Curated OER
White House Havoc
The president of the United States must be able to keep a cool head in moments of crisis to lead his or nation out of the darkness. A history instructional activity encourages learners to study the ways various presidents have handled...
Alabama Department of Archives and History
America in Space: German Voices from Huntsville, Alabama
Project Paperclip, the Redstone Arsenal, and the Huntsville Space Center are all featured in a resource that investigates the contributions of Dr. Werner von Brawn and other German scientists to the US space program....
Curated OER
Syncopated Duet
Young scholars work in pairs to compose a duet (with percussion instruments) that contains syncopated rhythm sequences. Each student will research a piece of music that they feel uses syncopation and will give a persuasive speech to the...
Curated OER
JFK Analysis
Students examine a recent study of the JFK assassination. They review evidence provided by retired atmospheric chemist, Ken Rahn, and ballistics specialist and statistician, Larry Sturdivan, and determine whether or not they believe a...
Curated OER
Milestones in the Space Program
Students brainstorm names of astronauts from NASA space missions. They are explained that the Cold War was not actually a war but pervasive tension that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union for several decades...
Curated OER
At What Price the Truth?
High schoolers read President Kennedy's speech to the nation on October 22, 1962. Using the text, they identify the deception by the Soviets. In groups, they create a comip strip showing what they believe might have happened had there...
Curated OER
Historians Interpret Sources
Students read excerpts from the historian Conover Hunt writing about John F. Kennedy and from primary source documents using the handout: Historical Sources and Historians. Students discuss and identify source types, evaluate sources,...
Curated OER
How Do Artists Effectively Relate Historic Events?
Students explore African American migration. In this black culture and history activity, students use a map to identify northern and southern states in which African Americans lived in the 1900s. Students observe and describe objects and...
John F. Kennedy Center
Writing a Myth
Tap into the imaginative minds of young learners with a creative writing activity. After reading the myth Giants and Mosquitoes, this student guide supports young writers as they brainstorm and develop their very own creation myths....
Curated OER
Investigating the Cuban Perspective
High schoolers examine different perspectives on the events during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Using the internet, they research the Cuban perspective on the issue and discover the need for empathy in a situation like this. They use...
Curated OER
The Brief American Pageant: Settling the Northern Colonies
Experience the birth of the United States with this series of maps. Detailing settlements in New England, New Netherland, and New Sweden, this presentation would be a good companion to your lecture on early American History. It is...
Curated OER
The Brief American Pageant: The Duel for North America
Making its way through 18th century America, this presentation details the British and French territories through colorful and clearly labeled maps. Additionally, the maps chart the changes in said territory during and after the French...
Curated OER
The Brief American Pageant: The Confederation and the Constitution
Four maps cover the tumultuous period during and after the American Revolution. Especially interesting is the first map, which details the land cessions to the United States after 1782. Think about incorporating these pictures into your...
Curated OER
The Brief American Pageant: The Rise of a Mass Democracy
Focusing on the 1828 election of Andrew Jackson, the removal of Southern Native American tribes (Trail of Tears), and the Texas Revolution, these three slides are full of good information for your lecture. Though brief, the maps featured...
Curated OER
The Brief American Pageant: Manifest Destiny and its Legacy
Frame your lecture about Manifest Destiny around these maps, which portray the extended boundaries of various American territories in the 19th century. Campaigns of the Mexican War, and a map of the Spanish Missions on the West Coast are...
Curated OER
The Brief American Pageant: Drifting Toward Disunion
A series of maps take viewers through the Antebellum period in American history. Focusing on the elections of Buchanan and Lincoln, as well as the Southern opposition to secession, the slideshow would make a good companion to a lecture...
Curated OER
The Brief American Pageant: The Furnace of the Civil War
The eyes of an American History teacher (or Civil War buff) will open wide with this series of maps, which detail the campaigns and battles of the Civil War. Meant to supplement chapter 21 of The American Pageant, this presentation would...
Curated OER
The Brief American Pageant: Twenty-Three Political Paralysis in the Gilded Age
Detailing the Presidential elections of 1876, 1884, and 1892, this slideshow focuses on the final years of the 19th century in the United States. Additionally, slides include information on the changes in Southern plantations and growth...
Curated OER
The Brief American Pageant: Industry Comes of Age
Three interesting slides can be a good addition to your lecture on the end of the 19th century. Detailing the land grants given to railroads, the shift in cotton manufacturing, and the distribution of industry among the United States,...
Curated OER
America Moves to the City (1865-1900)
Statistical data can show shifts in human populations without bias or a prescribed historical point of view. View bar graphs and charts that describe new influxes in urbanization, immigration, and suffrage by state during the turn of the...
Curated OER
The Brief American Pageant: America on the World Stage
America's presence in Alaska and the Caribbean are the focus of this short presentation. Two detailed maps help to illustrate America's growing influence in the regions past its continental borders, which could supplement a more thorough...
Curated OER
The Brief American Pageant: The War to End Wars
While World War I was more of a link of the chain of events in the early 20th century, its historical reputation as "the war to end all wars" has carried through the decades since. This series of slides, though short, shows the major...
Curated OER
The Brief American Pageant: American Life in the Roaring Twenties
Your lecture on the Roaring Twenties in the United States could use these two graphs. The first graph details the annual immigration and Quota Laws from 1907-29, and compares them to the McCarran-Walter Act of 1952. The second graph...
Curated OER
The Brief American Pageant: The Great West and the Agriculture Revolution
What comes to mind when you think of the 1860's - other than the Civil War? Paired with The American Pageant textbook (or not), this series of images completes a lecture on the mid-19th century. Cattle trails, Indian wars, and...