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Discovering Your Heritage
Students interview a family member about their heritage. They listen to and record part of their family's oral history. Students also create and label a family tree going back a minimum of two generations and compare and contrast...
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Rice Farming in Texas
Third graders explore how rice farming came to Texas. In this rice farming instructional activity, 3rd graders discover the history of how farmers began to grow rice in the United States. Students color code maps and create a timeline...
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The Cuban Missile Crisis
Students reflect on the events that lead up to the Cuban Missile Crisis in the early 1960s. In this history lesson plan, students explore the conflicts between the United States and the Soviet Union revolving around missiles in...
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The Other Americans
Students explain the concept of culture and identify the components of a culture. They describe the characteristics of selected immigrant groups and the conditions they faced upon arrival in the United States. Students analyze the...
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Holocaust Studies
Eleventh graders trace the history of intolerance in American history and familiarize themselves with the actions of the United States towards the Holocaust. They explore present day Holocaust denial and Neo-Nazism in the United States.
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Spanish & Chicano English
Students examine the history of Spanish in what is now the United States. They examine the current language status of the Hispanic population. Students are able to characterize Spanglish and Chicano English. They examine some features...
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The Cold War And Beyond
Learners interview an adult that grew up in the United States during the Cold War to develop an understanding of the concept of mutually assured destruction. They focus the interview on how the person dealt with the threat of nuclear...
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Oral History of World War II
Students research how citizens from the United States respond to the onset, duration and aftermath of World War II. They view clips from the movie "Swing Shift" and discuss the roles of civilians, minorities and military personnel. They...
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The Voice of Dreams
Young scholars explore, analyze and study novel reflections on the American dream that the United States has held the promise of unlimited possibilities. They describe the concept of the American dream, listen to and record real stories...
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The Westward Movement
Students study the westward movement through examining stamps. In this westward movement lesson plan, students draw conclusions, determine cause and effect relationships and examine the westward movement of the United States by...
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What was Behind the Golden Door?
Students adopt the persona of an immigrant child to explore the reasons underlying why families left their homelands. They empathize with the emotional plight of immigrants through creative composition.
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The Transcontinental Railroad
Pupils investigate the impact of the Transcontinental Railroad. In this Transcontinental Railroad instructional activity, students research Internet and print sources regarding the effect of the railroad on Chinese immigrants...
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Mexican American Labor in the U.S.
High schoolers research the history of immigration, particularly from the perspective of Mexicans and Mexican Americans. In this Mexican American labor lesson, students research questions from the perspective of an assigned group. High...
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News From Home
Students investigate the feelings of Iranian immigrants in California by reading an online article. They write an article on immigrants' thoughts on current events in their home countries.
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A Divided Community
Students work in teams to research the history of African migration and immigration in the U.S. They present their research in a town hall discussion format and then write a paragraph about their experiences.
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The Great Migration
Learners explore the issue of immigration. They interview someone who came here recently from a place where English is not the first language, research their place of origin and answer discussion questions.
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Gold Mountain
Students read primary and secondary sources to find jobs as a Chinese immigrant. In groups they create a chart listing jobs for Chinese and write a letter about employment and living conditions to a Chinese friend.
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Gone to Texas
Fourth graders role play as empresarios attempting to bring colonists to Texas in the 1800's. They create an advertisement that encourages the immigrants to come to Texas.
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Case studies in journalistic ethics No. 1
Students examine the importance and responsibilities of journalists through examination of illegal immigration. In this journalistic ethics instructional activity students analyze scenarios and look at the pros and cons of illegal...
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The Land of Milk and Honey: Reasons for Migration
Fourth graders analyze migration patterns. In this colonial North Carolina activity, 4th graders listen to their instructor present a lecture regarding the details of immigrants from Switzerland who settled North Carolina....
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Different Strokes
Students explore a Maine community in which a sudden influx of Somali immigrants has resulted in tension between the Somalis and the local residents. They create a handbook explaining aspects of the Somali culture to an American audience.
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COMING TO AMERICA: THE NEW IMMIGRANTS
Students become involved in the process of interpreting history by looking at primary source documents. This promotes critical thinking skills and comprehension of concepts and their relationships to different time periods through...
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Coming To America
Students investigate the history of America with the help of children's literature. The story is structured as a timeline that begins at the time of Columbus and progresses to the present. The teacher reads the story with the class and...
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The Civil War (1861-1865) Through Maps, Charts, Graphs, & Pictures
True to its titles, this engaging and appealing presentation brings the 1860's into close focus with a number of images and statistics that would delight any Civil War buff. A few graphs allow for pupil input, such as listing the...