Before beginning F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, create a historical context of the Roaring 20s with this lesson. Set up a gallery walk with the provided PowerPoint, which features 10 topics related to the 1920s. Then begin...

High schoolers take a closer look at a memory play. In this American drama activity, students read Tennessee Williams's The Glass Menagerie and analyze it as a memory play. High schoolers discuss the linear and non-linear aspects of the...

Students gain an appreciation for Greek drama through study of a play by Sophocles. They explore the cultural and historical context of Greek drama and its role in Greek society. Students write a report after seeing the play performed live.

Pupils conduct research about the founding families of their communities. They compile historical contexts for the era and develop a family tree and historical skit with their findings.

Students read a work of fiction and investigate literary values and structure of the work. They demonstrate understanding of the family values, cultural and historical context of the novel;

The work of Langston Hughes opens the door to research into the origin and legacy of the Harlem Renaissance and how the literature of the period can be viewed as a commentary on race relations in America. In addition, groups are assigned...

Students describe and compare characters and situations in dramas from and about cultures and historical periods, illustrate in improvised or scripted scenes, and discuss how theater reflects a culture.

Centered on the short story "The Tenth Man" by Polish Holocaust survivor Ida Fink, here is a solid one-day resource to support study of World War II or Nazi history, short stories, or to complement any ELA unit on The Diary of Anne Frank...

High schoolers discover the contributions of 3 Alaskan leaders. For this Alaska history lesson, students research the leaders Nathaniel Bowditch, Ki'ianaa'ahu'ula, and Elizabeth Peratrovich. High schoolers present their findings through...

Students discuss who the founding members of their community were. In this community family tree lesson plan, students learn how to read a family tree and discuss information about the founding families of their community.

Tenth graders define the term slang, explaining its various social, historical, and racial contexts, so as to articulate when it can be appropriately used as a means of effective communication. They use their own personal slang lexicon,...

Eighth graders use first-hand slave narratives that show conditions of slavery. They paste text into Appleworks and publish with a picture clipped from web sites. They create a group account of life during slavery to prepare for reading...

Young scholars study the art forms of the Gilded Age. In this integrated arts lesson, students research the art, music, dance, and drama of the historical era and then create their own personal projects that exemplify the time period.

Students explore historical importance of fish as food source, examine works of Robert Harris, create their own fish, and compose accompanying poetry. Students then explore dramatic tradition of Chorus inspired by Greek theatre,...

Learners analyze Antigone and its universal issues as well as explore ancient Greece. In this Antigone and Ancient Greece lesson, students read and complete activities for Sophocles' Antigone. Learners reconstruct the experience of a...

Learners identify various instruments and styles of music from South India-Kerala. In this music lesson, students discover main languages of South India and the Kathakali dance drama. Learners discuss the types of singers and dancers in...

Students examine the cultural and historical significance of certain artists. They use the internet to perform research and prepare a report of analysis of artistic works looking for cultural influences. Students also tie in the...

In an age of fake news and photoshopped images, it is vital that 21st century learners development the skills they need to evaluate mass media and assess its validity. A great way to launch such a study is with a carefully crafted...

Students read biographies of their assigned Founding Father. They present an oral argument that their assignee deserves to be better known by making connections between regional politics and postions defined by character.

Music can help us to access memories and events in a meaningful way, and Francis Scott Key used specific words to convey what he had seen and felt when writing what would become America's national anthem. Help your class connect to...

Who was Walt Whitman, and what link does he have to president Abraham Lincoln?  After Lincoln's assassination, Whitman wrote "O Captain! My Captain!" This poem and "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd" are the focus of...

Young thinkers view two narrative art tapestries and study the images included that tell a story about the Roman Emperor Constantine. As they examine the details of the tapestries, pupils use a Venn Diagram to record the similarities and...

Students examine the various portrayals of African-Americans in literature, focusing on the opera, Porgy and Bess. They conduct Internet research on African-American culture between the two World Wars. Students write fictional or...

Learners explore electricity and magnetism. Through the use of role play, students simulate being a scientist. Experiments are performed during the simulation to discover the relationship between electric current and magnetism. After...