Curated OER
How Did WWII Start?
How did the second world war begin? A presentation first looks at the political climate that led to WWI and the effects of that war. Then, it describes the reason Hitler was able to take hold of Germany after WWI and prior to WWII. The...
Curated OER
American Foreign Policy: 1920 - 1941
Take your class through the period between World War I and World War II. Covering various treaties and pacts between America and its neighbors - namely, Japan, Germany, and the Soviet Union- these slides could inspire some political...
Curated OER
World War II Webquest
Tenth graders work with a partner to locate and follow the directions of a webquest of their choice. Using the internet, they research their topic in depth and write a paper on their findings. They are assessed by the criteria on the...
Curated OER
Civil Rights and Casualties of Wartime
Do your historians fully grasp the consequences of being at war? Help them connect past with present through this group research activity, which has learners analysing repercussions suffered by citizens of countries in conflict. Students...
Curated OER
Why Study War?
Students discuss war, specifically World Wars I and II, analyze causes and element of war, and decide whether war is acceptable solution to conflict situations, given resulting loss that occurs.
Constitutional Rights Foundation
The Cold War: How Did It Start? How Did It End?
What is the difference between a Cold War and a Hot War? Scholars research the beginning of the Cold War. They analyze diary entries as well as excerpts from various events during the 45-year standoff. To finish, they prepare final...
Curated OER
World History Pre-Assessment
What do the members of your class already know about world history? This is a fabulous pre-assessment that will illustrate the varying levels of general world history knowledge among your young historians that you can use to inform your...
Maryland Department of Education
The Concept of Identity Lesson 8: Propaganda in Visual Media
Visual and print propaganda are featured in a instructional activity that asks readers of A Separate Peace to examine the techniques used in propaganda from World War I, World War II, presidential elections, and in the novel.
Curated OER
Map Studies
Middle schoolers analyze maps of Europe, and research and discuss current wars in Europe, and compare them to World War I and World War II.
Curated OER
World War II: Bombs and Peace
Pupils explore the final events and end of World War II. They examine the community impact of such events as the dropping of the dropping of atomic bombs, and President Roosevelt's death. Students prepare a presentation.
Curated OER
Maus I and II: KWL Pre-Reading Comprehension Strategy
Prior to reading Maus I and II, class members fill in a KWL chart to determine what they want to learn and how to find information about World War II and the Holocaust. Consider gathering packets of information and research sites before...
Curated OER
The "Sick Man of Europe"
An all-encompassing view of the Ottoman Empire, this presentation takes a 300 year journey through the history, culture, and fate of the original "sick man of Europe." Grand photos and detailed maps provide the necessary context to...
Curated OER
WWI and Russian Revolution
Students view and discuss footage of Tsar Nicholas II reviewing troops on the Eastern Front in 1916 and examine how different groups would have reacted to this footage of the Tsar. They watch the video and in small groups answer...
Curated OER
The Great War: Evaluating the Treaty of Versailles
Young scholars examine and evaluate the Treaty of Versailles. They read and discuss primary source documents, explore various websites, develop a list of postwar goals for France, Germany, and the U.S., and evaluate whether the treaty...
Curated OER
Treaty of Versailles
Students describe the purposes of the Treaty of Versailles. In groups, they analyze the causes and effects of the treaty and discuss why the Americans were so against it. They note ideas for and against its ratification and they make...
Curated OER
Europe in Upheaval (1850 - 1914)
Europe was in a state of transition and upheaval that spanned a time of 60 years, beginning in 1850 and running through the first World War. Uncover the wars, key players, politics, and social movements that marked this time period in...
Curated OER
World War I: Letters from the Front
Students reesearch life on the home front and the front lines during World War I. They use primary and secondary sources to write letters. Students role-play as soldiers writing letters home and then assume the role of the person...
Curated OER
The U. S. at War
High schoolers examine reasons for going to war. For this foreign policy lesson, students analyze the reasons the U.S. entered the the War of 1812, the Mexican War, the Spanish-American War, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the...
TED-Ed
Lessons from Auschwitz: The Power of Our Words
Some words are best left unspoken. Words matter, according to Benjamin Zander, conductor, teacher, and lecturer. To illustrate his point, Zander recounts a story told to him by a survivor of Auschwitz. As a result of her experience...
National Endowment for the Humanities
The Rise and Fall of Joseph McCarthy
"I have here in my hand . . ." The war against Communism and Joseph McCarthy’s place in it are the focus of a series of lessons examining postwar America from 1945-1954. Joseph McCarthy takes center stage in this, the final lesson...
Curated OER
The Advantages and Disadvantages of the Treaty of Versailles
Students identify the advantages and disadvantages of the Treaty of Versailles. Using the text of the treaty, they discover it created more tension between groups then bringing peace to the region. They discuss how this treaty could have...
Curated OER
Sow the Seeds of Victory! Posters from the Food Administration During World War I
Young scholars engage in a class analysis of posters, responding to each of the worksheet questions. They identify the similarities and differences between the posters.
Facing History and Ourselves
The Nazi Party Platform
Not all party platforms stay democratic. A resource covers many political issues in Germany during the time of World War II, and teaches pupils about the Nazi party platform and what went wrong. Individuals participate in a warm-up...
Curated OER
Isolation or Intervention?
Students research the attitudes and politics of pre-World War II America. They become isolationists or interventionists and present their points of view during a simulated city council meeting.