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The Empires of Africa
Students, in groups, compare and chart the different African kingdoms and city-states. They write a short essay detailing the aspects of African history that most fascinates them.
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Time Lines: Connecting Your Life to History
Students, who are adult learners, examine time increments in history. The create their own timelines, and write a compare and contrast essay.
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The Pioneer Experience
Tenth graders consider the move westward. For this Westward Movement lesson, 10th graders compare and contrast the experiences of 2 pioneers by creating t-charts. Students analyze diaries, photographs, and political cartoons that capture...
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You Don’t Know What You’ve Got Until It’s Gone: The Changing American Landscape
Students examine the changing American landscape. In this cause and effect lesson, students listen to rock music that exemplifies urban growth in America and the interconnectedness of America today. Students write cause and effect essays...
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Poetry Interpretation and Figurative Language
Fifth graders discover how figurative language is used in poetry. They read selected poems and identify the figurative language with handouts and worksheets included in the lesson. They write poems of their own using figurative language.
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The Early American Temperance/Anti-tobacco Movement
Tenth graders consider movements to regulate alcohol and tobacco use. For this Temperance Movements lesson, 10th graders compare and contrast movements in the 1800's and the modern era as they research selected primary and secondary...
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From Whose Perspective?
Students critically analyze news coverage of Palestinian-Israeli violence by comparing information from a variety of news sources. They compose expository essays reflecting on how to obtain accurate, unbiased, and credible information.
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History: I'm Watching You 24/7
Students examine the growth of authoritarian societies. Focusing on North Korea, they watch video clips looking for examples of totalitarianism and identify the problems there. They write letters to the editors of local newspapers...
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Pirates: Fact or Fiction?
Students gain an understanding of what pirates are and to prove they really did and do exist. They discuss the different myths the students have about pirates as compared to what the documentary discusses.
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Approaching Walden
Eleventh graders examine their natural surroundings as a way to begin thinking about an abstract idea. They analyze and compare or contrast the rhetorical stategies of two essayists. Students interpret and evaluate images culled from...
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Recap and Activities (Reveloutionary War Era)
Eighth graders discuss the importance of the Second Continental Congress. They compare and contrast present-day athletic mascots and their roots in the Revolutionary War. After discussing Loyalists and Patriots, 8th graders write...
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Many Happy Returns
Students compare the journey of Lewis and Clark with the space flight of Apollo 11. Students sequence events using a timeline. Students write a persuasive essay trying to persuade the people of the US to support space exploration.
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Underground Rails: The New York City Subway System
Students explore the New York Subway system. They investigate its usefulness as mode of transportation for the people in the city and study its history compared to other city subway systems. They examine how the subway connects the...
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Window Into Another Culture
Students read "A Single Lucid Moment" as a class. In groups, they identify the aspects of the United States that might allow for homelessness to happen and compare it with the culture of New Guinea. They write a journal entry about how...
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Rock Art Around the World
Students analyze rock art. In this rock art lesson, students research cultures that created rock art, analyze their art pieces, and compose essays regarding their findings.
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Exploring Cultural Rituals
Students analyze images and music of common rituals in America with those of other countries. They use worksheets to compare and contrast the events.
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The Other Side of Paradise
Eleventh graders explore the life and writing of F. Scott Fitzgerald. They examine the youth culture of the 1920's and compare it to their own. They practice using some of the biographer's or archivist's tools for studying a person.
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Ambitious Women Artists At Work
Students investigate the lives of two famous female European artists. In this historical arts lesson, they examine the artwork of Luisa Roldan and Elisabeth Louise Vigee Le Brun. Students define and discuss the meaning of the words...
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The World of Constitutions: Better Understanding the U.S. Constitution
Learners examine the purpose of constitutions. In this government systems lesson, students analyze the sections of the U.S. Constitution. Learners then compare the U.S. Constitution to the constitutions of other countries. Students write...
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Family History
Eighth graders examine immigration patterns. In this family history lesson, 8th graders investigate their own family histories and then compare and contrast immigration patterns of their class to national immigration patterns between...
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The Fight for Human Rights
Students explore the concept of human rights by developing and defending their own 'Bills of Human Rights' and by writing a reflective essay that compares their notions of human rights and the protection of them.
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"Retale" Value: Exploring Plot Similarities in Fiction and Nonfiction Stories
Students explore seven basic story lines and apply these story lines to news articles in the New York Times. They write reports comparing the plot of a news article to novels, plays and movies with which they are familiar.
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Golden Ages: Gupta Empire, Ancient Greece, and Ancient Rome
Students investigate the Golden Ages. In this world history lesson plan, students compare and contrast the achievements of the Gupta Empire, ancient Greece, and ancient Rome using an interactive T-chart.
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Our Eye in the Sky: The TIROS Weather Satellite
Students investigate the political context of the creation of a weather satellite. In this technology and society lesson, students explore the historical, technological, and political context of the TIROS weather satellite. They write a...