Civil War Trust
Civil War Play
Raise the curtain to a class play that depicts the Civil War through both factual information and literary devices. The performance showcases the Battle of Antietam (Battle of Sharpsburg) and brings attention to women's roles,...
Civil War Trust
Civil War Reader's Theater
Encourage class members to add expression and put themselves back in time during the Civil War with a reader's theater activity. The scripts include dialogue on what it was like for the Union and Confederate sides during this time.
Curated OER
Mark Twain: Straddling the Civil War
Mark Twain's life, politics, writing, and role as a mirror of pre- and post-Civil War American culture are the focus 11th and 12th graders in this section from an expansive author study. A critical writing assignment comparing Twain...
American Battlefield Trust
Civil War Play
Everyone has a role to play. Young scholars step into history by taking on the roles of soldiers—both male and female—during the Civil War using a fictionalized play of what life was like on the battlefield. Pupils also examine the roles...
Center for History Education
Civil War Weaponry and Medicine: A Disastrous Mismatch
Ironically, science was the reason why the Civil War was so deadly. Despite the use of medical practices now considered barbaric—such as conducting surgery with bare, dirty hands—developments in weaponry meant that more men died on and...
National WWII Museum
Picturing the War in the Pacific: A Visual Time Line
The Pacific theater was critical to the Allied victory of World War II. Learners deconstruct the sequence of events around the conflict using stunning photographs. After they finish, pupils consider what additional dates and images they...
Curated OER
To Be Black and American: World War II
Twelfth graders research wartime conditions African American had to endure during World War II. They explain what role African Americans played in World War II and describe what life was like for African Americans in the United States...
Curated OER
Children of War
Take a closer look at the impact of war in this language arts and social studies instructional activity. Middle schoolers use primary sources to conduct research as they relate to the effects of war on children. They compare and contrast...
Curated OER
Civil War Play Lesson Plan
Students act out the Civil War through reader's theater. In this performing arts lesson plan, students research the Civil War and find costumes, props and scenery appropriate to the time period. They become characters from the Civil War...
Smithsonian Institution
Battle of the Bulge: America Responds to a German Surprise
World War II and the Battle of the Bulge are the focus of a history resource. Exercises include analyzing images, writing letters in the mindset of a soldier, and even immersing oneself in a cold experience to better empathize with the...
Curated OER
A Day in the Life of a World War II Soldier Webquest
Learners complete a web-quest into a day in the life of a World War II soldier. In this webquest lesson, students investigate what life was like for soldiers on the front lines during the second World War. They use note taking skills...
Curated OER
AMERICAN INVOLVEMENT IN WORLD WAR II: THE PACIFIC THEATER 1941-1945
Tenth graders describe roles of key figures in the Pacific Theater of war during World War II. For this American History lesson, 10th graders research key events of the Pacific Theater of War during World War II. Students...
Curated OER
"War of the Worlds": A Broadcast Re-Creation
Why did Orson Welles' 1938 Broadcast of a adaptation of H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds cause such a panic? To answer this question, class members listen to the original broadcast and research the panic that resulted. They then engage...
Curated OER
Civil War Reader's Theater Lesson Plan
Students participate in a reader's theater about the Civil War. In this performing arts lesson, students review the Civil War through a reader's theater. They practice reading their parts to work on expression and fluidity before...
Curated OER
Decoding US Foreign Policy: The Iran-Contra Affair
This is a really good lesson. Learners explore US Foreign Policy, the Reagan Administration, and the Iran-Contra Affair through various documents and readers theater. Worksheets, script, and web links are all included. Teaching can't get...
Curated OER
"The Proper Application of Overwhelming Force": The United States in World War II
Students examine the role that the U.S. played in bringing about victory in the two major theaters of the war in the Pacific and Europe. How the various military campaigns contributed to the war's successful conclusion forms the focus of...
Star Wars in the Classroom
"Shakespeare and Star Wars": Lesson Plan Days 13 and 14
How important are sound effects in films? In stage plays? In radio programs? To gain an understanding of the impact of these special effects, class members watch a short video spoof of the sound in a scene from Star...
Curated OER
Where in the World War? Mapping WWII in the Pacific
Students explore the Pacific Theatre of War. In this World War II lesson, students use reference material to access information about significant locations in the Pacific Theatre of War. Students identify the locations of the listed...
Mississippi Whole School Initiative
Dream Big...With Your Eyes Wide Open
For many people, Barack Obama's presidency was the next step in Martin Luther King, Jr's dream of America's future. Explore the dreams of Americans past and present, as well as the young Americans in your class, with a set of activities...
Curated OER
The Cause and Course of the Great War
Students interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary resources. For this World War I lesson, students research the causes of the war as well as the major events of the war. Students are...
Curated OER
Prairie Voices: Iowa and the Civil War
Students study how the Civil War affected Iowa natives. In this Iowa history lesson, students read the provided article on Iowa and its Civil War experiences. Students analyze the article to determine how the war affected civilians and...
Curated OER
Mapping the War
Students work in pairs to draw their own maps as specified of World War II areas. When all projects have been completed let one group at a time share their assignments with the rest of the class. Compile all the maps into a classroom...
Curated OER
The Civil War through a Child's Eye
Pupils read Paul Fleischman's Bull Run in Readers Theater format. Next, students examine and interpret primary source images of Civil War era pupils and reveal their understanding of a child's perspective in a literary portrait.
Curated OER
The Causes of Prohibition
Eleventh graders explore the origins of the Prohibition Movement in the United States. In small groups, they analyze the influence of World War I in the passage of the eighteenth amendment. Students explain how different demographics of...