Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media
George Washington: General, President, Slave Owner
Times change; behaviors that were once considered acceptable can be seen in a very different light. Middle schoolers revisit the legacy of George Washington in a three-day lesson plan that uses primary sources to reveal Washington as a...
Center for History Education
Democratic Ideas of the 1776 Maryland Constitution
1776 was a year of political upheaval in the American colonies. Academics examine the Maryland Constitution to understand the desire to break with Great Britain. Young historians learn about Maryland's efforts to extend rights to its...
Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media
The Boston Massacre: You Be the Judge!
The importance of considering multiple perspectives of the same event is the big idea in this exercise that focuses on the Boston Massacre. Class groups examine photos of four depictions of the massacre, an English and an American...
Curated OER
Settlement Exploration: Then and Now
NASA has crafted an imaginative and memorable series of lessons, "NASA and Jamestown Education Module." This lesson is one of the five components. In it, middle schoolers connect history and science by comparing the settlement of...
Curated OER
Obstacles to Perseverance
What does it mean to persevere. Young historians review the definition of perseverance then brainstorm a list of obstacles colonists and revolutionaries had to overcome during the American Revolution. Using this list, they identify...
Curated OER
Seeking a Fortune in 18th Century Maritime Boston
Study the Revolutionary War era practice of recruiting seamen to prey upon the British shipping industry, and discuss the impact this practice had on the Colonial war efforts. Learners read and interpret recruiting advertisements for...
Curated OER
America: 1763-1776
For this online interactive history worksheet, students respond to 10 short answer and essay questions about the United States between the years 1763 and 1776.
Curated OER
Barter Day
Fifth graders research bartering. For this bartering lesson, 5th graders investigate bartering as a way to trade for goods and services. Students experience bartering first hand while playing a game.
Curated OER
On the Mayflower Lesson Plan
Students create a model of the Mayflower. For this early childhood lesson plan, students engage in dramatic play while reenacting the Pilgrims and the Mayflower. Students listen as the instructor reads On the Mayflower by Kate Waters.
Curated OER
Jamestown Journey Part 3
Fourth graders study the economy of Jamestown. For this early settlers lesson, 4th graders read about the trade between the English and the natives in Jamestown. This lesson is part of a larger unit and coincides with the novel The...
Curated OER
Networking at Early James Fort
Students examine the impact of global trade on regional civilizations of the world after 1500. They research and analyze images of pottery excavated at Jamestown, and create a poster that presents information about world trade networks...
Curated OER
Benjamin Franklin: Colonial Printer and Journalist
Fifth graders explore how important print media is to everyone's daily life. Students use present daily newspapers and they are to reproduce weather forecasts.
Curated OER
Colonial Maps
Young scholars discover the history of America by identifying the traditional colonies. In this U.S. history instructional activity, students examine a world map and identify where the voyagers left from Europe to arrive at the United...
Curated OER
Thirteen Colonies Word Jumble
In this American colonies activity, students unscramble the letters in 20 words to spell vocabulary pertaining to the thirteen original colonies. There is a word bank provided.
Curated OER
Jobs in Jamestown
Students research data on Jamestown settlers in order to learn about the daily life and events in the colony. In this investigative history instructional activity, students work in groups to analyze the results of the Jamestown census. ...
Curated OER
Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay Landscape Long Ago and Today
Combine a fantastic review of primary source analysis with a study of Captain John Smith's influence on the Chesapeake Bay region in the seventeenth century. Your young historians will use images, a primary source excerpt, and maps...
Scholastic
Pilgrim and Wampanoag Daily Life for Grades 6–8
Two slide shows, viewed side-by-side, permit middle schoolers to compare and contrast the lives of the Pilgrims of the Plimoth colony and the Wampanoags. Four videos take learners on virtual field trips to the Plymouth plantation. And an...
Scholastic
The First Thanksgiving Feast for Grades 3-5
Scholars examine the first Thanksgiving through books and interviews while they complete a KWL chart. Pretending they are part of the feast, learners craft a scrapbook page that features images related to their experience. Pupils reflect...
Polk County Public Schools
The French and Indian War
Sharpen those pencils and get to writing with a series of document-based questions about the French and Indian War. High schoolers focus on maps, letters, and other primary documents from the 18th century before answering writing prompts...
Scholastic
Pilgrim and Wampanoag Daily Life for Grades 3-5
Thirteen steps make up a lesson that challenges pupils to compare and contrast the daily lives of Pilgrims and the Wampanoag tribe. Learners revisit the Graffiti Wall then break into small groups for an investigative reading assignment...
Curated OER
Jamestown Changes
Students examine how the Jamestown settlement changed the first few years after it was founded. They take a virtual field trip of Jamestown, read primary source documents, discuss census information, and write a summary of changes in...
Curated OER
America: The Land We Live In: Landmarks
Students explore the concept of landmarks. In this landmark lesson, students brainstorm different landmarks around their community and nationally. Students then identify the patterns in Georgia O'Keeffe's paintings or landmarks.
Stanford University
Expansion of the Inca Empire
If you could write your own history textbook, what would you include? Learners play the role of textbook writers by examining evidence of the Inca Empire. With primary sources from Spanish and indigenous perspectives, as well as images,...
Stanford University
Annexation of Hawaii
Once an independent nation, Hawaii became part of the United States only after a business-sponsored coup of its queen. After examining newspapers from the 1890s, learners consider whether native Hawaiians wished to become Americans at...