Active Citizenship through the Spectacles of Benjamin Franklin

Bring Benjamin Franklin to life in the classroom with a set of five activities. Discover the type of person he was and his accomplishments through a study of his inventions and comments about life virtues. 

Groups research participatory democracies and compare the role and rights of citizens in ancient history with those in recent U.S. history. Guided by a series of questions, individuals compose a persuasive essay in which they discuss the...

Class members research citizenship in Ancient Rome and in the United States and use the provided graphic organizers to compare the rights and responsibilities of citizens in these two democracies.

Young historians will learn not to fear primary source materials (or fear itself, for that matter) thanks to this resource that uses Franklin D. Roosevelt's March 4, 1933 Inaugural Address to model how to conduct a close reading of such...

Scholars know him for his role in the American Revolution, but Ben Franklin was also a journalist and printer. Learners investigate his standards for what was fit to print using primary sources—including writings where Franklin explains...

A scientist, inventor, entrepreneur, politician, and the founder of a nation—and that's just one person! Learners investigate the many lives of Benjamin Franklin. Using a hands-on interactive online resource, they analyze primary...

Students investigate the achievements of Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson. They conduct Internet research, identify their achievements, and participate in a 'competition' that compares/contrasts the two men.

Benjamin Franklin was many things: a scientist, businessman, diplomat, politician. Learners explore facets of the legendary figure with a matching activity. By matching primary source documents to their descriptions, they analyze the...

Middle schoolers examine the contributions of Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson to American Independence. In small groups, they conduct Internet research, read and discuss primary source documents, and complete a chart.

Introduce your class to Benjamin Banneker, self-taught mathematician and scientist, with a short video that details some of the many accomplishments of the son of freed slaves and contemporary of Thomas Jefferson.