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State of Mind: Inventing the American Identity
Students define national identity, explain importance of having national identity, describe America's national identity, work together and formulate class vision of what America's national identity is, identify United States symbols and...
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Early Humans
Eighth graders work together in groups to examine the earliest civilizations. After reading two stories, they compare and contrast the facts with those stories with other ones they have read. They discuss the different hypothesis on...
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Kiskiack: Changing Architectural Landscape
Students compare and contrast the changing Native and English colonial architectural landscape of the 17th and 18th centuries. Students research and evaluate how economic technology, and the environment reflected cultural changes in the...
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Paul Robeson: The Renaissance Man
Young scholars research the life of athlete, actor, singer, cultural scholar, author, and political activist, Paul Robeson. They answer the question, "Which was most important to American culture -Robeson's work as a scholar, a...
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Living History
Students analyze how historians are trying to keep history alive and preserve it for generations to come. They view some schools trying to save an entire culture and language from extinction. Students participate in history preservation...
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The Tempest
Young scholars discuss cultural beliefs about magic. They investigate European exploration and colonialism. They create a cartoon strip of an episode that is described or dramatized in the play.
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Japanese Folktales for Children
Students study Japanese folkart traditions and culture through storytelling, class discussions, and a creative project. The project involves students creating drawings of a pre-selected folktale and putting them together in a class book.
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South Carolina's Constitution
Eighth graders explore the definition of political culture. After viewing a movie, 8th graders discuss how the political culture of the 1600 and 1700s is reflected in early drafts of the South Carolina constitution.
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Civil Rights Movement in America
Eleventh graders explore the Civil Rights movement as a culmination of history and cultural perspectives developed from the Slave Trade and Reconstruction. They identify leading persons and organizations and their personal philosophy to...
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Japanese Folktales: Animals and Demons
Students compare and contrast the stories from different cultures by studying the folktales of Japan and their use of animals and antagonist characters. Any activity in this lesson can be used as a separate lesson.
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Mudras and Sign Language
Students compare the languages of the ancient Japanese people and the American deaf community, two cultures that utilize hand signs in this lesson for the early elementary classroom.
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Windows of Wisconsin (History)
Fourth graders research the history of Wisconsin. They explore Wisconsin's culture, sovereignty and environment. Using multiple computer technology resources (computer, scanner, camera, internet), 4th graders develop a book on the...
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Tobacco Road
Pupils use court records to learn that tobacco was used a source of currency in early Delaware history. Students choose something in their culture to use as currency instead of money.
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Return South Migration Lesson Plan
Students study the reasons so many immigrants returned to the South following the Civil Rights Movement. They examine how the former slaves influenced the cultural life in the Northern cities.
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Inventions over Time
Sixth graders examine inventions, such as spear points and bows and arrows, and discuss their importance in human cultural development. They compare these early inventions with modern ones and determine the impact of science and...
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Ralph McGill: the "Conscience of the South"
Students view a film, "Dawn's Early Light: Ralph McGill and the Segregated South." As groups of students observe the movie, they list key dates, significant persons interviewed, and cultural characteristics. Upon completion of the movie,...
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The Voices of Slavery
Fourth graders recognize and can describe the settlers of Early America. In this American colonies instructional activity, 4th graders research using primary and secondary sources, Native Americans, Europeans, and African Americans...
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Spanish Influence in the U.S.
Eighth graders research the role of the first Spanish conquistadors who explored the now United States. Using the internet, they gather information on different explorers and write a paper about why he is important in American history. ...
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Pioneer America: Pioneer Living
Fourth graders research pioneer life. In this pioneer lesson, 4th graders read the book Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder and discuss what life was like for early pioneers. They research pioneers and show what they...
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Pilgrim Immigration Lesson Plans: Then and Now
Pilgrim immigration lesson plans offer more than a study of these early settlers. It gives students an insight into modern immigration.
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Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century Natural Dyes
Second graders explore the work of Americans when it came to coloring materials. In this interdisciplinary lesson, 2nd graders follow the provided steps to make natural goldenrod dye from scratch.
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Human Rights And Civil Rights
While he may not be as well known as civil rights activists such as Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Martin Luther King, or Malcolm X, Ralph Bunche's contributions certainly made him a leader in the struggle for civil rights in the United States and...
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Speaking in Grave Tones
Fourth graders examine how a change in attitudes about death took place from the late eighteenth to the early nineteenth century and was embodied in gravestones, literature, and art.
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The Cuban Missile Crisis
Students reflect on the events that lead up to the Cuban Missile Crisis in the early 1960s. In this history lesson plan, students explore the conflicts between the United States and the Soviet Union revolving around missiles in...