Foreign Policy Research Institute
A Geography Lesson
Fewer and fewer people have a strong grasp of world geography, but this activity helps students understand geopolitics by creating their own original historical map. The activity requires selecting a country from the list provided,...
Curated OER
Capitalization of Nouns
Which nouns are capitalized? Challenge young editors with these erroneous sentences, all of which require capitalization. After circling all the necessary capitals in 10 sentences, they rewrite two sentences (which are all in capital...
Curated OER
Hungary: The Landscape
Students work in small groups to create a topographic map of Hungary. The map will include labeled line drawing of the bordering countries. Hungary should be three dimensional, made of salt and flour clay. The mountains, plains and...
Curated OER
War and the Animal
Middle schoolers analyze the spatial organization of people, places, and environments in a spatial context. They gain personal insight into the horrors of war and the importance of ethnicity. Students define all key terms, analyze a...
Curated OER
Chain Across the Hudson Lesson Plan A - Locating the Chain
Young scholars read a letter from George Washington requesting them to identify on a map a location that would stop the advance of British warships. They choose a location and justify their choice.
Curated OER
The Khmer Rouge
Young scholars examine life in Cambodia and Vietnam from 1975-1979, Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge. They discuss how an otherwise peaceful society could allow such events to take place and write a short paper and complete a culminating...
Curated OER
Clothesline Sleuth
Sixth graders investigate the origins of clothing production. In this Social Studies lesson, 6th graders examine the components of agriculture involved in making clothes. Students research cotton.
Curated OER
U.S. History: The Second Great Migration
Students examine the migration of rural African Americans to northern cities following World War !!. After predicting the effects of cultural and economic factors, they write essays explaining the impact of migration on communities and...
Curated OER
Gallery Scavenger Hunt for U.S. History
In this U. S. historical facts worksheet, students participate in identifying the various leaders being described, identify places described in detail and fill out a map by following the directions given.
Curated OER
The Great Debate: Internationalists vs. Isolationists
Students examine the opposing arguments of the isolationists and internationalists in 1941. For this debate lesson, the students are divided into two opposing groups representing a position in a live, in- class debate. After the debate,...
Curated OER
Life and Times, Developing a Chronology
Students review the career and life of Ernie Pyle as an example of a biography in context. They consider how a chronology maps out the events in the life of an individual in the context of other events that were occurring at the same time.
Curated OER
The Economics of Conflict
Seventh graders examine how economics can empower or disempowers people of a nation. In groups, they analyze how commodities for economic power have changed and the trends that might affect future empowerment. They describe Canada's...
Curated OER
Carbondale: The Biography of a Coal Town
Students use a brief history of the growth and decline of the anthracite region in the state to create a photograph and map "peak shaped" time line. They practice map and photo analysis strategies to "read" photographs and maps.
Curated OER
Further Reading: Japan
Students investigate the Japanese people and how they lived in the World War II era. They conduct research in order to obtain information. Then they role play the part of different people in groups who lived during the time.
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Putin Criticizes Estonia Over War Memorial
Students read and discuss the vocabulary related to a news article about diplomatic relations between Estonia and Russia. They read the article, define key vocabulary terms, discuss verbs and prepositions, participate in a role-playing...
Curated OER
A Different Kind of Rock Star: Part 2
Students examine our society's fascination with Mars. In this journalism lesson students read an article that outlines the various ways Mars has captured our imagination and are given topics for discussion and a chart to...
Curated OER
The Opium Trade, the Opium War and the Treaty of Nanjing
Ninth graders analyze the English model if imperialism with regard to China and examine the economic and political impact of trade and conflict between England and China in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. They discuss the...
Annenberg Foundation
A Growing Global Power
How does a nation turn into a global superpower? The 16th installment of the 22-part series on American history investigates the rise of the United States to global importance in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Groups...
Curated OER
Geography Application: The Cuban Missile Crisis
A complete activity! The class reads the provided text, then answers the 7 critical-thinking questions. Topics covered are interpreting informational text, reading comprehension, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and US Policy.
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Global Intelligence
Students discuss the war in Afghanistan and the conditions surrounding the hunt for Osama bin Laden after reading the article "Bin Laden and Omar: Far Harder to Find" from The New York Times. After the class discussion, students...
Curated OER
Ancient Greece: Athens as a City State
Sixth graders find Greece on the map and recognize how the geography of Greece was important in its development. In this ancient Greece lesson, 6th graders research Greece and compare to the civilization of ancient Egypt. Students answer...
Curated OER
Dissolution of the Ottoman Empire
In this Ottoman Empire worksheet, students read a 3-page selection and examine maps pertaining to the topic and then respond to 7 short answer questions.
Curated OER
What the Empire Lost: The Ottoman Empire
In this Ottoman Empire worksheet, students read a 1-page selection about the decline of the empire, examine the provided map on the topic, and then respond to 5 short answer questions about the information presented.
EduGAINs
Migration—Push and Pull Factors
What causes people to move from one place, one city, or one country to another? Using the provided migration questionnaire, learners interview family members about the factors that cause them to be pushed from an area or pulled to...