Curated OER
The Voyages of Christopher Columbus Scavenger Hunt
For this Christopher Columbus worksheet, students utilize the Internet to access a specific website to find the answers to eight short answer questions associated with the voyages of Christopher Columbus.
Facing History and Ourselves
Tactics of Nonviolence
Students analyze the direct action tactics of nonviolence. As a class, they distinguish between a strategy and a tactic and identify tactics used during the civil rights movement. They relate these tactics and how they might be used to...
Sharp School
Real Life Economics 101
Your learners will take key economic concepts, such as identifying needs versus wants and the four factors of production, and design a video to explain their topic choice to the class. Rather than have one person in charge of dispensing...
Curated OER
Cast of Personalities - The Louisiana Purchase
The origins of the state of Arkansas are the focus of this history lesson. Elementary schoolers to high schoolers identify persons associated with the development of the state from the very first European contact to statehood in 1836....
Curated OER
US City Quality of Life Analysis and Comparison
Learners analyze US census data and criteria to compare and measure the quality of life in the country's fifty largest cities. After accessing the 2005 quality of life world report online, students conduct their study to compare three...
Curated OER
Idea-Noun Definition: Source Searching
A great idea for showing language arts pupils the universality of themes, even in the real world! Have class members choose an idea-noun (peace, justice, war, love, etc.) at the beginning of the year or semester. They complete weekly...
Curated OER
Sarcasm
Learners often regard sarcasm as a "you know it when you see it" language phenomenon, leading to confusing tone and humor in student writing. This presentation not only defines sarcasm (and irony) in plain terms, it also provides many...
US Institute of Peace
Perspectives on Peace
Is peace simply the absence of war, or is there more to the story? Young social scientists define peace in the second installment of a 15-part series. Groups work together to explore cultural concepts of peace and the peacemaking process...
Scholastic
Writing Letters of Gratitude
A lesson begins with a discussion on gratitude—what does it mean, and for who are learners thankful? Scholars share their thoughts and feelings then choose a community worker to which they wish to share their gratitude. Writers compose a...
Curated OER
Industrial Revolution: A Definition
America sure did have a few growing pains during the Industrial Revolution. Share the problems, causes, effects, and reformation that marked the turn of the century and shift in policy during US industrialization. This slide show...
Healthy Native Youth
Chapter 2: Learning About Adolescence
The Native American symbol, The Circle of Life, represents life's spiritual, physical, mental, and emotional well being. By way of deep discussion, and two games, the lesson uses the Circle of Life to explore the stages of...
Pulitzer Center
Food Insecurity
Food insecurity, whether as a result of food scarcity or a lack of nutritious food, is a growing and serious problem in the world today. After discussing the concept of food insecurity, learners listen to an NPR radio broadcast on the...
Media Education Lab
Defining Propaganda
21st century learners live in a media world. Help them develop the skills they need to be able to analyze the barrage of propaganda they face daily, with a resource that introduces them to the type of persuasive appeals found in...
George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum
Teaching Primary and Secondary Sources
What makes a source primary or secondary? Middle schoolers read a definition of each term before exploring different examples and applying their knowledge to a research project.
K20 LEARN
Diversity Quilt: A Lesson on Culture
After brainstorming the various aspects of cultural identity, class members interview each other, examine video clips, and read stories to discover how these aspects reveal one's cultural identity. Individuals then craft a quilt square...
Alabama Department of Archives and History
Yellow Journalism
What role did yellow journalism play in bringing the United States into war with Spain? As part of their study of the Spanish-American War, class groups examine newspapers of the times and other texts and then produce their own...
Scholastic
Hillary Conquers Everest
If a field trip to the summit of Mount Everest isn't in your school budget, make the trek virtually! An interactive lesson allows class members to follow Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay's trail up the mountain, and provides...
Annenberg Foundation
Teaching Geography: Workshop 4—North Africa/Southwest Asia
Can Jerusalem be equitably organized? Can Israel and Palestine be successfully partitioned? Part one of a two-part workshop looks at the geo-political history of Jerusalem while Part two investigates Egypt's dependence of the Nile River...
Judicial Learning Center
Judicial Independence
Most people support the idea of an independent judiciary in theory until they hear about a court case that violates their principles. An informative resource explains why the concept is important. It also provides scholars of criminology...
Judicial Learning Center
State Courts vs. Federal Courts
Popular culture often portrays the Feds as the most fearsome of law enforcement agencies. Yet, someone charged with a crime is considerably more likely to end up in a state court. The lesson, one of six covering the Organization of the...
Judicial Learning Center
The Constitution and Rights
What's the right way to teach young historians about the Bill of Rights? Many an instructor has asked this question when pondering lesson plans over the US Constitution. The Constitution and Rights is a nifty resource that provides a...
Curated OER
Remembrance of Things Past
Engage critical and social thinking by exploring the value of language and word choice. The class considers the article "The Silence of the Historic Present" and analyzes several presidential speeches. They engage in class...
Curated OER
Understanding Social Commentary
By learning how to identify and understand social commentary students can flex their critical thinking skills.
Facing History and Ourselves
Exploring Raphael Lemkin's Actions: The Invention of the Word "Genocide"
Learners examine the contributions of Raphael Lemkin. For this genocide activity, young scholars consider how Lemkin defined the atrocities of the Holocaust as he coined the term "genocide." Learners discuss the definition of genocide as...