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Lesson Plan
National Woman's History Museum

Defying Expectations: Unsung Hero: Marsha P. Johnson and the Stonewall Riots

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
The 1960s were a turbulent time, but the charismatic figure of Marshal P. Johnson is often left out of the provocative stories of the era. With primary sources that talk about Johnson and her role in the Stonewall Riots, scholars unpack...
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Lesson Plan
Center for History Education

Methods of Reform: The Lowell Mill Girls

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Although the girls and women who worked in the Lowell Mills are not often seen this way, they are the forbearers of the American labor movement. Pupils examine primary sources, including testimony about life at Lowell and labor laws, as...
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Organizer
Library of Virginia

You are Clever Enough to Examine a Historical Source!

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
Your students are obviously clever, but now they can be C-L-E-V-E-R! Enhance a research project with an exercise that prompts learners to identify the creator, location, era, and value of the information source, as well as provide an...
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Lesson Plan
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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
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National Endowment for the Humanities

How to Win a World War

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
High schoolers are have begun to learn  the art of diplomacy with each other, but do they understand how diplomacy works at a global level?  The second in a series of four lessons, guides scholars in evaluating primary sources. The why...
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Activity
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Council for Economic Education

Business in the Middle Ages: Working in a Guild

For Students 5th - 8th Standards
Long before modern labor unions, guilds worked to ensure that workers had a fair wage. But, in medieval Europe, they also cooperated with the government. Using a simulation and primary source analysis, young scholars become hatters in...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Analyzing The Maryland Gazette,October 10, 1765

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Can you access a copy of The Maryland Gazette dated October 10, 1765? Although no link to the document is provided in this lesson, the questions on the worksheet do lead researchers through the steps necessary to form an analysis of a...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Propaganda, WWII, Ghetto‘s, and Analysis of Primary Resources

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students consider the implications of anti-Semitism. In this World War II lesson, students examine selected documents and images featuring the propaganda that promoted Jewish persecution. Students write essays that highlight how the Nazi...
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Lesson Plan
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Center for History and New Media

Slavery and Free Negroes, 1800 to 1860

For Teachers 4th - 11th Standards
What was life like for enslaved and free black people before the American Civil War? Explore the building tension between states and the freedom of individuals with a thorough social studies lesson. Learners of all ages explore primary...
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Lesson Plan
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National Endowment for the Humanities

A Debate Against Slavery

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Slavery is a serious topic that can be challenging for middle schoolers to study. Young scholars can see firsthand through primary sources what occurred during that time period in the United States. The third of five lessons provides...
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Lesson Plan
Newseum

Media Mix-Ups Through History: Analyzing Historical Sources

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Scholars use the E.S.C.A.P.E. (Evidence Source, Context, Audience, Purpose, Execution) strategy to analyze a historical source to determine why mistakes happen in news stories. They then apply the same strategies to contemporary flawed...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Friar Margil and the Spanish Missions

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders review the differences between primary and secondary sources. They are told that the Father Margil illustration can be used as a primary source. Students define the terms "assimilation" and "diversity." They use...
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Lesson Plan
Newseum

Getting to the Source

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
Reliable news stories are based on facts from reliable sources. Young journalists learn how to evaluate the reliability of news sources by watching a short explainer video. Teams apply their new source-digging skills to a current news...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What Can We Learn From the Past?

For Teachers 7th - 11th
What would future archeologists learn from your scholars' personal belongings? Have them bring in a box of "primary sources" from their home. Discuss the difference between observations and inference, using some of your own items to...
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Organizer
Curated OER

Primary vs. Secondary Sources: A Comparison

For Students 9th - 12th
In this language arts worksheet, students fill in the graphic organizer that compares primary sources and secondary sources of information.
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Ancient Babylon

For Students 6th - 7th
Authenticate an ancient civilizations study by having historians analyze primary source artifacts. After examining an image of a Babylonian king votive statue, pupils read a short background context. They then answer 3 questions based on...
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Handout
Curated OER

The Impact of the Civil Rights Movement

For Students 8th - 12th
Deepen understanding of the Civil Rights Movement with this collection of primary documents. This resource contains 22 video transcripts about desegregation, voting rights, black power, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and more. You might...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Many Passages: The Voyage of the Slave Ship Brookes

For Teachers 8th - 11th
Examine three perspectives of the slave trade - captain, sailor, and captive - through this collaborative analysis activity. Small groups study one perspective with a primary source to analyze. They discern what is a historical fact and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Analyzing "Do Not Tax the Colonies"

For Teachers 7th - 12th
In this primary source research worksheet, students examine a copy of "Do Not Tax the Colonies," (not included) and respond to 6 short answer questions regarding its content.
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Letter from Leonardo da Vinci to Sforza

For Students 9th - 12th
Expose your class to words directly from Leonardo da Vinci with this primary source document. Learners analyze the document, a letter from Leonardo da Vinci to Ludovico Sforza, the Duke of Milan, and respond to 3 short answer questions....
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Examining Jesus' Teachings

For Students 5th - 10th
Simplify your study of Christianity with this "back to the basics" worksheet. Scholars examine a primary source excerpt from the Gospel according to Luke and consider Jesus' teachings. They assess which other belief system has similar...
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Revolution of 1848 - Alexis de Tocqueville

For Students 7th - 9th
Document-based questions are a great way to increase understanding of a primary source document or prepare learners for a class discussion. Here, they'll read an excerpt from Alexis de Tocqueville's speech regarding the revolution of...
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PPT
Curated OER

Legacy of the Dust Bowl: Dust Storm Media 1930s

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Some learners might not realize that the term dust bowl was not figurative. Show the reality of 1930s America with eight primary source photographs. Slides depict images of dust storms or their aftermath. 
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PPT
Curated OER

The Dust Bowl: Images

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Introduce learners to the hardships that followed the onset of the Dust Bowl. There is a quote taken from The Dust Bowl, Men,  Dirt and Depression by Paul Bonnifield followed by 10 primary-source images. 

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