National Council of Teachers of English
Timelines and Texts: Motivating Students to Read Nonfiction
With the emphasis on incorporating more nonfiction in language arts classes the question arises about how to design activities that motivate kids to engage with informational text. How about an assignment that asks class members to...
Carnegie Library
Creative Writing: Middle School Lesson Plan
Enhance a unit on historical fiction with an engaging writing lesson. Learners bring the Industrial Era to life as they compose their own historical fiction pieces based on primary source images of Pittsburgh steel workers.
Eastconn
Women of the California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush was not just an opportunity for the male gold miners sifting for shiny nuggets. Small groups read accounts of the ways women took advantage of the influx of workers to run hotels, bake pies, and wading out into...
American Press Institute
Newspapers in Your Life: What’s News Where?
Big news isn't necessarily newsworthy everywhere! How do journalists decide what to cover with so much happening around them? A instructional activity on media literacy examines the factors that affect the media's choice of stories to...
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
One Land, Many Trails: Challenge Activities (Theme 5)
Bring history to life through literature. The first in a series of three challenge activities designed to accompany Theme 5: One Land, Many Trails does just that through unique projects connected to historical fiction and nonfiction...
Curated OER
Culture, Climate, and Current Events
Students decide on a country to research as a class, keeping a list of the countries already being researched. Using the internet, they research the culture, climate and current events of the country. They end the lesson by compiling a...
Curated OER
Current Events Research
Students look for news stories on the Web that highlight some of the prominent issues in modern American history they outlined in Lesson One. They see the connection between historical issues and current events.
Curated OER
Historical Effects
Fifth graders examine how events affect characters in the text The Watson's Go to Birmingham--1963. In this historical effects lesson plan, 5th graders read from the book and complete a worksheet. Students discuss racism and segregation...
Curated OER
Historical Travel Brochure
Fourth graders answer the question, Where in America did history take place? Through investigation as a travel agent, they discover that history is not an isolated event. They use a wide variety of technological resources to create their...
Curated OER
Crossing the Delaware with Historic, Cultural, and Personal Interpretations
Sixth graders discover the importance of information sources by researching the United States History. In this research gathering lesson, 6th graders examine a historical painting of George Washington and analyze what it means, what the...
Curated OER
Fill-In: Walking Across Niagara Falls
Kids use their own words or phrases as they fill in the missing parts of an article about a man who crossed Niagara Falls via tightrope. They read the article and use the word list at the bottom of the page to fill in the blanks.
Curated OER
Understanding American Values
Scholars read books and discuss emotions that lead up to the American Revolution. They also discuss vocabulary and use reference materials to research the Internet for causes and sentiment that led to the American Revolution.
Shmoop
ELA.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.11-12.8
It is no easy feat to wade through legal and political documents. And incorporating this type of informational text into a literature class can also be a challenge. Here’s a resource that includes suggestions for how to address this...
Curated OER
Charles Dickens: A Tale of Two Cities
Twenty questions challenge the reader of A Tale of Two Cities. Moving beyond mere reading comprehension, this quiz looks at biographical information and writing style as well as plot structure and action. Use at the end of the novel as a...
Curated OER
Studies of the Eastern Worlds: Historical Summaries
Seventh graders interpret their own meaning of the painting, "Christ's Descent into Hell" by Hieronymus Bosch and the song "We Didn't Start the Fire" by Billy Joel. They focus on the chaos created in both the art and music and discuss...
Curated OER
Lesson: Storyboarding Revolution
Kids consider revolution as a basis for creativity, art, and storytelling. After reading an excerpt from the book, Persepolis, learners choose one event from any world revolution to write about. They storyboard the event focusing on...
Curated OER
Putting History in its Place
Examine ways in which historic places and landmarks represent significant themes and events in American history. Then create theme-based travel guides for related historic locations. This lesson requires informational reference materials...
Curated OER
Catch-22
During or after reading Catch-22, have your high school scholars complete this research project. First they'll brainstorm a list of people they might like to research, then they'll dive into your library's resources! There are several...
Curated OER
What's In a Name?
Students explore the relationship between names and certain cultures and locations. In this identity lesson, students create family migration or immigration maps. Students read excerpts from When My Name was Keoko and Lost Names: Scenes...
Historical Thinking Matters
Scopes Trial: 1 Day Lesson
Why did many Tennesseeans support the 1925 Butler Act, which forbade the teaching of evolution? Using several primary source documents and a brief video clip, your young historians will draw connections between the broader historical...
National Constitution Center
Fourth of July (Grades 3-5)
Bring history to life for your young scholars with a Fourth of July lesson series. After a class reading of the Declaration of Independence, students translate this pivotal document into layman's terms before working in small groups to...
Civil War Trust
Transcribing Civil War History
Primary sources are valuable for understanding the context of historical events, but the diction and dialect in these documents can be difficult to understand. Middle and high schoolers participation in a transcription process in which...
Curated OER
Looking Back - An Art/English/History Interdisciplinary Unit
Students research historical events of the past century to recognize that society impacts the themes within art and literature. They then interview an individual to develop a biographical narrative, a collage and finally an oral...
Simon & Schuster
Curriculum Guide: The Scarlet Letter
The Scarlet Letter may be a classic, but keeping high schoolers engaged in the reading of Hawthorne's vocabulary, syntax, imagery, and historical references presents it own set of challenges. Here's a guide that offers readers...