Curated OER
Pieces of the Past
Students compare and contrast the lives of Native Americans from Texas and elsewhere. Using artifacts, they explain how they were used and made as well as how they benefited all peoples living in Texas. They describe economic patterns...
Curated OER
Using Artifacts to Engage Students in Critical Thinking Activities
Creating learning centers with artifact-related activities are a great way to promote deductive reasoning and critical thinking skills.
Curated OER
Anecdotes from Artifacts: Hearing When Clay Sings
Students discover artifacts of the American Indians. They also bring in their own artifact for viewing.
Curated OER
Introduction to Indians and the First Thanksgiving
Students use yarn to create a timeline of the first Thanksgiving. After a class discussion, they view pictures of artifacts and Native Americans to identify the tools and items present during the first Thanksgiving. In groups, they...
Curated OER
Social Studies: Exploring Boston's Big Dig
Students, in a high school class for autistic children, take a virtual tour of Boston's "Big Dig" and the artifacts discovered there. During weekly lab sessions, they discover the processes involved in artifact preservation. Using...
Curated OER
The Battle of Fort Moultrie
Eighth graders interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary resources. In this American Revolution lesson, 8th graders examine the Battle of Fort Moultrie and create their own historical narratives regarding the event.
Curated OER
"Dig It"
Twelfth graders explore Native American Mounds in Ohio to identify their purpose and methods of creation. A variety of learning stations are provided.
Curated OER
What Can We Learn From Bones?
Students discuss what type of information they can gather from bones. In groups, they travel between stations in which they can view photos and listen to actual accounts of finding bones. They focus on the tools available to Native...
Annenberg Foundation
America's History in the Making: Classroom Applications One
Someone finds a time capsule 100 years from now, and it includes your family photo album. What would the photos tell that person about you and your place in history? Scholars investigate how artifacts tell stories. Using photos, maps,...
Reading Through History
The Proclamation of 1763
The French and Indian War concluded with an important proclamation—that is, The Proclamation of 1763. Scholars read about the policies in the document and how the different sides of the French and Indian War reacted. Following, they...
Curated OER
Rock Speaks
Young scholars create primitive forms and caricatures to represent meaningful figures and/or events in their own lives, present their own works to the class, and attempt to interpret the relevant meaning from other students' work.
Curated OER
The Iceman 2
Students identify and analyze the Iceman found in Europe with all of his organs preserved along with his personal artifacts. Students identify then about North Native Americans and write an essay defining their differences.
Curated OER
Making Inferences About a Llano River Rancheria
Seventh graders research the Indian groups that lived 1,000 years ago on the Llano River. They analyze paintings and photographs of tools and artifacts, develop inferences and conclusions about how the Indians lived, and present the...
Curated OER
Anecdotes from Artifacts
Students use clay to create a personally meaningful and symbolic artifact. They interpret the artifacts in writing and read about the use of symbols in Native American art.
Curated OER
Ragtime: 1880-1920
Build an understanding of the social, economic, and cultural changes that were incited by the American Industrial Revolution. Learners will research the historical context of the Ragtime Era, and compose an oral presentation in the voice...
Curated OER
Village Life in India
Students use included links to research the lives of people living in a small village in India.
Curated OER
Seeing Ancient Worlds
Students view the images from the Nature Images Photo Gallery and identify various elements of nature. They then group the elements into categories and discuss what these images tell about the worlds of ancient Native Americans.
Curated OER
Trade Trials Treaties
Fourth graders explore the trade relationships that existed in the late 1700's Colonial America. In this American history instructional activity, 4th graders examine English and Cherokee trade treaties by reviewing primary and...
Curated OER
Inference By Analogy
Students infer the use or meaning of items recovered from a North Carolina Native American site based on 17th-century European settlers' accounts and illustration.
Curated OER
The Early Peoples
Students, after studying The Early Peoples, explain and give examples of how Native Americans and Europeans adapted to living in certain environments. They give examples of early cultures and settlements that existed in North America...
Curated OER
Second Grade Time Capsules
Second graders leave clues from the past for students of the future by creating time capsules filled with artifacts from the year. These artifacts are buried along with others on school grounds somewhere. Students identify and analyze...
Curated OER
Written Clues About the Past
Third graders investigate written clues from the past. In this clues from the past lessons, 3rd graders read and entry called, "Rick's Backyard Site." They complete the associated resource sheets. They read about a second site and use a...
Channel Islands Film
Who Owns the Bones
A study of the history of the Channel Islands, located off the coast of southern California, continues as class members conduct a mock trial to determine which group of stakeholders should have the right to claim the remains of Juan...
Curated OER
Immigration History Firsthand
Young scholars interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary resources. In this immigration lesson, students conduct research regarding Ellis Island and the American immigrant experience. Young...