Facing History and Ourselves
A Scene from a Middle School Classroom
Citizens in the modern world can't imagine making the same social choices made by many Germans in the 1920s and 1930s, but they don't realize that they actually do it every day by ostracizing others. A case study of middle schoolers...
Facing History and Ourselves
How Should We Remember?
We must remember the past in order to avoid its mistakes. Young historians analyze the importance of historical remembrance using primary and secondary documents, as well as video clips. They then study the creation of a World War II...
Curated OER
Two World Wars
Students listen to a lecture about WWI, or they go through the WWI project time line in a computer center. Students repeat the above options about WWII. Once the research is complete, students compare the two wars by filling in the...
Curated OER
The Perilous Fight: WWII - Up Close and Personal
Students research World War II primary source documents and write first person historical point of view stories.
University of California
Hot Spots Research Project
The Cold War was only between the US and the USSR, right? Wrong! Scholars use primary and secondary resources to analyze the global impact of the Cold War. The fourth installment of an eight-part series culminates in the creation of a...
Curated OER
Analyzing Media Literacy
Fifth graders define propaganda, evaluate World War II propaganda posters to analyze media literacy, complete War Poster Analysis worksheet, and create and share their own propaganda posters containing subject matter pertaining to war in...
Curated OER
Changing Perspectives on the Japanese Internment Experience
High schoolers explore the issue of Japanese-American internment. In this World War II lesson, students analyze historical biases regarding Japanese-American internment as they analyze literature, research print and Internet sources, and...
Curated OER
Introduction to Japanese Internment
Students discover details about Japanese Internment. In this World War II lesson, students analyze images and documents related to the movement of Japanese-Americans to West coast internment camps in the wake of the Pearl Harbor attacks....
Curated OER
Japanese-American Internment: The Art of Gaman
High schoolers explore Japanese-American internment. In this World War II lesson, students view a PowerPoint lecture that features the art of Gaman and determine what the art reveals about the experiences of the interned Japanese-Americans.
Curated OER
Weapons of World War I
Ninth graders discover the weapons of World War I. They compare and contrast the weapons used during that time period with the weapons that are used in warfare today. They create a digital slide show with the history, uses, and...
Curated OER
Children of War
Take a closer look at the impact of war in this language arts and social studies lesson. Middle schoolers use primary sources to conduct research as they relate to the effects of war on children. They compare and contrast the effects of...
PBS
President Theodore Roosevelt: Foreign Policy Statesman or Bully?
Can a negative perception of a president's foreign policy harm his or her historical legacy? A project that winds the clock back to the date of Theodore Roosevelt's death puts students at the editorial desk of a fictional newspaper....
National Endowment for the Humanities
How "Grand" and "Allied" Was the Grand Alliance?
Learn more about the Grand Alliance with a scaffolded lesson plan that includes four activities. Class members use primary sources to complete a map exercise, understand the goals and objectives of each individual nation, and participate...
Curated OER
Creating a Cartoon of the Philippine-American War
During the Industrial and commercial expansion of the United States, war broke out between America and the Philippines. Explore conflict, American Imperialism, and political cartoons with this creative project. Learners view the film,...
Curated OER
Oral History: Park City Museum
Bring U.S. history to your language arts class with this lesson. Middle schoolers complete an interview for an oral history project, and discuss the importance of oral histories - and how they embellish written accounts. They write...
Curated OER
Introduction to the History of the Holocaust
The Holocaust is unbelievable! Examine this piece of history with your class. Using the Internet, research groups determine the relevance of information presented, compare how different sites present the same information, synthesize...
Curated OER
Holocaust Theme
Middle schoolers complete a unit of lessons on the events of the Holocaust during WWII. They write daily journal entries, create a collage, view and discuss videos, read and analyze novels and poetry, and complete a novel project.
Curated OER
Geography/Current Events Project
Using the Balkan region as an example, fourth graders review the five themes of geography as a class. They identify the physical and human characteristics of a region before labeling the countries and landforms on a map. They then...
PBS
Historical Perspectives: Coming Home from War
What do the homecoming experiences of soldiers who fought in WWII, Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan reveal about the politics and culture of the US during the time period of each war? Young historians view The Way We Get By, which tells...
Curated OER
Prisoners in Another War
High schoolers examine the role of the Geneva Convention. In this world history activity, students investigate primary sources that prompt them to consider the evolution of the Geneva Convention.
Stanford University
Korean War
Learners study the cause of the Korean War. In this World history lesson, High schoolers read excerpts from two different textbooks, one from South Korea, and one from North Korea. They discuss how the cause of the war differs depending...
Curated OER
The Children of World War II
Students examine the lives of children during WWII. In this WWII lesson, students investigate the effects of the war on children, what life was like on and off the battlefield and how the geography influenced decisions. Students also...
Curated OER
French and Indian War
Eleventh graders examine why major tribes were involved in the French and Indian War. They write a short paragraph about the causes and answer an essay question based on text and Internet research, citing sources. They research text...
Canadian Museum of Civilization Corporation
Photographs as History
Imagine being a war photographer embedded in World War I. How do you see your role? How might your photos influence that study of the war? Of history? Class members select a photograph, adopt the perspective of the photographer, and...