Curated OER
Convey Ideas in Writing
Write an unsent letter about a consumer scam, paying attention to the writing conventions of punctuation and spelling. This lesson could be adapted to fit a variety of social issues in which letter writing is appropriate. 4
Teaching Tolerance
Persuasive Letters
Sharpen persuasive writing skills while trying to solve a community problem. Learners choose a burning topic and then write letters to persuade others to come around to their views. The provided procedures walk through how to guide the...
Curated OER
Writing a Letter to a Friend
First graders practice their letter writing skills by writing to a fictional character. In this formal writing lesson, 1st graders read the books The Jolly Postman and Frog and Toad are Friends to examine the different parts of a...
Curated OER
The Lost Art of Letter Writing
Students discover the art of writing letters. In this writing lesson, students read letters written by President Harry Truman and then write a series of their own letters that would give insight into the times in which they live.
Curated OER
Effective Letter Writing
Young scholars explore letter writing. In this persuasive writing lesson, students write a letter to a local organization based on a topic of their choice. Young scholars employ the correct letter writing procedure as outlined in the...
NPR
Chinese American Women Lesson Plan
The National Women's History Museum provides a plan designed to accompany their online CyberExhibit, Chinese American Women; a History of Resilience and Resistance. After examining a series of primary and secondary source documents,...
Library of Congress
Thomas Jefferson's Library: Making the Case for a National Library
The United States Library of Congress, the largest library in the world. But such was not always the case. The library was destroyed during the War of 1812. In a persuasive letter to Samuel H. Smith, Thomas Jefferson offered to sell his...
Curated OER
Writing letters to Abraham Lincoln
Students examine a sample letter written by Abraham Lincoln. They review the different parts of a letter and participate in writing their own letter while reflecting on feelings of Abraham Lincoln during a trip he had taken.
Alabama Department of Archives and History
The Great Depression - Hard Times Hit America
To gain an understanding of how the Great Depression affected everyday citizens, class members examine letters written either to the president or to the governor of Alabama asking for assistance.
Curated OER
Not Getting the News about the Stamp Act
How did American colonists react to the Stamp Act of 1765? Your young historians will examine primary source material by reading excerpts from a transcription of the Pennsylvania Gazette and then identifying the sentiments expressed by...
Curated OER
What Are the Issues?
Investigate and report on three issues related to a current election. Elementary aged learners research information about specific issues, develop an opinion, and write a persuasive essay using supporting details and evidence to support...
Curated OER
Civil War Letter
Students put themselves in the shoes of American Civil War soldiers. In this Civil War lesson, students compose letters to their families from the the perspective of soldiers in the war.
Curated OER
Redistricting: Drawing the Lines
Difficult redistricting concepts are covered in a context that will make it understandable to your government scholars. They begin with a KWL on the term redistricting and then watch a video to answer some questions. They analyze...
Curated OER
Write Right Back
Third graders explore communications by utilizing technology. In this e-mail writing lesson plan, 3rd graders identify important elements to include when writing an e-mail based on whether it's to a friend, colleague or employer....
Council for Economic Education
Satisfaction Please! (Part 1)
The topic of consumerism seems easy to those who participate actively in the US economy, but pupils who are new to economics may see the idea as foreign. Help them understand their rights as consumers and what to expect when interacting...
Alabama Department of Archives and History
A College Student's Perspective on WWI
Some things remain the same, such as the world being on the brink of war, or college attendees writing home requesting money. As part of their research into events that led up to President Wilson's declaration of war on Germany, class...
Curated OER
Women’s Suffrage Movement
Though the movement for Women's Suffrage stretched over several decades and across two centuries, the final few years were the most difficult hurdle in many ways. Use a document-based question writing exercise to make inferences about...
National History Day
Leland Linman’s War: A Look at Soldiers’ Daily Lives in World War I
Hunkering down in the trenches of World War I, Leland Linman decided to write a journal about his experiences. By reading Linman's entries in the fourth installment of an eight-part lesson series, scholars get a firsthand look at life in...
School Rack
Westward Expansion Project Choices
What a great list of brief research projects for reviewing the era of westward expansion in the United States! Learners are directed to choose and complete three of the projects on the given list, which includes opportunities to design...
Curated OER
Classifying Information About a Main Idea
Elementary learners explore language arts by completing a text identification activity. They discuss the importance of a main idea in a story or paper and how to present it properly. Then they practice identifying the main idea in sample...
Joy Uzarraga
Famous American Research Project
Designed specifically for lower elementary pupils, this is a great biographical research project in which students research a famous American, and then design creative poster boards to help them "become" the famous American they have...
Curated OER
The Home Front
Young historians explore life on the home front during the Civil War with primary documents and a series of writing prompts. They also watch a presentation and use a worksheet to compare how communication methods have changed over time....
Curated OER
Advertising and Healthy Decisions
Students analyze alcohol and tobacco ads and create parodies of them. The eight lessons in this unit include discussions about why teens smoke or drink, the psychology behind the advertising, and writing persuasive letters to agencies,...
Curated OER
Emailing Colonial Pen Pals
Fifth graders write emails to a friend imagining they are traveling to colonial America. In this emailing penpals lesson, 5th graders discuss appropriate language and topics in email communication, use correct format and write...