Brown University
Analyzing the News
With so many ways to follow the news today, it is imperative to think critically about the sources of information we are turning to. Here is a fantastic graphic organizer that will help your learners develop the skills to...
National Endowment for the Humanities
David Walker vs. John Day: Two Nineteenth-Century Free Black Men
What was the most beneficial policy for nineteenth-century African Americans: to stay in the United States and work for freedom, or to immigrate to a new place and build a society elsewhere? Your young historians will construct an...
Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media
Analyzing Political Campaign Commercials
Imagine a instructional activity that models for learners how to separate facts from opinions. How to detect bias. How to evaluate a source of information. How to identify propaganda. Although designed for middle schoolers, the...
Center for Civic Education
The Equal Rights Amendment in the 1970s and Today
Discover the fascinating history of the Equal Rights Amendment and discuss the major implications and considerations associated with it today. Here you will find background information on the topic, a graphic organizer summarizing...
Curated OER
Basil Heatter, "The Long Night of the Little Boats"
“It was a miracle.” Basil Heatter’s “The Long Night of the Little Boats,” which details the miraculous rescue of the British army from the shores of Dunkirk in 1940, is featured in a series of exercises that ask class members to read,...
Student Achievement Partners
Laura Hillenbrand's "Unbroken" and Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston and James D. Houston's "Farewell to Manzanar"
Passages from Unbroken and Farewell to Manzanar provide the context for a study of the historical themes of experiencing war, resilience during war, and understanding the lasting trauma of war. Appendices include extension...
Friends of Fort McHenry
Sensory “Star Spangled Banner”
Music can help us to access memories and events in a meaningful way, and Francis Scott Key used specific words to convey what he had seen and felt when writing what would become America's national anthem. Help your class connect to...
Carolina K-12
Turn of the Century Immigration
In an engaging simulation, class members imagine immigrating to the United States in the late nineteenth century and arriving at Ellis Island. They then write creative journal entries about their experience and chart their journeys.
University of North Carolina
The War of 1812
After reading a sample memo regarding the conflict between Britain and France before the War of 1812, class members assume the role of James Madison and brainstorm how to handle the situation. They will then analyze the creation and...
K20 LEARN
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death: The Journey to Revolution
The words of "Common Sense" and Patrick Henry's "Give me liberty or give me death!" speech ring throughout history. Scholars explore the nuances of each patriot's argument using excerpts from the famous pamphlet and speech and a recorded...
Core Knowledge Foundation
Unit 6: The Genius of the Harlem Renaissance Teacher Guide
Introduce your seventh graders to the Harlem Renaissance with a unit that explores this dynamic period's music, literature, and ideas. The 160-page guide includes a unit calendar, an introduction to the unit, 10 richly detailed lessons...
Carolina K-12
Political Parties and Conventions
The two major parties polarize many in America today, but it doesn't have to be that way in the classroom! Teach learners about political party platforms and modern campaigns with a mock political convention. After watching a PowerPoint...
Carolina K-12
The Twenty-Sixth Amendment and the Power of Youth
Empower teenagers to take political matters into their own hands! After completing an engaging warm-up activity, class members discuss both sides of the youth voting issue, learn about the connection between military history and the...
Albert Shanker Institute
Who Was Bayard Rustin?
Who was Bayard Rustin? Pupils analyze a series of primary source documents to learn about this important figure in the civil rights movement. The lesson contains a short film to watch along with guiding questions and other resources...
Albert Shanker Institute
The March on Washington Logistics Then and Now
I have a dream ... that all pupils will be able to organize a march of their own after learning about how Bayard Rustin organized the 1963 March on Washington for civil rights. Young reformers work collaboratively examining informational...
K20 LEARN
Electoral College: Does My Vote Count?
How can a candidate get the most votes, yet still lose the race for the presidency? This is has happened more than once in American history, including in the elections of 2000 and 2016. Using an activity for creating group notes, young...
K20 LEARN
Bill of Rights: Do I Have a Right?
Aliens have taken over the United States! Citizens can only keep two rights laid out in the first 10 amendments of the Constitution and must figure out which ones are best. Young scholars research the importance of each amendment and key...
K20 LEARN
Blue or Gray? Perspectives on the Civil War
Using primary and secondary sources, such as letters and diaries from soldiers and civilians, learners consider why people fought in the American Civil War. A role-playing Historical Mingle activity, as well as discussion questions and...
American Institute of Physics
African Americans in Astronomy and Astrophysics
A two-part lesson focuses on the contributions to the fields of astronomy and astrophysics of two African Americans: Benjamin Banneker and Dr. George Carruthers. In part one, scholars learn about Benjamin Banneker by examining his...
University of California
Was Slavery Always Racial?
The lesson focuses on slavery in the ancient world and asks academics to decide if it was always about race. Scholars view primary sources, participate in a short discussion, and complete a worksheet to understand how slavery in the...
National Park Service
Remembering Pearl Harbor: The USS Arizona Memorial
Young historians use primary source materials to investigate the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor and the sinking of the USS Arizona. After reading background articles and studying maps and images of the attack, class members consider whether...
Center for History Education
U.S. Foreign Policy and the Iran-Contra Affair: Was Oliver North a Patriot, a Pawn, or an Outlaw?
If you had to write a song about Oliver North, would it be a ballad or a dirge? If you had to put him on a trading card, would he be a hero or the bad guy? Young historians decide for themselves after examining documents from the...
Center for History Education
Guatemalan Coup of 1954: How Did the Cold War Influence American Foreign Policy Decisions?
Was it all about the bananas—or the fear of a communist threat? Young historians use a history lab to examine documents from the American-led 1954 Guatemalan coup. Using graphics, government documents, and speeches, they examine the...
Center for History Education
The Louisiana Purchase: Real Estate Deal of the Century?
It's about real estate! Almost overnight, Thomas Jefferson's Louisiana Purchase about doubled the size of the young United States ... but was it constitutional? Using a variety of secondary and primary sources, including Jefferson's own...