Curated OER
Technology Resources for the Social Studies Classroom
Looking for ways to increase engagement by bringing technology into your elementary social studies class? Teachers are introduced to the technology resources available for social studies and then they show their students specific...
National History Day
No More Sticks and Stones: Technological Advancements in World War I Warfare
Remind young historians that many technological advancements influenced the events of World War I. After analyzing technology's evolution through primary sources, discussing the changes over time, and watching various video clips,...
University of Wisconsin
Analyzing Presidential Campaign Propaganda
Campaign propaganda has evolved from 1952 through the presidential election of 2008. A social studies activity prompts class members to analyze the devices used in ads and political cartoons, noting strategies they believe would work to...
Middle Tennessee State University
The Invention of the Telephone
All of the people in your class would agree that life would be different without the invention of the telephone! Study Alexander Graham Bell's most famous and influential invention through the primary source document of his sketch of the...
Curated OER
Just an Ordinary Day
Young sociologists identify how technology has impacted the traditional culture of Romania as they read and discuss "Just an Ordinary Day'" by Nina Porzucki. A lesson encourages learners to study Romania's history and present, including...
BBC
Royal Patronage
The relationship between European royalty and the artists, scientists, and philosophers they support has been a building block in the artistic and technological progress throughout the world. Learn more about patronage throughout the...
Curated OER
The Technological Impact on 1950's Culture
Students examine the impact of technological advancements on Cold War America. In this 1950's America lesson, students research politics, Cold War society, suburbia, and consumerism during the decade in order to better understand...
Personal Genetics Education Project
Genetics and Reproduction
Disease prevention or designer babies? Use a set of slides to introduce the growing practice of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, or PGD. Teens read related articles and then break into groups to address different scenarios. Afterward,...
Personal Genetics Education Project
Genetics, history and the American Eugenics Movement
A poignant 20-slide show introduces high schoolers to the amazing accomplishments of genomics and raises the question of eugenics. This lesson is only for mature audiences, as it deals with rape and other sensitive topics, but it is...
The New York Times
Where to Draw the Line: Balancing Government Surveillance with the Fourth Amendment
The question of how to balance Fourth Amendment Rights with national security concerns becomes critical in an age of planned terrorist attacks, election interference, and fake news. Get young social scientists involved in the debate with...
Curated OER
Social Studies, Music, The Blues, Urbanization, and Technology
Enable young scholars to use the blues to explore urbanization, technology, and their effects on everyday life in the 20th century. Musicians were among the large number of people who, between 1914 and 1945, participated in the Great...
Curated OER
George Washington Crossing the Delaware: A Study of Setting and Character
Students examine "Washington Crossing the Delaware." For this American Revolution lesson, students analyze the painting, research its background, and then perform skits based on their findings.
Curated OER
Papyrus to PDA
What a great project. Graphic arts high schoolers consider the social, political, and economic impact made by a chosen invention. They build an argument to substantiate their reasons for choosing said invention. They create an oral...
Curated OER
California's Golden History: 1848-1880
Using a variety of online resources, learners study life and society in California during the gold rush. They use a map to identify area where gold was located, explore pre-selected websites, describe mining practices, and create an...
National History Day
Helping Life and Aiding Death: Science, Technology, and Engineering at Work during World War I
Science, engineering, and United States history? Pupils research collections of artifacts from the Smithsonian to learn about historical scientific innovations. At the end of the lesson, they write an essay to discuss technology's...
Curated OER
Captain John Smith's Shallop
Young explorers, all aboard the shallop to discover how early European explorers would navigate the American coastline to find resources, map terrain, and trade with Native American tribes.
National History Day
A Clever War: Scientific and Technological Advances in World War I
Technology—changing lives and transforming war. Your tech-loving historians examine photographs and primary documents to explore how technology changed not only World War I, but also how it moved society forward. They apply their...
Curated OER
Case Studies of American Innovation
Studnets discover how the Industrial Revolution came to be in the United States. In this technological advancements lesson, learners research creations by Henry Ford, the Wright Brothers, and Thomas Edison. Students create PowerPoint...
Curated OER
Artists Teach Us to See the World through Visual Symbols
Tenth graders analyze a biographical piece of art by Raymond Saunders. They identify shapes, symbols, and lines that are used, and how the piece relates to the artist's life and modern society. They design and create an original piece of...
Curated OER
My Life As A Social Scientist
Middle schoolers examine different areas of social studies and tell classmates about what social scientists do. They work in small groups: each group member researches a different social science focus, then presents to the class.
Curated OER
Social Class, Social Change, and Poverty
Students begin to explore poverty and its implications on society and future generations. They should have had experience with identifying social change that happens gradually and social change that happens quickly because of natural...
Digital Forsyth
Civil Rights and Active Citizenship
As part of a study of the American Civil Rights movement, class members search the Internet to find important facts, people, events, and pictures that they use to create a timeline of events between 1955 and 1970.
Curated OER
The Scientific Revolution
Scientists participate in studying how new scientific advances have changed the world. They explain how astronomers have changed the way people view the universe, summarize the advances that were made in chemistry and medicine, and...
C-SPAN
Polling and Public Opinion
Most people are eager to offer their opinions about topics of interest, but what's the most effective way to collect and assess these opinions as a matter of fact? High schoolers learn about the history of polling, as well as the...