Weebly
Nationalism Project
Don't just ask your class to define nationalism, but invite them to experience it with an engaging project. Learners are divided into groups to design four items—a flag, slogan, national anthem, and historical tale—for a fictional...
Perfection Learning
In The Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson - Activity Book
Moving to a new country isn't easy, as Shirley Temple Wong learns in In The Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson by Bette Bao Lord. A series of language arts activities carry readers through the novel, addressing the story's themes,...
Curated OER
Making Cloth: The Impact of Technology
Students analyze and discuss several primary source documents that address the changes in technology that affected New England agricultural communities in the early 19th century. They also identify and discuss historical contexts for...
Curated OER
Baroque Art and Architecture
Whether sitting in an art or European history class, viewers will enjoy the rich images presented in these slides. Art from the Baroque period, including paintings, sculptures, and furniture, is featured in this presentation, along with...
Curated OER
HOW ABOUT A T-BONE?
Students investigate the events that created the historical context for the Progressive Era in the United States. They evaluate the conflicts of business and common people of the time. The research is done using primary and secondary...
Curated OER
For the Fun of It
Students view pictures of Amelia Earhart and discuss the social and historical context of her life. They read excerpts of Earhart's autobiography "The Fun of It" and analyze her purpose in writing it.
Facing History and Ourselves
Analyzing Historical Evidence
High schoolers examine World War I war crimes. In this world history instructional activity, students use primary and secondary sources to research and understand the systematic nature of the Armenian Genocide. High schoolers reflect on...
Curated OER
Oh, Say, Can You See What the Star-Spangled Banner Means?
Students research the historical inspiration for the lyrics of the "The Star Spangled Banner". They explore websites, read articles and analyze poetry in an examination of America's patriotic symbols and history.
San Antonio Independent School District
Breaking Down the Declaration of Independence
Are learners heavy sighing at the idea of reading a primary source, written in a language that is difficult to understand and in cursive? Look no further, because the resource breaks down the Declaration of Independence in an...
Penguin Books
A Teacher's Guide to the Signet Classics Edition of Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Whether new to teaching The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn or an experienced pro, you’ll find useful resources in this teacher’s guide. The 40-page packet includes background information, historical context, an annotated list of...
Curated OER
HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCES ANALYSIS
Students examine a variety of maps and documents to identify physical and cultural features of neighborhoods, cities, states, and countries, to explain the historical migration of people, expansion and disintegration of empires, and the...
Urban Education Exchange
Lessons and Units: The Watsons go to Birmingham—1963 5TH GRADE UNIT
Get ready to read The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963 with a lesson about historical fiction. Spanning several centuries, the resource prompts learners to guess the historical era of a story based on a word or phrase in the text. In...
DocsTeach
Analyzing Jackie Robinson's White House Letter
Jackie Robinson: A hero on and off the field. An eye-opening activity focuses on Jackie Robinson's social activism during and after the civil rights movement. Academics read a letter addressed to President Nixon, answer questions, and...
While They Watched
Teaching the Holocaust
What is the difference between prejudice and discrimination? Between collaborators and bystanders? Guilt and responsibility? Prompt learners to think critically about a very complex and textured topic with an innovative packet of materials.
Smithsonian Institution
Borders with the World: Mexican-American War and U.S. Southern Borderlands
The Mexican-American War created social borders—not just physical ones. Scholars learn about the effects of the Mexican-American War on the people living in the borderlands using text excerpts, maps, and partnered activities. Academics...
Adult Fiction by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Ghost Boys: Educator Guide
The spirit of the Civil Rights Movement lives on in a more literal than figurative way in Ghost Boys. A focused lesson plan features Jewell Parker Rhodes' novel about ghosts of slain black teenagers, including the main character, Jerome,...
K12 Reader
Finding Text Evidence: Frederick Douglass
After reading a very brief excerpt from Frederick Douglass' autobiography, learners cite textual evidence to support a main idea of the primary source about Douglass' humiliating experience with slavery. This is a brief exercise that...
National Woman's History Museum
Humor and Activism
As part of their study of the women's suffrage movement, groups analyze political cartoons and drawings. They create a caption for an image from the time, add an exhibit label that provides a context for their drawing, and post as part...
Curated OER
Historic N. Ireland Deal Reached
Four questions about conflict in Northern Ireland make up this activity, which prompts students to go to Wikipedia for more background on the situation. The questions are good and can prompt strong discussions in your class. But,...
Urbana School District
Knocking Down Fences
After reading The Other Side and guiding children through a picture walk, third graders investigate evidence of the civil rights movement. In the mini unit, 3rd graders analyze photographs of the past and make connections between...
Curated OER
Jelly Bracelets: Fashion or Sex Game?
Ever-changing fashion fads are the ideal context for an engaging sociology experiment for adolescents. Through research and conducting a survey, learners draw conclusions about the controversial jelly bracelets fad, banned in some...
PBS
Baseball: The Tenth Inning - Bases Divided
Baseball is a relatively high-interest topic through which social studies classes can explore racial prejudice in the US. Video clips provide much of the background information that groups record on their handout and then share with the...
Judicial Branch of California
Separate But Equal - Is It Black or White?
The story of Ruby Bridges and the case of Brown vs. The Board of Education are fantastic tools for discussing the concept of separate but equal. Kids tackle some big questions about what is fair, what is civil, and what rights or laws...
Smithsonian Institution
General George Washington, Military Leader
Teach pupils the characteristics that make George Washington such an effective leader, especially in context of his time period. Scholars view artifacts, participate in group work, create lists, compare and contrast, and discuss as a...