Get to know quadratics from a couple of different perspectives. Classmates work in small groups to determine the optimal cooking time for microwave popcorn. Group members pop bags of popcorn for different times and collect data on the...

A fish is not just a fish. So many fish in remote places have unique characteristics. Take a trip with an ichthyologist to the Congo River to discover the species of one of the most diverse fish populations in the world. The online...

One ecosystem is home to numerous habitats—how diverse are they? Pupils interact with an online lesson to explore three habitats in a rain forest ecosystem. They discover connections between species and how they depend on each other for...

Critical to responsible decision making is becoming aware pre-conceived notions and biases that influence our perceptions. A colorful slide presentations asks viewers to consider these mental models that factor into their assumptions and...

Scientists don't have a ruler long enough to measure to the stars, so they rely on math. Scholars learn to calculate the distance from Earth to a star using the parallax method. They use angle measures from different perspectives to...

The final lesson in the "What Makes Democracy Work?" series examines the connections between imagination, literature, and democracy. Class members listen to a podcast, read an excerpt from Azar Nafisi's, The Republic of Imagination, and...

Academics compare images of the Boston Massacre to understand differing opinions of the event. Scholars view multiple images, participate in group discussion, and complete a series of written prompts. Young historians gain an...

Once Americans won the Revolutionary War, their quest to gain land did not end. An interesting activity focuses on Americans' expansion into the frontier following the war and how it conflicted with Native Americans living in the area....

Patriot or traitor? Scholars debate the line between patriotism and treason in a short activity. Academics analyze a political cartoon and discuss varying viewpoints between different groups living in the American colonies. The activity...

How did the United States respond to the Holocaust refugee crisis during World War II? The activity focuses on the United States' foreign policies and the arguments for and against offering assistance. Scholars analyze historical...

Reclaim perspectives often left out of the narrative about the suffrage movement with an activity that lifts up the voices of African American women. Using primary sources and biographical details of Fannie Barrier Williams' life, young...

Good primary resources, offering different perspectives on important issues and events, are hard to find. A packet of 12 primary source images, videos, audio recordings, records, and newspaper articles related to the 1960s civil rights...

After years of boiling tension, the presidency of Ronald Regan and the rise of Mikhail Gorbechev paved a new way forward for diplomacy between the United States and the Soviet Union. Using primary source documents, including letters...

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...

Letters ... a lost art or good resource? Scholars add letter writing to their informational text chart and describe the features of a letter. They then look at page 38 in Promises to Keep and complete a Perspectives Venn...

Much of history is distasteful. Primary sources often reveal attitudes acceptable at the time that no longer are. But to understand controversial historical events, historians must examine primary sources that represent a wide variety of...

Physicists Herman Branson and Tannie Stovall provide young scholars with two very different perceptions of the status of African American physicists in the 1960s. After reading and comparing the bios of these two men, class members read...

The activities in a lesson plan about stereotypes teach middle schoolers about the dangers of one-perception fits-all thinking. Participants learn how to check their perceptions by identifying ways to avoid stereotyping, like getting to...

The Boston Massacre is the focus of a lesson plan that explores primary sources. Scholars examine two primary source images and discuss the different perspectives on the historical event. After groups read a researched account, they...

A 2014 case of locker room behavior in the National Football League offers high schoolers an opportunity to get involved in the conversation of bullying and abuse. Class members read about the case and analyze quotes that reveal...

A close examination of John Gast's painting "American Progress" launches a study of the concept of Manifest Destiny used to justify United States' policy of westward expansion. Young historians read statements from persons with different...

Young scholars are asked to reflect on how personal experiences might influence points of view and perspectives. They read poems and biographies of the poets and then match the poem to the poet. To justify their matches, learners...

“What do you mean that my language is improper?” Prior to My Fair Lady was Pygmalion. Fair Eliza’s struggles with English, which according to George Bernard Shaw “is not accessible even to Englishmen,” come alive in the 1938 film version...

A wonderful series of lessons on Canada is here for your class. Fourth graders investigate the diverse cultures and ethnicities of the citizens of Canada. They study the symbols of Canada, and the festivals and national celebrations that...