Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Mission of Lewis and Clark

For Teachers 1st - 8th
Students comprehend the various aspects of the Lewis and Clark expediton. They complete an idea web. Students work in small groups. They recall some important aspects of the Lewis and Clark expedition by performing the Corps of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Wings, Chrome, and Tailfins: Automobiles of the 1950s

For Teachers 8th - 11th
Students study the automobile industry. In this cultural history lesson, students explore 1950s America as they view a teacher-created PowerPoint presentation regarding the 1950s. Students research how the automobile changed the 1950s...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Classes For The Masses

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students explore how class is represented in the media by developing ideas for television pilots that deal with class issues. They compile short lists of television characters from working, middle and upper classes.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Langston Hughes: Dream Variations

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students examine African-American communal life. In this Langston Hughes lesson, students read poetry by Hughes in order to gain insight into the Harlem community. Students select artwork that represents their community.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Time Machine: Drive for the American Dream

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Learners view a documentary on automobiles. Americans have always been in love with automobiles. They are a definition of character, and a representation of social status. After viewing, students discuss what they saw and create an...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Picturing America: Images and Words of Hope from Romare Bearden and Langston Hughes

For Teachers 9th - 12th
A carefully crafted three-day lesson integrates poetry and visual art. By analyzing and comparing Langston Hughes' poem "Mother and Son" and Romare Bearden's collage "The Dove," readers explore the theme of hope. The lesson activates...
Lesson Plan
Quia

Charlotte’s Web Lesson Plan

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Make your classroom into a place of kindness and compassion with E.B White's Charlotte's Web. The first four pages of the lesson plan guide you through several steps and projects, including discussions on Charlotte and Wilbur's...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

"i Have a Dream" As a Work of Literature

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students read and analyze Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech. They answer discussion questions, and write and compose a speech that addresses an injustice in society.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Painted Dreams

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders explore the importance of art in Haitian culture by analyzing the cause and effect within the story, "Allie's Basketball Dream." They examine all the aspects of the story and characters including their goals, dreams,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Building Dreams??? Who is There to Help You?

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students draw conclusions regarding personality based upon story events. The evaluate personalities based upon values and speculate on the effect individuals could have upon the future. They apply this analysis of motivation to the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Changing Perspectives on the Japanese Internment Experience

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students explore the issue of Japanese-American internment. In this World War II instructional activity, students analyze historical biases regarding Japanese-American internment as they analyze literature, research print and Internet...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Let Your Motto Be Resistance: African American Portraits: Grades 3-5

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students explore the contributions of African Americans of the 20th century. In this African American history lesson, students examine portraits of Muhammad Ali, Romare Bearden, Lorraine Hansberry, Judith Jamison, and Leontyne Price in...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Strong to the Hoop

For Teachers 1st - 4th
Students complete pre reading, writing, during reading, and interdisciplinary activities for the book Strong to the Hoop. In this reading lesson plan, students complete journal entries, go over vocabulary, answer short answer questions,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Jazz Scenes of the Harlem Renaissance

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students identify and connect themes of selected nonfiction, fiction, poetry, and art to Harlem Renaissance jazz. They compare and contrast historical and fictionalized versions of the jazz scenes of the Harlem Renaissance. They...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Motown Dynasty (1969-1980) Part 2

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Pupils connect achievements of noted artists with their roles in the music industry. They identify many Black music industry leaders and their contributions with the Motown Sound.
Lesson Plan
PBS

The March on Washington and Its Impact

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
High schoolers read Martin Luther King, Jr's speech that he gave in Washington. They identify the social conditions that led to the civil rights movement. They discuss the significance of the March on Washington.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Matthew Henson

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Discuss the work of Matthew Henson, an African American who traveled to the North Pole with Robert Peary. After reading the story "Matthew Henson" by Maryann N. Weidt, learners answer questions by drawing inferences and conclusions,...
Lesson Plan
Shakespeare in American Life

Performing Modernized Shakespeare

For Teachers 7th - 12th
“All the world’s a stage…” What do Leonardo DiCaprio, Heath Ledger, and Kenneth Branagh have in common? They have all starred in modern adaptations of Shakespeare’s plays. After viewing a series clips from modern Shakespeare videos,...
Lesson Plan
California Department of Education

Choosing My Lifestyle

For Teachers 10th Standards
How much does it cost to live the life your dream life? Scholars explore the pitfalls of personal finance through planning, discussion, and research. The first lesson in a five-part series tasks individuals with determining an...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

1920s Images and Ideals PowerPoint Project

For Teachers 9th - 11th
Students explore Teaching the American Twenties, noting fashion, life styles, Hollywood, key authors, key people, and key events. They explore the sites and note what they can identify from the time period for this collection. They write...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What Should a House Do?

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students complete a unit of lessons on the similarities and differences between Native American homes and European settlement houses. They explore websites, read stories, design a dream house, and construct wigwam models.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

America Poems

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students examine examples of how other Americans have expressed their feelings about America through songs and poetry, and write their own poems to express their relationship with America.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

From the Rise of the Absolute Monarchy to Democracy on the American Frontier

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students use a teacher-made museum guide with questions that allow them to analyze and compare the patron art of seventeenth-century France with portraits of later periods at the Joslyn Art Museum. Students also read The Little Prince...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Literacy: The Puerto Rican Papers

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students in an ESL classroom are introduced to new vocabulary before reading a story in their native language. In groups, they discuss how the tradition of writing stories down became a tradition and answer comprehension questions. To...