Curated OER
Lift Every Voice and Sing
Students analyze sculpture, poetry, and music to gain an understanding of historical events. In this critical thinking skills lesson, students take a closer look at African-American history as they examine "Lift Every Voice and Sing'"...
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An Analysis of Jim Crow Laws and their Effects on Race Relations
First graders analyze the role of the Jim Crow laws on race relations. As a class, they are segregated based on the color shirt they have or some other simple criteria and wear either a square or circle sticker representing the majority...
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Crystal Blue Persuasion
Students examine historic posters, jewelry, quilts and buttons that were created to protest or call attention to a political issue. After evaluating how these items were used to communicate a political message, students create an item...
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Understanding the Declaration of Independence
Students work in groups to do a document analyxix of several documents. Students view the Martin Luther King speech, "I Have a Dream." They discuss the Battle of Saratoge. Students give a personal view of the reason the Declaration of...
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Rosa Parks
Students complete a variety of written and discussion activities regarding Rosa Parks and the Alabama bus boycott and how they changed an accepted way of life in America.
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"Pitchfork" Ben Tillman and Political Reform in South Carolina
Eleventh graders examine the political reform movement in South Carolina spearheaded by "Pitchfork" Ben Tillman. In this South Carolina history lesson, 11th graders examine primary and secondary sources regarding Tillman and his vision....
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Rosa Parks
In this reading comprehension worksheet, students read a biographical story about Rosa Parks. Students answer 4 questions and then summarize the story.
Facing History and Ourselves
The Audacity of a Vote: Susan B. Anthony’s Arrest
Susan B. Anthony's speech "Is It a Crime for Women to Vote?" takes center stage in a lesson that asks class members to consider how they might respond to what they consider an unjust law. Groups work through the speech paragraph by...
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Virginian Contributors
Students examine the contributions of native Virginians to the United States. For each person, they read excerpts of a book about their contributions and organize the information in a chart. In groups, they become an expert on one of...
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Spirituals
Students review factors that contributed to the development of the spiritual, which reflects the influence of African religious and Christian traditions, and slavery. Students collect spirituals/songs of their heritage from family...
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Jackie Steals Home
Students read articles relating to Jackie Robinson's breaking of the racial barrier in professional baseball. This leads to a deeper exploration of racism in the United States. They use a variety of worksheets imbedded in this plan to...
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George Washington & Civic Virtue: The Necessary Elements of the Republic
Students examine the character of George Washington. In this George Washington instructional activity, students read "Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior," Washington's First Inaugural Address, and his Farewell Address. Students use...
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Committing to Nonviolence: A Lesson from Viva La Causa
Students examine the social change movements of the American 20th century. In this nonviolence lesson, students research the work of Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Caesar Chavez. Students compare and contrast the social...
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Post-War Suburbanization: Causes and Interpretations
In this teaching American history worksheet, students examine a primary source document regarding post-World War II suburbanization. Students discuss their impressions of the document.
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Creating and Evaluating Ethnic Advertising
Students examine the concept of ethnic advertising. In this African American history lesson, students watch segments of videos about the history of ethnic advertising. Students respond to questions that correspond to each of the video...
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Post- Modernism
Students participate in a lesson that investigates post-modernism in American literature. They conduct the lesson with the help of reading "America" by Ginsberg to create context. Then students define the genre and the culture that has...
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Pennsylvania Boxing: Living the American Dream
Learners reflect on fictional and real boxers from Pennsylvania. In this history instructional activity, high schoolers read, reflect and discuss the historical period following World War II and observe the boxers that were famous from...
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ON BECOMING A NONVIOLENT WARRIOR
Students examine the concept of non-violent social change. In this lesson on social change, students research and role play to demonstrate ways in which this might be accomplished while making connections to various events in history.
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Constructing Things
Students analyze the history and art in the Constructivism movement. For this art analysis lesson, students analyze and consider the material types in the art form. Students complete image based discussion. Students work in groups using...
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What’s in a Name? Understanding Malcolm X
Students study the life of Malcolm X. In this autobiography lesson, students read The Autobiography of Malcolm X, investigate and evaluate the time period of his life, and write an essay based on their reflections pertaining to his...
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A New Birth of Freedom: Black Soldiers in the Union Army
Students use primary documents to analyze the events surrounding black soldiers joining the Union Army. For this content area reading lesson, students view multiple primary documents, analyzing and answering questions about them.
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VH1's When Disco Ruled the World
High schoolers choose a minority culture or an event and research the musical influences of that culture or event on American popular music. They discuss how minority cultures and events in American society influenced the Disco era.
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Creating a Neighborhood Timeline
Middle schoolers research information about their neighborhoods. Uncovering facts about geology and Native Americans, they examine how the neighborhood has evolved over time. They work together to create a timeline of specific events.
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WWII Homefront Roundtable
High schoolers play a role in a roundtable discussion after researching how the war impacted their character. Students play roles such as: African-American, American Indian, Japanese-American, German-American, Italian-American, Jewish...