Students interview a family member about their heritage. They listen to and record part of their family's oral history. Students also create and label a family tree going back a minimum of two generations and compare and contrast...

Fifth graders answer questions such as: Where does my family come from? What was it like for my ancestors to grow up as America developed? What differences in society were present then? What was similar to today? students conduct...

Students research their family heritage by interviewing family members. Using their responses, they record them in an organized fashion and develop a presentation. Using the Internet, they locate an artistic representation of their...

Students prepare a list of questions about the past and present in regards to dealing with waste and the natural resources. They conduct interviews with tribal Elders and record their statements.

Students read factual stories of migration to Hawaii, analyze and explain push and pull factors, interview parents about their cultural heritage, identify countried of origin of their ancestors, graph migration patterns on an world map,...

How do barns serve as a window to a community's past? Here are a series of lessons on the symbolism and historical context of barns throughout American history. Topics include community-building, in-depth primary and secondary...

Fourth graders create family tree books. They discuss culture and brainstorm interview questions for family members. They write stories, poems, and captions for family photos. They interview family members and assemble the interviews...

High school pupils research online to complete a family tree and explore their ancestry. They view a sketch of a family tree, and brainstorm questions to ask their parents about their heritage. They also diagram their own family tree. In...

Students research and create a presentation about their own culture and personal history. They interview family members to increase their awareness of family events and documents. They create a family tree at a web based resource.

Middle schoolers consider the insight to the past that oral histories can provide. They, in groups, analyze oral histories, prepare to interview a family member on their recollections of a historical event and then write a historical...

Students research the French-Canadian influence in northern New York. They interview families of French-Canadian descent, research immigration history, visit a French restaurant, write narratives about their experiences interviewing...

Young scholars research, write and publish a biography on a community member. They interview the community member, collect and scan photos, produce and edit text and use software to puslish an online book.

Examine images from past that depict buildings and towns from their own communities, and compare images with photographs taken at present locations, interview local architect and compare role of 19th Century architect to 21st Century...

Explore the difficulties in compiling an oral history with this lesson. Young researchers conduct interviews and consider how point of view changes various accounts of a single incidence, resulting in conflicting information. They view a...

Pupils conduct oral histories of family members to explore their cultural and ethnic heritage after developing a set of research questions.

Students identify stereotypes, especially those applied to American Indians.  In this teaching tolerance instructional activity, students read an essay entitled " I Hated Tonto (Still Do)" and discuss the negative impact that...

Students research the countries of their origins and examine life there today. They write family travel logs by interviewing family members about their heritages, and they visit the Xpeditions Website for online resources about their...

Young scholars explore what it means to be an American citizen. Students investigate the history of the White House from a variety of perspectives: as a symbol, a public and private place, and changing needs.

One of a series of lessons from Ellis Island. In this lesson, students use research from a previous lesson to conduct oral history interviews of family members to learn about their cultural and ethnic heritage.

Eighth graders participate in talking circles. In this self-governance lesson, 8th graders examine human rights from the perspective of Native Americans. Students discuss the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms as well as "Interview:...

Ninth graders work together to brainstorm an idea to focus on the similiarties and differences between various cultures. Individually, they interview family members using questions they created based on their topic. They use their...

Students use web technology to access American history and the Asian-American experience. They evaluate journals as historical artifacts, especially the concept of firsthand account vs. history text. Students discuss Asian American...

Fifth graders choose a country associated with a family member and research its location, government, language, economy, history, holidays, foods, sports, and famous people. They write to inform using this data and draw a map identifying...

Students explore the history of their local community. In this local history lesson, students analyze primary documents to develop an understanding of the local culture and traditions of their local community.