from the Revolutionary War. Each major battle is plotted on a map to show a visual...
Lesson Plan
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School Improvement in Maryland

Building a Pyramid

For Teachers 9th - 12th
After reviewing the structure and powers of the three branches of the US government, groups investigate a problem and research what is being done to address this criticism.
Lesson Plan
National History Day

Challenging the Status Quo: Women in the World War I Military

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Why are some so resistant to change? The status quo is often to blame for a lack of forward movement in society. Following the events of World War I, women in America suddenly had a voice—and were going to use it. Scholars use the...
Worksheet
Curated OER

The King's New Rules

For Students 6th - 8th
In this world history worksheet, students utilize a word bank of 10 terms or phrases to answer 10 fill in the blank questions pertaining to the colonies prior to the Revolutionary War. A short answer question is included as well.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Environmental Law

For Teachers 1st - 2nd
Students analyze the environmental impact of pollution. They demonstrate an understanding of law, punishment and enforcement. Applying their knowledge, they create their own anti-pollution laws.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Chess: A Game or Rules of Society

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students identify the social classes of medieval Europe, and utilize the chess board and pieces to explain their relationship to each other.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The U.S. Constitution and Disability Laws

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students examine the United States Constitution for laws that protect people with disabilities. They discover how the education system provides equal education to all students and how the Federal Government makes sure this is occuring.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Quotas and Jim Crow Laws

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Learners examine the use of quotas and Jim Crow laws. They discuss discrimination against minority groups both historically and in contemporary society. Students examine an affirmative action case and discuss the controversies involved.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Importance of Self-Governance in Changing Laws

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine the teachings of Gandhi and King. In this nonviolent resistance lesson, students listen to a lecture that reveals how Gandhi and King educated their followers about nonviolent resistance. Students analyze contemporary...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Laws of Civil Rights

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Young scholars investigate the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In this segregation lesson, students explore the rights that were guaranteed by the legislation as well as attempts by southerners to stop African Americans from voting. Young...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Chapter 19: Disputes Over Macro Theory and Policy

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Instruct your future businessmen and women about the different theories of economics in this informative presentation. With graphs and thorough explanations, these slides would couple well with a lecture on Classical and Keynesian...
Handout
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Civil Rights Movement Veterans

Timeline of Events: 1960’s Civil Rights Movement of St. Augustine, Florida

For Students 9th - 12th
A timeline can be a powerful learning tool because it reveals a pattern in events. While few would consider St. Augustine, Florida a hotbed of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement, a selection of background information and a timeline of...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Why Do Governments Exist? Locke, Hobbes, Montesquieu, and Rousseau

For Students 7th - 12th Standards
Here is a great secondary source reading that includes the primary ideas and philosophies of the famed Enlightenment philosophers: Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Charles Montesquieu, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. In additional to discussing...