Facing History and Ourselves
Emmett Till: Examining the Choices People Made
The choices made by Roy Bryant and J.W. Millam, the men who murdered Emmett Till in 1955, are usually the ones people ponder when they examine the case. But other individuals made choices that contributed to the event and its subsequent...
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Films That Make A Difference in History Lesson Plans
Showing films or other types of media in the classroom is a great way to bring history lesson plans alive.
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Looking for a Windshield Experience
Learners identify American geography by participating in a national parks activity. In this road trip instructional activity, students view the Ken Burns documentary "National Parks" and identify the importance of automobiles in the park...
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Entertaining Films: Vocabulary Skills
In this online interactive vocabulary skills worksheet, students answer 10 fill in the blank questions regarding entertaining films. Students may submit their answers to be scored.
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Making Good Decisions
Students explore the consequences of their actions. In this personal choices lesson, students practice balancing different interests involved in compromise. This lesson includes downloadable materials and 2 extension activities.
PBS
The Black Panthers
Stanley Nelson's acclaimed film, The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution uses interviews, archival footage, and images to document the story of the radical political party established in 1966 by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale. A...
Agriculture in the Classroom
Farmland: GMOs and Organic Agriculture
Learn more about genetic modification, organic farming, and the role of biotechnology in agriculture by watching a documentary that shows how newly gained knowledge can be applied to specific situations involving farmers and the choices...
Channel Islands Film
Cache: Lesson Plan 4 - Grades 4-5
After viewing the West of the West's documentary Cache, individuals craft either a newspaper article chronicling the discovery of the cache on San Nicolas Island, a historical narrative of the placement of the cache in the cliff side, or...
MCHS Early US History
Ken Burn’s Civil War, Episode 1: The Cause
Ken Burn's epic documentary miniseries The Civil War, broadcast in 1990, was the most-watched PBS program ever. A question sheet helps viewers keep track of events in the first episode of the documentary.
Global Oneness Project
Protecting Wilderness
Would you live in a tree for three years to protect a redwood forest? Viewers of Rainhouse Cinema's Among Giants documentary consider the actions of Earth First! environmental activists who moved into the treetops of a grove of giant...
Creative Visions Foundation
Introduction to Pre-production: Developing Ideas
Continue with creating documentaries with the fourth lesson in a series. After explaining the concept of preproduction, send groups off to make some decisions about their films. Groups can use the handout and the four provided questions...
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Our Town
Students read and discuss an online article as they consider what makes a center of activity in a city or town. They produce a documentary film of the hub of activity in their school.
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Ballou High School Marching Band Documentary Lesson Plans
Students examine the journey of the Ballou Marching Band. In this America's Promise lesson plan, students read about Colin Powell and examine the history of America's Promise. Students explore the Five Points of the program and then...
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Vocabulary Multiple Choice Worksheet 8
In this ESL vocabulary activity, students focus on vocabulary enhancement. Students complete 8 multiple choice questions by reading each sentence and choosing the best word to complete each.
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Hollywood and Higher Learning
Students watch a varietry of films showing college life. In groups, they take different scenerios from the films and determine how they would have reacted. As a class, they discuss more in depth the issues they might face in college. ...
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Making Movie Storyboards
Young scholars explore the importance of images in telling a story in film, analyze movie clips and identify some visual cues that help them explain the story; students work collaboratively to storyboard a passage from a book and present...
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This is America
Young scholars explore world geography by viewing a documentary film in class. In this national parks instructional activity, students view the Ken Burns documentary about the subject and identify the contributions of individuals in...
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Arson
Learners watch a documentary film about arson and why children sometimes commit arson. They role play a scenario in which the school was deliberately set on fire. They develop a news report in which they interview three people regarding...
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Growing up in Las Vegas; Memories of Childhood in the Neon City
Young scholars investigate the history of Las Vegas through conducting interviews. In this oral history instructional activity, students locate and speak with older residents of Las Vegas in order to gain a better understanding of the...
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What Make Good Reality Television?
Students brainstorm what they believe makes a good reality TV show. Students compile a set of attributes that they feel distinguishes the best of the reality TV shows from the others. Using the attributes that the class agrees determine...
Channel Islands Film
Arlington Springs Man: Lesson Plan 3
Imagine being part of a team of scientists that discover the oldest human remains in North America. Imagine being part of the crew that documents this discovery. Class members get a change to be part of such an exciting adventure in a...
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Facing Reality
Students explore social issues that are meaningful to them and create documentaries in which they share their information, thoughts and impressions.
PBS
The Pursuit of Excellence
Who doesn’t love French pastries and the idea of hard work? Discover different philosophies on hard work, and the skills of French pastry chefs as the documentary concerning the “Best Craftsmen in France” or Meilleures Ouvriers de France...
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Writing With Punch
Students watch the series "Unforgiveable Blackness". They examine the media's response to Jack Johnson in the film. They role-play the role of reporters to compose poems of headlines.