Pardee Home Museum
Geography of Alaska
A unit on the 49th state covers a variety of topics from the geography of Alaska to Native American myths. Academics work to analyze information found in primary source materials including old newspaper articles and artifacts. Young...
PBS
Sitting Bull: Spiritual Leader and Military Leader
Sitting Bull was not expected to be a great warrior. Yet, he led the Lakota people and other tribes to several pivotal victories against the United States government when federal troops threatened their land. Using primary sources, such...
Curated OER
A Guide Through the Culture of the Blues
High schoolers examine the history of blues music and discover how it relates to the music of today. As a class, they listen to the drum songs of Africa and compare it to the use of drums in pop music today. Using the internet, they...
Curated OER
Native American Recipes
Students discover traditional Native American foods. They prepare different recipes and share them with the class. They discuss how the Native American culture is different from their own.
Curated OER
Cultural Values Messages in the Giant Kites of Guatemala
Pupils describes ways in which the arts serve as expressions of culture. They explain how some forms of cultural communication contributes to societal cohesion and/or division. Students detect and analyze explicit and implicit messages...
Curated OER
Native American and Greek Myths
Fifth graders identify seven different constellations and explain a myth that accompanies it. As a class, they listen to myths associated with the Greek and Native American cultures. To end the lesson, they write their own myth related...
Curated OER
Jazz it Up!
Students research the history and contributions of Jazz in their local environments. They then design and create a wide variety of presentations to share with the class using as many mediums as possible.
National Park Service
Same Colors, Different Flavors
Who says getting to know your neighbors has to be difficult? The first resource in a three-part series creates an engaging project that teaches your scholars about Canadian culture. A question-and-answer format takes place via e-mail and...
Curated OER
You Be the Conservator: Looking at Objects Inside and Out
Students examine the Hispanic American tradition of making santos, painted woodcarvings of saints in the Catholic Church. In this lesson, student have the opportunity to create their own santos, make an 'x-ray' and create a story using...
Curated OER
Consumer Culture in the 1950s: New Shopping Centers and Advertising trends
Learners examine the effect of suburbs on American cities. They identify the changes the cities had to face after people moved elsewhere. Using primary source ads, they compare them with contemporary ads and discuss what can be found out...
Curated OER
Chopsticks and Chinese Food Culture
Sixth graders discover why food is an important part of a culture. As a class, they practice the table manners used in China and identify the underlying values. They develop the skills to properly use chopsticks to end the instructional...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Kennewick Man: Science and Sacred Rights
"Have respect for the dead!" Scholars investigate how science and religion often clash. As they look into the laws of science and the laws of religion, the legal ramifications at the federal level of both play into an argument they...
National Park Service
A Peace Park
Piece together American and Canadian culture by learning about peace parks! Scholars discuss differences between Waterton Lakes National Park and Glacier National Park as a group. The newly-informed pupils answers questions about this...
Curated OER
Political and Cultural Road to the American Revolution
Learners examine the Declaration of Independence. For this Revolutionary War lesson, students use primary sources to analyze how the creation of the Declaration of Independence lead to the development of the United States as an...
Curated OER
Collage of Kwanzaa Colors
Students explore African cultures by creating a holiday collage. In this Kwanzaa art instructional activity, students identify the popular colors associated with the African holiday and create a collage using them. Students present their...
Curated OER
Mark Twain: Straddling the Civil War
Mark Twain's life, politics, writing, and role as a mirror of pre- and post-Civil War American culture are the focus 11th and 12th graders in this section from an expansive author study. A critical writing assignment comparing Twain to...
Annenberg Foundation
Placing Artifacts in Time
Can history distort the true story behind famous people? Scholars analyze the many faces of the Native American Pocahontas. Incorporating technology and historical thinking skills, they uncover the many different sides to the Pocahontas...
Curated OER
How Grandmother Spider Stole the Sun
Students explore U.S. history by reading a Native American tale in class. In this cultural storytelling lesson plan, students read the story How Grandmother Spider Stole the Sun and discuss the characters and themes of the Native...
Curated OER
The American Landscape (1800 - 1850)
High schoolers are introduced to the romantic cultural movement in America. Reading examples of pictures of Washington Irving's home, they identify the characteristics of the movement. They view other paintings of artists from the same...
Curated OER
Understanding and Appreciating Poetry: Afro-Americans and Their Poetry
Sixth graders are introduced to poems written by African-American authors. As a class, they read excerpts of poems from different time periods and discuss how and if anything has changed over time with discrimination and equal rights...
Curated OER
The Education Element of the Harlem Renaissance and Its Impact on the New Negro
High schoolers investigate African American history by researching culture. In this Harlem Renaissance lesson, students identify the teachings, music and art associated with African Americans in Harlem in the early 20th century. High...
Curated OER
First Nations Plants and their Uses
Students identify the uses of plants by researching Native Americans. In this First Nations culture lesson, students identify the First Nations coastal people of British Columbia and their use of plants such as seaweed, bark and moss....
Curated OER
Mathematics Activities from Diverse Cultures
Connect probability and odds with different games from around the world. Pick from games like Dreidel, Mancala, and a Navajo stick game called Ashbil. All 12 games include probability questions to encourage a discussion before or after...
Berkshire Museum
The Three Life-Giving Sisters: Plant Cultivation and Mohican Innovation
Children gain first-hand experience with Native American agriculture while investigating the life cycle of plants with this engaging experiment. Focusing on what the natives called the Three Sisters - corn, beans, and squash - young...