Curated OER
A More Perfect Union: The Story of Our Constitution
Sit back, relax, and transport to 1787! This lesson on the Constitution begins with guided imagery of the Constitutional Convention. The class reads A More Perfect Union: The Story of Our Constitution in an interactive read-aloud...
Curated OER
Stately Statements
Students closely read President Bush's State of the Union address, then develop interviews and write articles to assess a variety of points of view about The proposals offered in the speech.
Curated OER
Unionized We Stand
Students compose a statement of basic rights to protect their own health and well-being. They research the history, power and purpose of unions in the United States before creating their own union to promote the interests of students.
Curated OER
Press Review
How can word choice affect a political speech? Middle and high schoolers examine the text of the 1999 State of the Union Address, and then determine how newspaper articles and television reports describe and analyze the event. Use this...
Curated OER
Unionism versus Secessionism in Virginia
Eleventh graders, in groups, analyze newspaper articles and then debate and discuss if Virginia should succeed from the Union or not.
Curated OER
A New Birth of Freedom: Black Soldiers in the Union Army
Students investigate the history of civil rights by viewing historical photographs. In this U.S. history instructional activity, students discuss why Black Soldiers fought for their rights by joining the Union Army in the 1800's....
Curated OER
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.
Read Works
American Government Preamble to the United States Constitution
Observe Constitution Day with a worksheet that delves deep into the who, what, why, when, where, and how of the U.S. Constitution. Scholars read a short informational text then answer 10 questions—short answer and multiple choice.
Curated OER
Breaking Barriers
Determine how African-Americans have broken barriers in this history lesson. Middle schoolers discuss the 15th Amendment and the American civil rights movement prior to analyzing Barack Obama's speech "A More Perfect Union," taking care...
Curated OER
Longfellow Amongst His Contemporaries: the Ship of State Dbq
Young scholars evaluate the ship of state metaphor in relation to the historical events in America from the Revolutionary War to the Civil War. They synthesize ideas presented in ten different primary source documents and compose an...
Curated OER
African Americans in the Civil War
Students examine the contributions of African American soldiers during the Civil War. In pairs, they complete Civil War timeline worksheets. They use character cards to assume the identities of African Americans and determine whether or...
Curated OER
Integrity and Firmness is All I Can Promise: The Washington Presidency
Students engage in a lesson which addresses George Washington's leadership as President of the United States. They review a variety of letters written by Washington online, and prepare reports for the class.
K12 Reader
Two Viewpoints of the Same Event: Lee Surrenders to Grant, 1865
How did Union General Ulysses S. Grant view the surrender of Confederate General Robert E. Lee in 1865, which effectively ended the United States Civil War? After reading an excerpt from Grant's autobiography, your young historians will...
Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media
End of the Cold War
How significant was the Cold War during the 20th century? After reading and analyzing speeches by Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev, learners consider the historical context of foreign policy decisions made during the Cold War by both...
Mr. Nussbaum
Battle of Fort Sumter
Fort Sumter, the site of the Civil War's first battle, taught the Union and the Confederacy an important lesson: they would both need to take stronger steps than anticipated if they wanted to win the war. History pupils read about the...
K12 Reader
Slavery in the Constitution
Your young historians will read excerpts from three parts of the United States Constitution—Article One, the Thirteenth Amendment, and the Fourteenth Amendment—and discuss how they each address the issue of slavery.
National Endowment for the Humanities
The Preamble to the Constitution: A Close Reading Lesson
"We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union..." These familiar lines begin the Preamble to the Constitution, but do learners know what they mean? A close reading exercise takes a look at the language of the...
Civil War Trust
Civil War Reader's Theater
Encourage class members to add expression and put themselves back in time during the Civil War with a reader's theater activity. The scripts include dialogue on what it was like for the Union and Confederate sides during this time.
Curated OER
Abraham Lincoln on the American Union: " A Word Fitly Spoken"
Students consider Lincoln's perspective. In this presidential perspectives lesson, students explore the political thoughts of Lincoln through a series of lessons that make use of primary source analysis. They hypothesize and take a...
Curated OER
The Potential Unification of Cyprus and the Entry of Cyprus into the European Union
Students analyze reasons for the existing political situation in Cyprus. They review the history of the European Union, and analyze the benefits of Cyprus joining the EU.
Curated OER
Abraham Lincoln Greets Union Soldiers
In this Abraham Lincoln worksheet, students identify the picture of Abraham Lincoln greeting the Union soldiers. Students color the picture.
Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary
Benjamin Franklin, Elder Statesman
Ben Franklin was the only American to sign The Declaration of Independence, the Treaty of Alliance with France, the Treaty of Paris, and the US Constitution. An interesting resource explores his role in the latter by comparing the US...
National Endowment for the Humanities
The Declaration of Independence in Six Parts
Everyone knows that the Declaration of Independence is important, but what does it actually say? Members of American history classes analyze the Founding Fathers' arguments against British tyranny and for a more perfect union with a...
Curated OER
The Union is Perpetual: Lincoln is Elected
Middle schoolers view primary documents about the race for President in the time of Abraham Lincoln. For this election lesson, students prepare arguments for and against Lincoln using an analysis sheet. Middle schoolers create a poster...