Curated OER
Pieces of the Past
Students compare and contrast the lives of Native Americans from Texas and elsewhere. Using artifacts, they explain how they were used and made as well as how they benefited all peoples living in Texas. They describe economic patterns...
Curated OER
Introduction to Indians and the First Thanksgiving
Students use yarn to create a timeline of the first Thanksgiving. After a class discussion, they view pictures of artifacts and Native Americans to identify the tools and items present during the first Thanksgiving. In groups, they...
Curated OER
Pioneer Scramble
Students explore the concept of Manifest Destiny. In this Westward Movement lesson, students study why Americans emigrated west in the 1840s and 1850s. Students create interactive timelines, write exploration reports, and complete an art...
Curated OER
Why Celebrate Black History Month
Second graders study about the culture, heritage, family, church, and politics of the African-American and why we honor their accomplishments. Then they make class presentations. This is a very meaningful activity on an important part of...
Curated OER
American Industry Growth
Eleventh graders explore the economic growth from 1878 to 1893. In this social studies lesson, 11th graders discuss how the improvements lead to an inequality in wealth and the problems that it caused.
Curated OER
Primary Documents: The President and African Americans
Students examine the efforts of the federal government to address discrimination in the U.S. before and after WWII. They read and discuss two executive orders, complete a worksheet, and answer discussion questions.
Curated OER
Mapping the Past
Middle schoolers study historical maps to view how the world evolved from medieval times through the Renaissance. They work in groups to examine the maps and present a report on one of the listed maps.
Smithsonian Institution
Changing Gender Roles on the Home Front
Many historians discuss how gender roles changed because of World War II, but how did this come to be? An informative resource challenges scholars to do some digging and research the information for themselves. They research how...
Curated OER
Village Life in India
Students use included links to research the lives of people living in a small village in India.
Curated OER
Western-Genre Films
Students watch westerns and analyze them. They identify the plot, characters and the sounds in the film. They research icons of the American west and prepare a presentation. They share their presentation with the class.
Curated OER
Jay Gatsby's Souvenir Scrapbook
High schoolers create a Power Point scrapbook that compiles memorabilia representing the life of Jay Gatsby. They read the novel, "The Great Gatsby" and conduct internet research using the "American Twenties" website. In small groups,...
Curated OER
Egyptian Fairy Tale
Learners explore ancient Egyptian culture and government. In this social studies lesson plan, students compare the legal system from ancient Egypt to our current American legal system. Links are included for web searching Egypt and the...
Curated OER
Jazz In America - Lesson Plan 6
Fifth graders explore cool jazz and how it reflected American culture in the 1940's and 1950's.
Curated OER
Classic Columns
Sixth graders present a PowerPoint presentation on Greek columns. They realize that Greek culture is centered around religion. Students create a model of one of the columns. Also they find examples of Greek architecture in major Greek...
Curated OER
Archaeological Self-Study: What Do Our Belongings and Trash Tell About Us?
Students examine how their belongings and their trash represents who they are. In this archaeology skills lesson, students watch a video titled "Discovering the Past" and then give archaeological techniques a try. Students examine and...
Curated OER
Name That Point!
Learners compare projectile point attributes, identify and classify points, and match projectile points to a chronology.
Curated OER
Looking At An Object
Students observe the attributes of an object, infer their uses, and discover how archaeologists use objects to explore the past.
Curated OER
Rock Speaks
Pupils create primitive forms and caricatures to represent meaningful figures and/or events in their own lives, present their own works to the class, and attempt to interpret the relevant meaning from other students' work.
Curated OER
The Old Folks Will Bless You and the Girls Kiss You
Fourth graders reflect on the Revolutionary War. In this Colonial America history lesson, 4th graders discuss various battles of the war, specifically the Battle of Cowpens. Students begin by watching a video chronicling...
Curated OER
Slavery in Virginia
Fourth graders assess primary sources to analyze the effects plantation life and slavery had on Colonial Virginia. They study the issues of slavery, rural life, movements, colonization and revolution. Each student makes predictions,...
Curated OER
Seeing Ancient Worlds
Students view the images from the Nature Images Photo Gallery and identify various elements of nature. They then group the elements into categories and discuss what these images tell about the worlds of ancient Native Americans.
Reading Through History
Tulsa Race Riots
How did the 1921 riots in Tulsa start? Pupils read information about the riots that occurred in Tulsa. Following the reading, they answer multiple-choice questions and guided reading questions to help them along the way.
PBS
Document This
Being a historian requires serious sleuthing. They examine primary source documents and look for evidence, for clues that reveal who wrote the document, when, and why. After watching two historians model the process, young history...
Channel Islands Film
Who Owns the Bones
A study of the history of the Channel Islands, located off the coast of southern California, continues as class members conduct a mock trial to determine which group of stakeholders should have the right to claim the remains of Juan...