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Activity
Curated OER

Current Event Project

For Teachers 4th - 12th Standards
One of the best ways to make history relevant and engaging is to analyze current events before they become history! Check out these project guidelines for a current event research paper, outlining the major required sections of the...
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Website
News For Kids

News For Kids.net

For Students 3rd - 12th Standards
Media lovers read articles on a variety of current events with a website made especially for kids. The website is easy to navigate and includes sections about everything from science to sports.
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Lesson Plan
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Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary

From Ben’s Pen to Our Lives

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
What would Ben do? Jumping off from the pseudonymous letters Ben Franklin fooled his older brother into publishing when he was still a teenager, young literary lovers dive into acting, writing, and addressing a local issue with wit and...
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Worksheet
Curated OER

How Often Do You Interact with People of Another Race or Ethnicity?

For Students 7th - 12th
Is interacting with people from different backgrounds part of a well-rounded education? A big question awaits young readers as they explore two New York Times articles that discuss modern-day segregation, population statistics, and...
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Lesson Plan
1
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University of Pennsylvania

From the Dreyfus Affair to the World Today

For Teachers 8th - 12th Standards
Historical events do not occur in a vacuum. Such is the case of the Dreyfus Affair, where the connection between Captain Alfred Dreyfus, Emile Zola, and Hannah Arendt is fused by the events of the early 20th century. The informative...
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Lesson Plan
1
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Stanford University

Civil Rights or Human Rights?

For Students 6th - 12th Standards
Young citizens consider the American civil rights movement as part of the global struggle for human rights. After using a timeline activity to learn about the major events in the civil rights movement, class members study Malcolm X's...
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Lesson Plan
1
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Teaching Tolerance

Introducing 'The New Jim Crow'

For Teachers 9th - 12th
When Jim Crow Laws ended, the intent behind them did not. Academics read "The New Jim Crow Laws" and an interview from the author to understand how racism has not ended, but rather changed over time. The lesson explains how prejudices in...
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Lesson Plan
1
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Channel Islands Film

Arlington Springs Man: Lesson Plan 4

For Teachers 5th - 12th Standards
West of the West's documentary Arlington Springs Man introduces viewers to the remarkable finds on Santa Rosa Island. Archaeologist have discovered on this small island that is part of the Channel island chain, human and pygmy mammoth...
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Lesson Plan
Scholastic

Dear Miss Breed

For Teachers 4th - 12th Standards
This compelling plan based on the letters in the book Dear Miss Breed engages readers in learning what it was like for Japanese Americans following the attacks at Pearl Harbor. After reading the letters, young scholars will partake in...
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Lesson Plan
1
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Facebook

What Is Verification?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
One of the most important skills news consumers and social media users must develop is the ability to determine the veracity of stories they read or view. Here's an interactive lesson plan that teaches high schoolers how to verify news...
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Lesson Plan
Southern Poverty Law Center

Evaluating Online Sources

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
All sources are pretty much the same, right? If this is how your class views the sources they use for writing or research projects, present them with a media literacy lesson on smart source evaluation. Groups examine several articles,...
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Lesson Plan
Stanford University

Observing Human Rights Day

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
How much intervention is appropriate for America to take in cases of human rights violations? Class members ponder a question that has lingered since the birth of America with a series of primary sources that reflect the degree to which...
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Lesson Plan
Learning to Live

Attributes of a Civil Society

For Teachers 9th Standards
What makes a society civil? High school freshmen search for examples of justice, kindness, peace, and tolerance in news media and brainstorm how they can promote these attributes in their schools, communities, and world. The well-rounded...
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Lesson Plan
1
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Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary

Reading the Work of B. Franklin, Printer

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Placing Ben Franklin’s ideas about a free press next to those embodied in the First Amendment sheds light on both. Learners interpret and compare two primary sources and then examine them in the light of a contemporary survey about...
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Lesson Plan
Constitutional Rights Foundation

If Men Were Angels: Teaching the Constitution With the Federalist Papers

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
Much like the methods of group work, the writers of the Federalist Papers worked together to advocate for their viewpoints against the anti-federalists. The resource enables learners to break into small groups and conduct research before...
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Lesson Plan
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Turabian Teacher Collaborative

Parts of Argument II: Article Critique

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Break down the parts of argumentative writing with a critical thinking activity. High schoolers read an article of your (or their choice), and use a graphic organizer to delineate the ways the author structures his or her arguments.
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Lesson Plan
3
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American Documentary

The Benefits and Drawbacks of Plea Bargains

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
The outcome of 90 percent of criminal cases in the US is determined by plea bargains. Clips from the documentary Better This World create the backdrop for an investigation of the benefits and drawbacks of the plea bargaining process....
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Information Overload: Looking at News

For Teachers 9th - 12th
How do events reported in mainstream newspapers, on television news, blog posts, and social network sites differ? Ask your class to investigate the way the same news item is presented in the many information sources available. Groups...