Perspectives on Peace

Much like a garden, once the seeds of peace are planted, they need to be tended! How can humankind make and keep peace? The second installment in a series of 15 peacebuilding activities focuses on different perceptions of peace. The...

Address conflicting arguments with middle schoolers. They interpret different viewpoints for the Iraq War. After expressing their ideas about the Iraq War, they defend their viewpoint and participate in a persuasive argument for their...

The geopolitical history of Palestine is fraught with conflict. To provide a perspective of ongoing conflicts, a presentation traces the historical background of the region from the fall of the Ottoman Empire after World War I to the...

Scholars view comics from two different perspectives; one paints the Alfred Dreyfus as innocent, while the other portrays the exact opposite. They solve the mystery of what happened by analyzing the source, working in groups, and...

Students read excerpts from Peter Hessler's River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze and discuss his difficulties in learning the language, cultural clashes and how cultural perceptions shape our understanding of the world.

Young scholars discuss the factors that can lead to war, and the motivations of countries going into war. They research two viewpoints on Texas during the Mexican War and participate in a debate with their classmates.

Although popular culture tells the story of the American West simplistically, its reality is far more complex. Native American tribes—while already on the land—didn't have the same interests, and conflicts between white settlers and...

Practice persuasive writing skills in this thorough lesson. After selecting issues and discovering viewpoints, middle schoolers write letters or brochures created to express the individual's perspective. The ideas are presented to the...

While today, people laud the accomplishments of the United States Constitution, pupils sometimes forget that the Articles of Confederation came first. The documents—while flawed—raised questions of government duties and obligations as...

The discussion continues: Who started the Civil War? So why not get your intelligent learners involved. Readers use the account of Confederate spy Rose O’Neal Greenhow to begin their analysis of who started the war. Scholars are...