National Endowment for the Humanities
Understanding the Context of Modernist Poetry
Students examine the historical, social, and cultural context of modernist poetry. They explore websites, complete a chart, compare/contrast rural and urban life, watch a video of early New York, and complete a writing assessment...
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Familial Relationships in Great Expectations: The Search for Identity
Young scholars read the novel "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens. In groups, they use the text to identify and describe family relationships in the book. Using this information, they compare and contrast how these relationships are...
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The Notorious Hope Diamond: What Makes an American Legend?
Learners view and discuss a video on the legend of the Hope Diamond then compare and contrast other tales such as Paul Bunyan, Pecos Bill and Johnny Appleseed. They analyze basic characteristics of these legends then use descriptive...
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What Is Good Use of Time?
Students delve into questions about how best to use one's time-in one culture or another. They explore the kinds of choices students will make about their use of time and consider the statement: "We are shaped by the values of the...
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Fractured Families in American Drama
Learners compare and contrast the flawed families in two plays. In this American drama lesson, students read Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and Long Day's Journey into Night. Learners research information about the playrights and examine the...
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The Great Debate
Groups of learners investigate the persuasive genre of writing as they research and present on an issue. They research the Internet (possible websites are included) for a topic and locate information to present to the opposing team. In...
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Integrating Japanese Folk Tales into the Classroom Using Japanese Kamishibai
Students study Japanese folk tales focusing on the traditional values and key elements. They compare the Japanese values with their own. They discuss Japanese art before designing a set of kamishibai on which they write a summary of a...
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American Deaf Culture: A History of Language
Pupils examine the relationship between language and culture in the Deaf Community. They discover the history of sign language and how it has been viewed in the past. They examine the Deaf community's beliefs and values.
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Teaching Creation Myths
Students examine various creation myths from around the world. They compare/contrast the myths, write their own creation stories, and present their myths to the class in the form of storytelling, role-playing, dance, or a puppet show.
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Critical Consumerism: Videos and Teen Culture
Students analyze music videos as a study on teen culture. In this teen culture lesson, students view music videos and track a different aspect of the videos for male representation, female representation, racial representation,...
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History's Heroes
Students compare two people who are considered to be heroes. In this heroes lesson, students read books or selections about two people who accomplished something special. They make a compare and contrast chart that includes nine...
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Trip to Mount Vernon
Students compare and contrast travel in the 18th century with current methods of travel by participating in a simulated trip to Mount Vernon. In this US history lesson, students write a letter to George Washington for permission to visit...
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Advertising Through the Decades
Twelfth graders compare and contrast advertising styles and motives from 1920 to present. Using internet research and print advertisements students make comparisons and inferences about the function of marketing. At the culmination of...
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The Concept of Time in American Society
Students demonstrate understanding of American's value of time according to three areas: Being on time, time management, and setting goals. They plan a week's activities and make short-term and long-term goals.
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Southeast Asian Folktales
Fifth graders locate and identify the countries of Southeast Asia on a map. In groups, they compare and contrast photographs and artifacts from their own lives with those living in Asia. They write their own folktales based off of...
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Japanese American Baseball in the Camps
Learners study Japanese American internment camps. In this American history lesson plan, students compare and contrast the camp internees' experiences with with team sports-related challenges learners have encountered. Students discuss...
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Greek Mythology: All in the Family
Twelfth graders compare/contrast the Greek myth to explain an aspect of nature. They create an explanatory myth about some aspect of nature and design a mythological business card using Microsoft Word.
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The Hajj: Journey to Mecca
Students reflect on the importance of rituals in their own families. They examine the activities that are performed during the Hajj. Using other religions, they discover the diversity of other religious and cultural traditions. They...
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Historical Witness: Social Messaging
Students complete activities to study the propaganda elements from various war times. In this war propaganda lesson, students compare and contrast works of art from various viewpoints about war from varying social periods. Students write...
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Print Advertising: Past and Present
Twelfth graders identify the way advertisements are constructed to influence out lives and our values. They review advertisements from the 1800s and 1900s and how they may have influenced people living in that time. Using this ad, 12th...
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Anty-Bodies
Students compare and contrast likenesses and differences to others by creating a life-size picture of themselves. In this character building lesson, students dictate a sentence about comments on sharing and display them with their...
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Family Life Among the Ashanti of West Africa
Learners examine the way of life of the Ashanti who live in West Africa. After locating the countries on a map, they are shown slides of artifacts to determine their uses. In groups, they compare and contrast the Ashanti's view of...
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ADULT ESOL LESSON PLAN--Level 2--Consumer Education
Students, after reviewing an extensive list of vocabulary terms on the board, identify/label food items, how much they cost and the value of using coupons to save money. In addition, they practice reading the labels on the food packaging...
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Fairy Tales
Class groups examine fairy tales from a feminist and a Marxist perspective, identifying how these tales present gender roles and class/power systems. The groups then script and perform their own tale that uses one of these lenses.