Curated OER
Discovering My Family History
Pupils research their family trees. They research Internet sites, conduct interviews and, when possible, access primary sources to compile information about their family's history. Students present their findings in a family tree.
Curated OER
Bat Quest: In Search of Stellaluna
Students participate in Bat Quest: In Search of Stellaluna. In this children's literature lesson students listen to the reading of Stellaluna. Computers are utilized to enter the Bat Quest site to research various topics on bats....
Curated OER
Treaties
Third graders explore Canadian history by participating in a role-playing activity. In this First Nation treaties instructional activity, 3rd graders identify the difficulties the Aboriginals faced when dealing with early European...
Curated OER
Migration from the Dust
Students trace their own family's migrations and history. They listen to the story, 'Blue ow.' They design a plate which is shared at an open house.
Curated OER
Finding the Friendship Dolls, A True Story: How Children Can Create World Peace
Students listen to the book Finding the Friendship Dolls, A True Story: How Children Can Help Create World Peace through Toys. In this world peace instructional activity, students choose events in the story to create a timeline of those...
Curated OER
Protecting the Past: Give a Hoot, Don't Loot!
Students, in small groups, simulate an ancient civilization and the art they created, another group represents vandals, and the final group represents archaeologists who try to figure out what life was like for the "ancient peoples". ...
Teaching Ideas
Victorian Fashion Detectives
The distinctive attire of royalty, working class, and peasants of the Victorian era conveys much about the conditions of the time. Learn more about why people dressed as they did, and how their fashion changed during the 64-year reign of...
Curated OER
Holocaust Theme
Students complete a unit of lessons on the events of the Holocaust during WWII. They write daily journal entries, create a collage, view and discuss videos, read and analyze novels and poetry, and complete a novel project.
Curated OER
A Dash of Folk, A Pinch of Fairy Recipes for Playmaking
Students examine the importance of oral traditions while reading various fairy and folk tales. Given a piece of clay, they can mold it into any shape they want and pass it to their neighbor which keeps building the object. They use...
Curated OER
Wappo Language
Third graders discover that the Wappo tribe had no written language and explore the tribe's oral traditions and language. They create their own sentences using Wappo words. They research other Native American languages noting the...
Curated OER
Finding Meaning in the Badge
Children who are three to five years old study two rank badges from the Qing dynasty to develop an understanding of social rank, language skills, and symbolism. The instructional activity is discussion-based and requires learners to...
Curated OER
What Shapes Can You See?
Students investigate shapes in art. In this visual arts lesson, students examine the ancient Panamanian "Plaque" and identify the geometric shapes in the art piece. Students combine basic shapes to make an artistic picture of their own.
Curated OER
Monet's Magical Garden
Students study classic paintings by masters like Monet. In this art history lesson, students listen to the story Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert and sing flower songs with the rest of their class. Students examine the painting The...
Curated OER
Lunch Pail
Explore a 1900s lunch pail. In this oral language and 1900s history lesson, students view a photograph of an old-fashioned lunch pail. Students describe the object and make predictions about what it is and its possible uses. Students...
Curated OER
Write to Remember
Students read the book "Dinner at Aunt Connie's House" by Faith Ringgold. They choose a woman in history to research and prepare oral presentations for the class. They participate in a tea party to honor women in history.
Curated OER
Ohio Bicentennial
First graders research the history of Ohio and the Ohio Bicentennial. They conduct research using a variety of resources, and participate in class discussions about Ohio. Using Kid Pix computer software they write one fact and create a...
Curated OER
You Gotta Know the Territory
Students examine the relationship between Native Americans and those who settled the Iowa territory. In this Iowa history lesson, students investigate the process for settling the territory and how intercultural relationships developed...
Curated OER
Strawberry Girl: Outdoors in Florida
Students explore nature by researching the state of Florida. In this animal identification lesson, students read a children' story and research the Internet to discover the difference in animal life between the early 1900's and present...
Curated OER
Unit Plan Template
Use this U.S. History unit plan as a template for creating your own! Simply download the resource and edit the text fields with your own customized unit plan. This is a great jumping-off step, especially for newer teachers.
Curated OER
Discovering Your Community
Students focus on the origins of the families that make up their community by exploring their family's origins through themselves, parents, and grandparents. Students create a map marked with family origins for the class.
Cave Creek Unified School District
Crusades and Culture in the Middle Ages
The Crusades sounds like a glamorous time period in the Middle Ages full of glory—but was it? Scholars find and review the truth of the Crusades' influence on the world through the resource. The study guides, separated individually by...
Cleveland Museum of Art
Japanese Folktales (Asian Odyssey)
The Cleveland Museum of Art presents this interdisciplinary model unit that asks class members to explore how the same themes are presented in the folktales and art of several cultures.
Curated OER
Introduction to 18th Century Artisans
Students investigate colonial artisans. In this history lesson plan, students create a booklet of American Artisans and dress up in 18th century clothing for an oral presentation.
Curated OER
Creating a Memorial Day Poster Poem
Does your class know about the meaning of Memorial Day? Discuss the history of the holiday in this lesson, which prompts elementary and middle schoolers to create word webs of ideas about the holiday. Additionally, they create poems...