Students interview a family member. In this interviewing lesson, students choose a family member to interview and write about. Students create a PowerPoint about the person including a timeline, photographs, and a narrative about their...

Learners use Web technology to access immigration history and develop an understanding of the concept of immigration. Then they develop oral history writing skills, including note-taking and conducting an interview and read for detail....

Middle schoolers take a closer look at historical maps. In this primary source analysis lesson, students examine the first world map produced by Martin Waldseemuller. Middle schoolers complete the included map analysis worksheet and then...

Students evaluate the different types of historical and geographical information that one can gather through close study of historical maps from the 16th through the 19th centuries. They create their own maps.

In this creative writing worksheet, students answer a series of questions about an alien they imagine. There are also other pre-writing exercises about historical figures, monuments, a zoo, and other topics designed to aid in the...

Students examine cause and effect. In this American Revolution lesson, students analyze primary source documents regarding the Stamp Act, the Boston Massacre, and George Washington. Students imagine if the events had unfolded differently...

Second graders compare the neighborhoods they know to those of a different place and time. In this historical perspectives lesson, 2nd graders read Eve Bunting's Smoky Night and discuss the outcome of the story. Students also discuss...

Students examine the experience of African Americans during World War II by analyzing primary sources and formulating historical questions. They evaluate if the African American experience during World War II represents continuity or...

In this primary source analysis worksheet, students analyze a letter from President Roosevelt to clergymen regarding New Deal programs. Students respond to 1 short answer question about the letter.

Students show that the Greeks, Phoenicians and Romans lived in the Mediterranean area. They give reasons why the alphabet was important for the Romans. and say that the Romans developed the alphabet they are learning in school.

How does background and experience influence one's point of view? Dwight Okita's famous poem about the Japanese internment is the text used to explore this essential question. Class members study primary documents to gain the necessary...

Students consider the insight to the past that oral histories can provide. They, in groups, analyze oral histories, prepare to interview a family member on their recollections of a historical event and then write a historical narrative.

Why is it important to preserve historical documents and artifacts? Examine the role of primary source documents and the availability of these documents on the Internet. Middle and high schoolers write a journal about the nature of...

High schoolers examine portraits by John Singleton Copley and discuss how the subject's appearance communicates important information about his or her life. They write a diary entry from the point of view of a portrait subject.

An engaging lesson focuses on the contributions of the Navajo people during World War II. Learners read the book Navajo Code Talkers by Andrew Santella, answer a series of comprehension questions about the text, and write a letter...

The Great Fire by Jim Murphy provides the text for a study of the Chicago fire of 1871. The plan is designed as a close reading activity so that all learners have the same background information require for writing. Richly detailed, the...

Madison was there! Scholars go on a journey to discover the person behind the founding father label as they explore James Madison's role in the formation of the United States government. The culmination is a writing assignment and...

Students conduct research to put Anne Frank's diary into historical context. They use maps, timelines, essays and websites to examine the early victories of the German army, paying special attention to the Netherlands and experiences of...

Students explore the usage of primary sources, what they are and how they originate. Artifacts are compared and contrasted as part of this historical inquiry as questions are formulated and conclusions drawn.

Identify the unique personal attributes of your class members. Begin by viewing the Visual Thesaurus and discussing displayed attributes associated with famous American leaders. Using these identity maps as models, pupils generate nouns...

Five segements from Ken Burns' documentary series Prohibition, easily accessed on the PBS website, are at the center of a terrific short unit on the roots of America's ambivalent relationship with alcohol. Engage your secondary...

Bring the historical relevance of baseball into the classroom, as pupils discover the lessons learned from the breaking of baseball's color barrier by Jackie Robinson. Learners view video and analyze Robinson’s character, as well as his...

Want to teach your pupils about debate, effective speech techniques, propaganda, and the women's movement? The first in a sequential series of three, scholars analyze real propaganda images from the the historic women's movement, view a...

Use this New York Times lesson to research contemporary leaders in the African-American community. After reading the article "Blacks Weigh the Impact of the Post-Jackson Years," middle and high schoolers discuss the varying viewpoints of...