Interactive
Annenberg Foundation

Annenberg Learner: Analyzing Artifacts

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
Learn the steps in the 5-step process that historians use when they analyze an artifact as you investigate what you can learn from Native American and other items.
Unit Plan
Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian Education: Artifact & Analysis: Historical Interpretation

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
A companion to American history courses, Artifact & Analysis features historical artifacts and documents about consumerism and the nation expanding, teacher's guide, writing assignments, and essays.
Unit Plan
Annenberg Foundation

Annenberg Learner: Artifacts and Fiction: Workshop in American Literature

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This workshop, which is divided into eight segments, teaches how to use primary source artifacts from a variety of genres to support the teaching and learning of specific pieces of literature. The genres include visual arts, political...
Website
Bullock Texas State History Museum

Bullock Museum: Artifact Gallery

For Students 9th - 10th
A database of artifacts and articles related to Texas and its history. The artifacts are in different museums, or you can restrict your search to the Bullock Museum. You can search by time period from BCE to the present day, and by type...
Unit Plan
Annenberg Foundation

Annenberg Learner: America's History in the Making: Historical Thinking Interactives

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
Six interactive activities are presented that walk students through how to use their critical thinking skills in the analysis of historical artifacts and documents. The sixth one explains how to balance the various perspectives that...
Lesson Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

Neh: Edsit Ement: Traces: Historic Archaeology

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Excellent lesson plans that challenge students to consider every day uses for artifacts. Site provides an analysis worksheet that will help students consider the importance of artifacts in understanding historical people. Links to sites...
Lesson Plan
Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian Education: Art to Zoo Playing Historical Detective

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Students become detectives, reading and analyzing documents and artifacts as clues to the life of a nineteenth century woman, Annie Steel. The students then use various materials to create a series of collages.
Lesson Plan
Discovery Education

Discovery Education: What Artifacts Reveal About the Past

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
This site provides a lesson plan to teach the importance of analyzing artifacts, past and present.
Handout
Other

Object of History: Guide to Doing History With Objects

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
Explore the dimensions of America's rich history by taking a detailed look at objects from our past. Examine stories, important moments, and the evolution of the American people via primary documents, photos, and other artifacts.
Graphic
Curated OER

National Park Service: Museum Collections/ Chaco Culture National Historic Park

For Students 9th - 10th
One of the earliest peoples living in the Southwest of present day America were the Chaco, also called the Anasazi. Learn about their history and culture and the great contributions made by this civilization, view preserved artifacts and...
Graphic
Other

Ohio Historical Society: The Hopewell Culture

For Students 9th - 10th
Who were the Hopewell? There seems to be many ideas due to the variation of Hopewell artifacts and sites. Authors offer a few facts and many thumbnails of images that when clicked, provide further information on Hopewell artifacts,...
Website
Other

Vermont Historical Society

For Students 9th - 10th
This site allows you to view exhibits from the Vermont Historical Museum collection. Click on 'Virtual vhs' for a list of their online exhibitions. The teaching resources section includes a collection of whiteboard lessons for Promethean...
Graphic
Google Cultural Institute

Google Cultural Institute: Historic Moments

For Students 9th - 10th
More than 125 exhibitions based on significant moments throughout history contain artwork, documents, photographs, and other artifacts that make the connection between history on a grand scale and the individual human level. Material can...
Lesson Plan
Maine Historical Society

Maine Historical Society: The Writer's Hour: Footprints on the Sands of Time

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
This series of lessons introduces children to Longfellow's poetry and provides them with an opportunity to write their own. There is also the opportunity to take a virtual tour of the poet's home, and to be a curator examining artifacts...
Website
Other

Pueblo County Historical Society

For Students 9th - 10th
This site will enable you to better understand the history of the State of Colorado and in particular, Pueblo County which is located in Southeastern Colorado. The museum houses many collections which include artifacts, photographs,...
Website
Other

Kentucky Historical Society: Kentucky Military Treasures

For Students 9th - 10th
A collection of personal stories, illustrated with artifacts, documents, and photographs, that exemplifies the military experiences of Kentuckians in America's wars, beginning with the War of 1812. Requires Adobe Flash.
Professional Doc
Annenberg Foundation

Annenberg Learner: Placing Artifacts in Time

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This is from an American history course designed for teachers to enrich their knowledge and their teaching practice. This interactive focuses on how history views Pocahontas. It looks at how historical events are re-interpreted as time...
Primary
Other

Indiana Historical Society: Digital Image Collections

For Students Pre-K - 1st
Vast database of images and artifacts tells the story of Indiana and its people. Search by keyword or browse preset special collections of notable Hoosiers, the history of African Americans in Indiana, or Indiana military history, among...
Website
Curated OER

National Park Service: Eisenhower National Historic Site: Military Career

For Students 9th - 10th
Online exhibition details aspects of Eisenhower's military career, beginning with his days as a West Point cadet. Covers his campaigns in North Africa and Italy, his appointment as Supreme Allied Commander, the Normandy invasion, and his...
Primary
Library of Congress

Loc: Presidential Inaugurations: Historical Insights

For Students 9th - 10th
Features inaugural artifacts and highlights of nine presidential inaugurations starting with George Washington who established many of the ceremonial traditions that are still followed today.
Activity
University of Hawai'i

University of Hawaii: Have a Historical Question? Ask a Historian!

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This site summarizes what a historian does, what tools they use, and how to prepare to ask a historical question.
Lesson Plan
Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian Education: Teaching From Objects and Stories: Eskimo People

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
The object of these three lesson plans is for the young scholars to use objects and stories to learn about the Eskimo people of the Bering Strait. All worksheets and materials are included. Students will solve historical problems, using...
Website
Other

Historic Jamestown: 400 Year Old Well

For Students 9th - 10th
Archaeologists unearthed a time capsule in the form of a well located in the corner of the Jamestown fort. This article lists some of the artifacts found there.
Handout
Chicago History Museum

Chicago Historical Society: History Files: Parades, Protests and Politics

For Students 9th - 10th
Summary of events with photos and artifacts about the 1968 Democratic National Convention.