Curated OER
The Great Depression
High schoolers examine the time period of the Great Depression. In groups, they discover how the Works Progress Administration helped many workers during this time. Using the internet, they research how the government focused on the...
Curated OER
The United Nations and Women
High schoolers analyze the role of the Commission on the Status of Women in the post-WW II era by looking at the general framework the Committee worked within. They propose their own solutions to the case studies.
Curated OER
'European Exploration, Conquest, and Trade
Fifth graders examine the motives, progress and results of the European exploration and conquest of Asia, Africa and the West Indies from the 15th to the 17th centuries. They use maps to trace spice routes and research the role of spices...
Curated OER
A Courtin' We Will Go
Students investigate dialect in poetry as an indication of a people's culture in literature. They write a poem about dating in this era.
Curated OER
We Accuse Colored Peoples of California V. State of California
Students participate in a WebQuest to investigate discrimination of African Americans, Chinese and Californio/Latino during the Gold Rush era. They act as law clerks to write a letter to their clients about a potential trial.
Curated OER
Native American Policy
Young scholars examine federal policies regarding Native Americans. In this Native American assimilation and removal policies lesson plan, students conduct research to compare the changes in federal policy regarding Native Americans...
Library of Congress
Child Labor in America
Students investigate child labor during the Great Depression. In this US policy lesson, students evaluate multiple layers of the social, economic, and political affects of policy during the Great Depression. Students will engage in 5...
Curated OER
Reconstruction and the 1868 South Carolina Constitution
Students, through lecture and group discussion, explore the American Civil War Reconstruction and how it affected the development of the 1868 Constitution of South Carolina. They discuss its impact on South Carolina even today.
National Endowment for the Humanities
“Read All About It”: Primary Source Reading in “Chronicling America”
Can investigative journalism become too sensationalistic and accusatory, or is it vital for the survival of a democracy? Middle schoolers analyze primary source documents from early 20th-century newspapers as well as Theodore...
NPR
Suffrage Lesson Plan
Has life changed for American women in the last century, or are there common themes between the lives of 21st century women and the struggle of suffragettes from the 1910s? Explore the ways media reflects the position of women...
Curated OER
The New England Fishing Industry:Sea Changes in a Community
Explore New England's economic and cultural past and possible issues New Englanders will face in the future. Middle and high schoolers research the fishing industry and the need for regulation. They analyze the topography of New England...
Curated OER
Glided Age
Eleventh graders will participate to brainstorm on the overhead, characteristics of an "irresponsible" adult and 5 of a "responsible" one? How do these differ if we apply these to businesses? Working in partners--Create a Code of Ethics...
Curated OER
Comparing and Contrasting Images of Child Labor
Students study child labor in the 19th century through one painting and multiple photographs. In discussion and writing, they consider the differences between photography and painting as mediums for expressing these attitudes.
Curated OER
Poet James Whitcomb Riley: Famous in His Own Day
An engaging biography of "Hoosier" poet James Whitcomb Riley serves as a springboard for study of his unique dialect-based verse. Several activities illuminate differences between spoken vernacular and formal language. Learners record...
Curated OER
Women's Suffrage
Tenth graders examine the role of women in the early 1900s. In groups, they use the internet to research groups who favored or opposed giving women the right to vote. To end the lesson, they note the methods used by women to finally gain...
Curated OER
Coming to America: U.S. Immigration
Analyze primary source documents relating the conditions under with prompted American immigration. Learners will analyze information in order to create a six-panel pamphlet. Much of the lesson is not available but the key objectives are....
Curated OER
"Pitchfork" Ben Tillman and Political Reform in South Carolina
Eleventh graders examine the political reform movement in South Carolina spearheaded by "Pitchfork" Ben Tillman. In this South Carolina history lesson, 11th graders examine primary and secondary sources regarding Tillman...
National First Ladies' Library
The Power of Images in Shaping Ideas
Learners examine the role of photography in recording and sharing history. They view online photos that Life magazine has identified as changing the world, then conduct research on one of the photos. Students create and present an oral...
NASA
Einstein and His Times
Scholars research and present on the historical happenings of 1919. After sharing their findings, pupils debate about how Congress dealt with the moral issues of the time. The evaluation asks learners to write a persuasive...
Smithsonian Institution
Mobilizing Children
Scholars find out how the government used propaganda to mobilize children to help in the war effort. Lesson exercises include analyzing a quote from Franklin Roosevelt, viewing propaganda images and posters, and participating in a lively...
Alabama Department of Archives and History
Voting Rights for Alabama Women
What were the arguments put forth by those who opposed the 19th Amendment? For those in favor? Class members examine primary source materials that illustrate the intense debate in Alabama about women's suffrage.
Alabama Department of Archives and History
W.E.B. DuBois, Booker T. Washington, and Jim Crow
Class members use the think-pair-share strategy to compare the views of W.E.B. Du Bois and Booker T. Washington and to consider how each man's backgrounds influenced his philosophy.
Curated OER
El Misterio del los Mayas (The Mystery of the Mayas)
Students, working in groups, research different aspects of the Mayan society of the classical period. They study the rise and fall of the civilization and present the information in multimedia presentations.
Japan Society
Akutagawa Ryunosuke and the Taisho Modernists
Japan's Taisho Period was a time when authors like Akutagawa and other Japanese modernists began to experiment with point of view and literary form, making the literature produced during this time period a natural choice for teaching...