US National Archives
National Archives and Records Administration: Founders Online
This site provides the texts of nearly 200,000 historical documents related to six Founding Fathers, including the papers of George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison. The...
US National Archives
National Archives: From Dred Scott to the Civil Rights Act of 1875
The Dred Scott case decided that African Americans were not citizens of the United States. However, 18 years later they would have citizenship and many other rights. Students will examine the following documents to understand how and why...
US National Archives
Docsteach: The Constitution at Work
In this activity students will analyze documents that span the course of American history to determine their connection to the U.S. Constitution. Students will then make connections between the documents they have examined and the big...
US National Archives
Docsteach: Integration of the u.s. Armed Forces
Students will draw upon the visual and textual data presented in photographs and documents to gain an understanding of the participation of African Americans in the U.S. Armed Forces and of changes in American military policy regarding...
US National Archives
Docsteach: Extending Suffrage to Women
In this activity, students will analyze documents pertaining to the women's suffrage movement as it intensified following passage of the 15th Amendment that guaranteed the right to vote for African American males. Documents were chosen...
US National Archives
Docsteach: Lewis & Clark's Expedition to the Complex West
This activity can be used as an introduction or for a closer study of the Lewis & Clark Expedition. Students will learn that the United States purchased the Louisiana Territory in 1803 and President Thomas Jefferson sent Lewis and...
US National Archives
Docsteach: From Dred Scott to Civil Rights Act of 1875: Eighteen Years of Change
In 1857, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the Dred Scott decision that African-Americans were not citizens of the United States. Yet within 18 years, Black Americans would not only have citizenship, but would be guaranteed the right to...
Other
Primary Source: Online Curriculum
A collection of three teacher-developed curricular units that use primary resources. Topics include the Ottomans, river pollution in India, and Chinese bronze bells. Additional units are available for a reasonably priced membership.
US National Archives
Docs Teach: President Reagan and the Cold War: Vision and Diplomacy
See how Ronald Reagan's rhetoric evolved from his speech calling the Soviet Union an "evil empire" to his signing of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty by examining photographs and documents.
Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
Gilder Lehrman Institute: American History Collection
[Free Registration/Login Required] Housed at the New York State Historical Society, this extensive collection of more than 60,000 documents detailing the political and social history of the United States is searchable and allows students...
Yad Vashem, The World Holocaust Remembrance Center
Yad Vashem: On the Edge of the Volcano
"I am writing this letter before my death," wrote a young Jewish girl in a letter to her sister and brother in 1942. These last letters from the Holocaust can only be described as heart-wrenching. Letters written to parents and loved...
Yad Vashem, The World Holocaust Remembrance Center
Yad Vashem: We Shall Meet Again
These last letters from the Holocaust can only be described as heart-wrenching. Letters written to parents and loved ones show the depth of suffering and anxiety the Jewish people faced in 1941. Each letter has a short biography of the...
Harry S. Truman Library and Museum
Harry S. Truman Library & Museum
Everything you wanted to know and more about Harry S. Truman, from biographical information to love letters.
Sophia Learning
Sophia: Epistolary Narration
This slideshow focuses on epistolary narration, revealing a story through letters, documents, or diaries. It defines the term, explains what to look for to identify them, gives the two perspectives, and offers literary examples: C.S....
Yad Vashem, The World Holocaust Remembrance Center
Yad Vashem: Journey of Discovery
This lesson teaches the importance of recording the names and stories of the victims of the Holocaust in order the preserve their memory. Students will view pages of testimony on victims and discuss the information contained in the...
Yad Vashem, The World Holocaust Remembrance Center
Yad Vashem: Journey of Discovery
Students will learn about the life stories of victims of the Holocaust in order to see the victims as people and not numbers. Using pages of testimonies written by relatives or acquaintances, students will discuss the life of the...
Online Writing Lab at Purdue University
Purdue University Owl: Tailoring Employment Documents for a Specific Audience
Excellent lesson that describes how to organize and emphasize specific documents for a potential employer. Includes organized and sequential steps to compiling a successful credential file.
Utah Education Network
Uen: Themepark: Liberty: United States Historical Documents
Find a large collection of internet resources organized around historical documents. Links to places to go, people to see, things to do, teacher resources, and bibliographies.
George Mason University
George Mason University: World History Sources: Newspapers
Discover how historians use newspapers and learn about the development of the modern newspaper. Get answers to many questions about different newspapers.
George Mason University
George Mason University: World History Sources: Official Documents
A guide to dissecting official documents. Learn how to find the author of documents, the primary audience, and other important information.
Library of Congress
Loc: The Huexotzinco Codex
Students will analyze a set of pictograph documents created by native peoples of Puebla, Mexico in 1531. Students will take on the role of historians, study the documents, and create a scenario to explain what these documents were for,...
National Humanities Center
National Humanities Center: Toolbox Library: America, 1789 1820: The Northwest Ordinance, 1787
The National Humanities Center presents collections of primary resources compatible with the Common Core State Standards historical documents, literary texts, and works of art thematically organized with notes and discussion questions....
US National Archives
Nara: American Originals
A collection of important documents highlighting events in United States history. These at one point were on display in the Rotunda of the National Archives Building. Each document is accompanied by a short description of its significance.
British Library
British Library: Shakespeare in Quarto
The very first printed versions of Shakespeare's works are available here at the British Library for looking at, comparing and examining. Also includes valuable links about Shakespeare's plays as they have been performed through the years.