Smithsonian Institution
POWs
Why did Vietnam POWs and their families receive more media attention than POWs in previous wars? To answer this question, class members view artifacts, read articles, and engage in class discussion. Individuals then assume the voice of...
New York State Education Department
US History and Government Examination: August 2013
While the United States is now one of the strongest countries in the world, at its founding, it was plagued by controversies over the ratification of the Constitution, the Louisiana Purchase, and the expansion of slavery. Using a...
Curated OER
Who Was Responsible for the Start of the Cold War?
Students determine who is responsible for the start of the Cold War. In this Cold War lesson plan, students conduct their own research about the evolution of the war and write essays that reveal their opinion on how the war began.
New York State Education Department
US History and Government Examination: January 2011
The presidencies of John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, and Ronald Reagan were defined by the Cold War. Using primary source documents and scaffolded analysis questions, pupils explore the effect the Cold War had on these presidencies. A...
The Formation of the Western Alliance, 1948–1949
Silence is golden—even when debating post World War II foreign policy. Using a silent debate format, young historians deliberate whether the United States should have kept a foothold in West Germany after World War II. A series of videos...
Curated OER
The Cold War: Civil Defense or Nuclear Disarmament?
Students research the positions of civil defense and nuclear disarmament during the Cold War era. They participate in a class debate to support a given position.
University of California
Anti-Communism at Home
Have you ever been accused of something without cause? The sixth installment of an eight-part series asks scholars to create a museum exhibit on the anti-communist activities in the United States at the start of the Cold War. To make...
PBS
President Theodore Roosevelt: Foreign Policy Statesman or Bully?
Can a negative perception of a president's foreign policy harm his or her historical legacy? A project that winds the clock back to the date of Theodore Roosevelt's death puts students at the editorial desk of a fictional newspaper....
Constitutional Rights Foundation
Refugees From Vietnam and Cambodia
The United States may have pulled its troops from the Vietnam War in 1973, but the conflict was far from over for the citizens living in Asia at the time. An informative resource lets learners know about the wave of over 220,000...
Curated OER
The Cold War: Planning for Survival
Students prepare a documentary-style dramatization about government and personal measures taken to ensure survival in the event of nuclear war.
Curated OER
Recurring Nightmares
Does history really repeat itself? Encourage your middle and high schoolers to answer this age-old question by reading the attached articles on the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 and the Iraq Crisis of 2002. How similar or different are...
Curated OER
Debating Iraq
Students analyze the main themes of President Bush's UN Speech and discussion of the NewsHour report on the Iraq Debate. In this debate activity, students answer pre-listening questions and view a transcript of the speech. In groups of...
Curated OER
Multiple Perspectives on the Korean War
Students interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary resources. For this Korean War lesson, students examine and analyze primary sources regarding U.S. involvement in the Korean War.
US House of Representatives
Legislative Trends and Power Sharing Among Hispanic Americans in Congress, 1977–2012
Bilingual education, voting rights, and Congressional redistricting come up often in the news. Explore these topics from another view—the perspectives of Hispanic members of Congress. Activities include an article with comprehension and...
Constitutional Rights Foundation
History of Immigration From the 1850s to the Present
The Statue of Liberty may embrace the huddled masses of the world, but has American society always joined in? After young historians read a passage about the history of American immigration in the 19th and 20th centuries, focusing on...
Curated OER
Debating the bomb
High schoolers research how the development of the atomic bomb affected people in World War II. In this American History lesson, students participate in a debate about the bombs use. High schoolers investigate how it has affected...
National Endowment for the Humanities
How "Grand" and "Allied" Was the Grand Alliance?
Learn more about the Grand Alliance with a scaffolded lesson plan that includes four activities. Class members use primary sources to complete a map exercise, understand the goals and objectives of each individual nation, and participate...
Curated OER
Debating the Bomb
Learners research how the development of the atomic bomb affected people in World War II, participate in a debate about the bomb's use, and investigate how it has affected people's lives since 1945.
Curated OER
Debating the Bomb
Students research the repercussions of the development of the atomic bomb. In this history lesson, students read, reflect and discuss nuclear warfare and how it affected the population when it was introduced, as well as how it continues...
Harry S. Truman Library & Museum
Marshall Plan: Convince the American People
This is an excellent resource for US history classes, especially AP history. After learning some background on the Marshall Plan, the class, divided into two groups, researches opposing positions on this aid program. Groups read and...
Curated OER
The Marshall Plan for Rebuilding Western Europe
High schoolers examine the aftermath of World War II. In this Marshall Plan lesson, students listen to their instructor present a lecture regarding the plan to rebuild Western Europe and its outcome. High schoolers respond to discussion...
Curated OER
Jazz in America
Students explore Bebop in America by listening to music and answering questions.
Curated OER
Witch Hunt or Red Menace? Anticommunism in Postwar America, 1945-1954
Students investigate the goals and methods of the House Un-American Activities Committee and offer an opinion regarding whether their investigation of Hollywood was justifiable.
Curated OER
The Chinese economic and political model.
Ninth graders study the unique and economic and political model of modern day People's Republic of China. They make an effort to determine if the unique brand of socialism with a market-type economy as currently practiced is ...