Five segements from Ken Burns' documentary series Prohibition, easily accessed on the PBS website, are at the center of a terrific short unit on the roots of America's ambivalent relationship with alcohol. Engage your secondary...

Fifth graders carefully analyze the artwork, Les Emigrants, and explore the reasons that people emigrated to the United States, and what life was like for new arrivals. They discuss what things immigrants were able to bring with them and...

Explore U.S. geography with your class by viewing a documentary. Show a portion of the Ken Burns documentary "The National Parks," and identify the individuals responsible for keeping the parks in order. Elementary and middle schoolers...

Young scholars explore the concept of landmarks.  In this landmark lesson, students brainstorm different landmarks around their community and nationally.  Young scholars then identify the patterns in Georgia O'Keeffe's...

A carefully crafted three-day instructional activity integrates poetry and visual art. By analyzing and comparing Langston Hughes' poem "Mother and Son" and Romare Bearden's collage "The Dove," readers explore the theme of hope. The...

A series of four lessons on the places, people, and landscape of Canada. These excellent lessons should provide your charges with an increased understanding of the history and culture of Canada - the largest country in North America....

Students demonstrate dances of colonial America. In this colonial American lesson, students learn forms of colonial social dancing including the Juba and Virginia Reel. Students examine the history of the 2 dances as well.

Learners explore the effects of culture through the story Running by Peter Hessler. In this geography and cultural lesson, students act as newspaper reporters covering the story of the race. Learners write newspaper articles as reporters...

What's the most popular music style in Brazil? What about Cuba? Or the Dominican Republic? An immersive project teaches young learners about the salsa, the samba, and the merengue with research assignments and dance performances.

Students construct an historical timeline extending from 1840-1850. They discuss various people, places, and events on their timelines.

Eighth graders interview a person who explains the lifestyles of people who lived on the prairies in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. They examine how today's lifestyles impact the environment and write up what they learned.

Students research the events of September 11th . In this symbols lesson, students discover ways to honor this day. Students research the Internet for symbols used to represent ideas, events and people. Students work in groups to design a...

Sixth graders examine the meaning and background of the song, "America the Beautiful." In this "America the Beautiful" lesson, 6th graders read the words and history of the song and answer comprehension questions about it.

Students complete a unit of lessons on a variety of types of American music. They record their impressions of music samples on a worksheet, identify types of instruments, and choose a musical selection for their family to respond to.

First graders sing America the Beautiful and understand the words to the song.  For this singing social studies lesson, 1st graders become familiar with the images and vocabulary in America the Beautiful while singing the words.

Third graders research world geography by creating a class presentation. In this South American lesson, 3rd graders read assigned text regarding the customs and traditions of different Indian communities in South America. Students...

Eighth graders examine the lives of the Gullah-Geechee people. In this unique cultures instructional activity, 8th graders explore music, language, and slavery of the Gullah-Geechee people from the southern low-country in the United...

Students explore the history of bark paintings in South America and produce their own version of these paintings.

Much of Latin American music owes its origins to the slave trade. Peoples from the Yoruban and Dahomean cultures brought with them the distinctive rhythms, time signatures, and eighth note patterns that now characterize Caribbean music....

Young scholars explore society by analyzing current events. In this homeless epidemic lesson, students discuss the problem of people who don't have housing and the adverse affects on everyday people. Young scholars identify ways to...

The student will explore free jazz, fusion, and contemporary jazz. They will listen to avant garde, fusion, and pop recordings. In addition, they participate in a class discussion regarding jazz's contribution to and reflection of...

For many people, Barack Obama's presidency was the next step in Martin Luther King, Jr's dream of America's future. Explore the dreams of Americans past and present, as well as the young Americans in your class, with a set of activities...

Middle schoolers try out instruments from South America. In this multiculturalism instructional activity, students discuss the attributes of Latin American music and play instruments from South America.

Students engage in a lesson that helps them better explain the quadrennial ritual surrounding the election of a president in the United States of America.