Jen London
Julius Caesar Funeral Speech Essay Assignment
"Romans, countrymen, and lovers! Hear me for my cause." "Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears!" As part of a study of William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, individuals as asked to compare the funeral speeches of Brutus and...
Teaching Tolerance
Film Festival
Everybody's a critic—even your pupils! Using the included resources as a guide, screen films related to social justice and ask film enthusiasts to critique them. Publish the reviews for your school community or develop a film festival...
Curated OER
Springfield Digital Storytelling Project #6: Grapes Commercial
Here is a fabulous instructional activity that should have your class very excited! They utilize the GRAPES formula in order to produce a commercial like ones we see on TV. Working in pairs, they must come up with a script, take video,...
Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library & Museum
Pearl Harbor Activity #2: Why Do Words Matter?
Words matter! That's the big idea behind an activity that asks scholars to replace words in FDR's "Day of Infamy" speech with synonyms. They then listen to a recording of President Roosevelt's address and compare his version to their own.
New Jersey Historical Commission and New Jersey Council for the Humanities
Thomas Edison: The Wizard of Menlo Park
What would change in your daily life due to a power outage? Here, learners explore the inventions brought to us by the one and only, Thomas Edison, and imagine a day without them. Scholars take part in a grand conversation and write a...
National Endowment for the Humanities
A Defense of the Electoral College
Each presidential election year, the debate about the electoral college rages. Michael C. Maibach's "A Defense of the Electoral College" offers young political scientists an opportunity to examine a reasoned argument for why the...
Orlando Shakes
Arms and the Man: Study Guide
Few aspects of life make better fodder for a comedic play than politics. A study guide introduces George Bernard's Shaw comedy Arms and the Man. Along with summaries of each scene and brief biographies of the main characters, two lesson...
Shmoop
ELA.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.11-12.9
Guided by close-reading questions, groups examine the similarities and differences between the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. In addition, they look at how the principles are presented in these two foundational US...
Joe Landsberger
Study Guides & Strategies: Writing Persuasive Essays
This site focuses on the student learning how to write strong persuasive essays. Strategies are provided to help the student complete a persuasive writing assignment.
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Is That Legal? A Case of Acid Rain
The goal of this activity is to understand how techniques of persuasion (including background, supporting evidence, storytelling and the call to action) are used to develop an argument for or against a topic. Students develop an...
Other
Disinfopedia: Propaganda Techniques
This site from the Center for Media & Democracy provides a brief discussion of propaganda techniques followed by a lengthy list of various specific kinds of propaganda. Also includes "Recommended Books" and "External links" sections....
Read Works
Read Works: News Debate Cash Courses
[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text debating whether students should or should not get paid to attend class. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.
Read Works
Read Works: News Debate Password Protected
[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text debating whether or not schools have the right to monitor what students post online. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.
Read Works
Read Works: News Debate Cell Phone Scramble
[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text debating whether students should or should not be allowed to use cell phones in class. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.
Read Works
Read Works: News Debate Battle of the Binge
[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text arguing for and against competitive eating contests. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.
Read Works
Read Works: News Debate Phone Patrol
[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text about the police being able to search through cell phones without a search warrant. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.