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Presidential Election 2000
Young scholars examine the presidential candidates and their election platforms. They further analyze the platforms by creating a chart to determine which candidate most represents his or her beliefs and values.
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ELA.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.3
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech, "I Have a Dream," is one of the most famous in United States history, but why was it so effective? Ask your class to determine the answer to this question. While the resource includes a description of...
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US Constitution And Federal/State Relationship
Learners examine the Constitution for references to the relationship between state and federal governments. They examine Supreme Court cases for examples of the division of government between state and federal powers.
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Speech in the Virginia Convention
“. . .different men often see the same subject in different lights. . .” but the great orator Patrick Henry used all the skills at his command to craft a speech to convince listeners to see things as he did--that liberty was worth dying...
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ELA.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.11-12.9
Guided by close-reading questions, groups examine the similarities and differences between the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. In addition, they look at how the principles are presented in these two foundational US...
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Western-Genre Films
Young scholars watch westerns and analyze them. They identify the plot, characters and the sounds in the film. They research icons of the American west and prepare a presentation. They share their presentation with the class.
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Power of Persuasion
Teaching students about persuasion can be a fun experience that involves writing, PowerPoint presentations, and vocabulary building.
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Unit Plan for Mark Twain and American Humor
Students create brochures about the humor of Mark Twain. In this literature-analysis lesson plan, students read "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" and other short stories by Twain. Students write analytical paragraphs and...
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Writing a Political Leader
Learners investigate politics by writing a formal letter. In this U.S. Government lesson, students discuss political issues they would like to address and research their topic using the Internet. Learners locate an appropriate political...
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How to Deal With Class Size Increases
While class size increases make it more challenging for teachers to meet students' needs, there are ways to make things a little easier.
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Argumentation and Logic
Learners recognize inductive and deductive reasoning and analyze common fallacies in critical thinking. In this argumentation and logic lesson, students use role playing activities and specific instances of inductive and deductive...
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Immigration in the United States
Students explore how recent immigration and migration patterns impact social and political issues. They apply affective learning techniques
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Sectionalism and the Kansas-Nebraska Act
Students define and discuss sectionalism and popular sovereignty, analyze impact of popular sovereignty in creation of state of Kansas, compare issues in territorial Kansas to current politically divisive topic, and evaluate primary...
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Using Primary Sources to Discover Reconstruction
Fifth graders discover how reconstruction had an impact on racial issues in the United States. In this Reconstruction lesson, 5th graders are introduced to primary vs. secondary resources and then rotate through stations to view...
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Consumerism
Seventh graders explain the concept of needs verses wants, influences on consumers, and advertising and relate those to making positive consumer choices. They break into small groups and plan a two-week day camp involving games and...
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Writing and Publishing Skills
Seventh graders experience the satisfaction of writing for a purpose; their self-selected piece be published for an audience. They write using techniques appropriate to the selected genre.
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Creating a Travel Brochure
Students use the internet to research a country of interest to them. Using graphics, they create a travel brochure about the country encouraging people to travel there. They present their information to the class while showing their...
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Exploring Color Vocabulary
Pupils explore color terms and related meanings and metaphors in cultural and literary contexts. They use the main colors to explore synonymous color terms and related metaphorical meanings of color words. Students recognize the extent...
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Transformations
Pupils identify the types of transformations in their lives. As a class, they determine the ones they have control over and which ones they do not. They practice solving problems in math and oral communication that they are faced with on...
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Fiction vs. Nonfiction
Students explore fiction and nonfiction writing. They identify the elements of fiction in a short story and identify the criteria necessary in a nonfiction piece. Students distinguish the author's purpose in an expository text,...
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Assessing Health Habits
Seventh graders discuss what are the characteristics of a personal with good health. They read an article about influences on health and discuss and perform a self assessment to gauge their personal health. They then go to the gym and...
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Sportsmanship and Spectator Behavior
Sixth graders listen to the story BEING A BAD SPORT as teacher reads to the class. They identify good and bad sportsmanship by reading and writing activities. They then go to the gym and simulate a game situation recording examples of...
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Nutrition and Fitness
Sixth graders investigate the food guide pyramid. They conduct Internet research, and plan a three day nutritional menu appropriate for teenagers. Students include three meals per day and a snack for each day on their menu, and...
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The Individual and His Role in Society
Tenth graders discover how various writers approach the themes of : alienation and solitude, living life "deliberately" and "phonies." Through reading, journaling, class discussion, and writing assignments they realize the power of the...