Echoes & Reflections
Jewish Resistance
Resistance to the Holocaust took on many forms. Learners explore the passive and active resistance of Jewish people who continued their practices and observances, as well as organized resistance against the evils of the Nazis. An...
Echoes & Reflections
The "Final Solution"
Nazi policies shifted from deportation and imprisonment to extermination of the Jewish people in death camps in the "Final Solution." Learners examine photos of artifacts, read poetry written by survivors, analyze testimony from...
Echoes & Reflections
Survivors and Liberators
The end was just the beginning. The period immediately after the end of World War II and the Holocaust is often called "The Return to Life" as survivors looked to reunite and recreate broken families and shattered lives. A two-lesson...
Echoes & Reflections
Nazi Germany
The Holocaust was an evolution of anti-Semitism, scapegoating, and targeted violence against Jews with Nazi policies. A resource unpacks the escalation in violence, along with the erosion of democratic institutions, during the 1930s....
Echoes & Reflections
The Children and Legacies Beyond the Holocaust
Using video testimony, primary source documents that detail international agreements, and structured discussions, learners consider the precarious position of children during the Holocaust and other international conflicts, and how to...
Echoes & Reflections
Rescuers and Non-Jewish Resistance
What does it mean to be a rescuer during the time of the Holocaust? Learners consider the role of those who resisted the Nazi invasions, including hiding Jewish people, throughout Europe. Activities include listening to the testimony of...
Echoes & Reflections
The Ghettos
Young historians examine primary sources, including diaries, poems, and photographs, to consider the conditions in the ghettos and how they fit into the escalation of the Third Reich's plot against the Jewish people.
Echoes & Reflections
Studying The Holocaust
While many young scholars are familiar with the Holocaust, they may not understand the specific history that led to the unprecedented atrocity. The first lesson in the unit helps teachers gauge their pupils' background knowledge. A...
Odell Education
Building Evidence-Based Arguments: "Cuplae poena par esto: Let the punishment fit the crime."
Should a criminal's punishment match the crime? An argumentative writing plan explores this question as class members investigate a variety of mixed-medium sources by experts in the field, form evidence-based claims, and support them...
Louisiana Department of Education
Unit: Hamlet
Encourage readers to determine if Hamlet's madness is actually divinest sense. Class members analyze the words of the play before studying related texts, including T.S. Eliot's "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock," scenes from...
Dream of a Nation
Writing a Narrative Essay
Imagine using narrative essays to encourage change. This multi-week unit plan does just that. After reading a series of articles from Tyson Miller's Dream of a Nation: Inspiring Ideas for a Better America, class members examine the...
Federal Reserve Bank
Diversification and Risk
After being given a portfolio of investments, your young economists will learn how to assess the relative risk of the portfolio's products and understand the importance of diversification, relating these economic concepts to real-life...
Federal Reserve Bank
Barbie in the Labor Force
How have the women's share of the labor force and chosen occupations evolved in the United States over the last century? Using census reports, graphs detailing the gender makeup of the labor force, and analysis of the careers of Barbie...
American Institute of Physics
Historical Detective: Edward Alexander Bouchet and the Washington-Du Bois Debate over African-American Education
Young scientists meet Edward Alexander Bouchet who, in 1876, was the first African American to receive a PhD in Physics. This two-part lesson first looks at the debate between Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois about the type of...
NASA
The Big Climate Change Experiment Lesson 4: Weather Versus Climate
Decide whether to learn about weather. An illuminating lesson has scholars first watch video clips and discuss the difference between weather and climate. Using their newfound knowledge, they create analogies to illustrate this...
NASA
The Big Climate Change Experiment Lesson 2: The Influence of Climate on Culture
No conversation about culture is complete without considering climate. Scholars first view videos of climate witnesses who describe the climate in their regions and how climate change affects their daily lives. They then write essays or...
Teaching Tolerance
Thanksgiving Mourning
Two primary sources, a speech, and an article provide tweens and teens with different perspectives of the American Thanksgiving holiday. After analyzing Wamsutta James' suppressed speech and Jacqueline Keeler's article, class members use...
Facing History and Ourselves
Reflection and Action for Civic Participation
Slacktivist or activist? Bystander or upstander? Positive social change requires involvement and commitment. After reading a series of articles about young people who chose to get involved, scholars examine a framework that helps peers...
Teaching Tolerance
How Fair Use Works
What's fair is fair! Using the resource, scholars discuss the key differences between fair use and copyright. Next, in small groups, pupils create and present projects that demonstrate fair use of copyrighted material, such as a song,...
Teaching Tolerance
You Are the Product
What does it mean for a product or service to go viral? Scholars explore the topic by reading an article about the economics of social media. After reading, they complete a 3-2-1 data chart with information they learned from the text and...
American Battlefield Trust
Gettysburg Address: Abraham Lincoln's Greatest Speech
Most Americans have heard of the Gettysburg Address, but may not know what it means and why is it so important. Following guidance and scaffolded prompts, scholars analyze the short document that left an undeniable impact on the American...
American Battlefield Trust
Joshua Chamberlain Lesson Plan
While Joshua Chamberlain's name is not as iconic as Abraham Lincoln or Robert E. Lee, he still played a pivotal role in the military engagements of the Civil War. Using two secondary sources—including one that draws heavily from his...
Pixton Comics Inc.
Elements of an Epic
Mythic heroes, gods and goddesses, and epic tales come alive as young artists craft their own graphic novel or mind map for classic epics, including The Odyssey, Beowulf, Harry Potter, and Star Wars, identifying the six elements of every...
Odell Education
Making Evidence-Based Claims: "The Souls of Black Folk" by W.E.B. Du Bois
Scholars dig deep into the text of W.E.B. Du Bois The Souls of Black Folk and analyze his position that black people must be aware of how they see themselves as well as how the world sees them. The instructor and readers work through the...