Curated OER
The Historiography on Robert Boyle: Was Boyle the Progenitor of Modern Science?
Students participate in a warm-up activity by attending a football match writing an account of who won the game. They discuss how their account could differ from someone else's account of the game. They discuss how different people's...
Curated OER
Creating a Primary Source Archive: All History Is Local
Students explore personal, local, state, and national history. In this historiography lesson, students search the Library of Congress digital collections for primary sources regarding their family histories framed in local, state, and...
College Board
2017 AP® United States History Free-Response Questions
Were unfair taxes really the cause of the American Revolution? Learners explore the complicated historiography behind the revolutionary period using authentic College Board prompts. The free-response questions from the exam feature...
Curated OER
IB History of the Americas Historiography: Limits of the Historical Record
In this historical record activity, learners read about analyzing primary sources and then complete the 3 listed activities to create their own historical accounts.
National WWII Museum
The Red Ball Express: Statistics as Historical Evidence
Historians use all kinds of information to make conclusions ... including statistics. Young scholars examine how two historians evaluate The Red Ball Express—a supply line staffed primarily by African Americans—using numbers. The...
National WWII Museum
Race and War in the Pacific: A Propaganda Gallery Walk
Race played a key role in the war in the Pacific during World War II. Using images from both American and Japanese sources, learners consider racial propaganda and how leaders used it to rally popular support during the conflict. After...
Stanford University
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Was JFK a fallen Civil Rights hero—or a fraud? Learners examine Kennedy's own words and those of his critics to decide for themselves. After examining Kennedy's actions before his assassination, they determine what sort of legacy he left...
American Battlefield Trust
Pre-1861: Disunion
Nat Turner, John Brown, and Abraham Lincoln all played a key role in the run-up to the bloody American Civil War. Using a PowerPoint, timeline activity, and essay prompt, young historians consider the roles of these men and more to...
Curated OER
The Lynching of Emmett Till
Students will be introduced to the historiography of the Emmett Till murder to discover more about the case and to evaluate how history is reliant on interpretation. They will also refine analytical and critical thinking skills as they...
Curated OER
Ex-Slave Narratives and WPA Interviews
Pupils analyze documents related to slave narratives and slave interviews. They complete a document analysis form to analyze the contnet and historiography of the documents. They write a paragraph detailing when and why the document...
Historical Thinking Matters
Social Security: 5 Day Lesson
Did the New Deal fundamentally shift the role of the American government in the economy? Your class members will examine the interpretations of various historians in answering this question, and use a variety of primary and secondary...
Curated OER
Arkansas Photographs as Research Tools
Middle and high schoolers look at historical photos and written materials, and they develop questions which they use to interview an elder in their community. Learners are divided into groups and given sets of historical family photos...
Curated OER
Civil Liberties and War Powers: Korematsu v. United States
Eleventh graders compare and contrast Supreme Court decisions dealing with the application of civil rights during times of war, with emphasis on discrimination and detention. Working in groups, 11th graders review cases and analyze how...
Foreign Policy Research Institute
Categories of Cold War Histiography
While the objective is to provide an overview of the Cold War in preparation for further study, this resource addresses the topic at a rather advanced level, and might need its own introductory lesson. The handouts include terms such as...
American Psychological Association
Activities from the Society for the History of Psychology Website
The Society for the History of Psychology provides a list of teaching activities designed to acquaint learners with the various fields of psychology and introduce them to prominent psychologists. Details for several of the activities are...
Curated OER
Family Interviews: The Grandparent/Elder Project
Students explore key concepts/facts in 20th Century history, develop interview questions, and produce master list of questions that can be used in project. Students then interview grandparent, great-grandparent, or other elder about...
Curated OER
A Bishop's Description of the Christianized Indians of Spanish Florida, 1675
Students explore mission life in La Florida as observed by a Spanish bishop who visited in the 1670s. In this Spanish Florida lesson, students recognize the value of primary sources in illuminating the past and consider factors such as...
Curated OER
History, Artifacts, and Museums
Eleventh graders interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary resources. For this historical artifacts lesson, 11th graders select and research historical topics that require them to interpret calendars, timelines,...
Curated OER
Behind the Scenes: The Executive Response to 9/11
Students examine the actions of the executive branch following the September 11th terrorist attacks. In this U.S. government lesson, students watch segments of a video titled "Behind the Scenes: The Executive Response to 9/11." Students...
Curated OER
Guidelines for Governing: Utopia and The Prince
Learners explore the power of the Church in government. In this literature lesson, students read Sir Thomas More's Utopia and Niccolo Machiavelli's The Prince. Learners respond to questions regarding the works and discuss them.
Curated OER
Social Studies/Bible - Christian Response
Eighth graders examine the essence of Christianity. In this Christian response lesson, 8th graders discuss what they can do prevent another Holocaust. Students also pay tribute to those who go out their way to help those in need and...
Curated OER
The Father of History Looks at Egypt
In this ancient Egypt activity, students read a 1-page selection about the civilization and examine a map of the region. Students outline the information that they read.
Curated OER
What's on the Outside/Inside?
Students read about the idea of gender perspective in the writing of German history. They generate definitions from a list of given vocabulary words. They write definintions using their own words.