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Puerto Rico: The 51st State?

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students explore Puerto Rico.  In this Puerto Rico current events lesson, students conduct a Webquest to answer questions about Puerto Rico's culture.  Students discuss whether Puerto Rico is a country or a state, and defend...
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Diseases Are Real

For Teachers 11th
Eleventh graders research industries that contribute to sanitation and pollution problems. They investigate the direct result of unhygienic practices including disease outbreaks or specific illnesses. They create a Power Point...
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Orfeo: Sinfonie e Ritornelli

For Teachers 9th - 11th
Students identify the dramatic expression made by performance and how it relates to the content of the story L'Orfeo. They determine the form of orchestra and each instrumental group within the orchestra for this piece.
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Los Angeles Tourist Brochures

For Teachers 4th - 12th
Students investigate the history of Los Angeles. They conduct Internet research, select a specific topic, and create a tourist brochure that includes information, pictures, and maps.
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Hispanics in Indianapolis

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders explore the history of the Indianapolis Hispanic Community and create an illustrated timeline of Hispanics in Indianapolis beginning from 1870 and ending in 1999, while exploring local social issues of the past and present.
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A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Young scholars examine the cultural and historical significance of certain artists. They use the internet to perform research and prepare a report of analysis of artistic works looking for cultural influences. Students also tie in the...
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GET UP, STAND UP: Fighting for Rights Around the World

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students explore basic human rights as they explore music by black artists. In this human rights lesson, students examine music as a cultural reflection of the justice issues. Students analyze Jamaican roots reggae of the 70s, American...
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Bob Dylan: No Direction Home

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students hold panel discussions on selected topics about the 1960s and their impact on modern-day events. As visual reinforcement, they watch the film about Bob Dylan and research the music of the period as well as his musical...
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Woody Guthrie: Ain't Got No Home

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine the music of Woody Guthrie and how the political and economic climate influenced his work. They read and discuss online articles, define key vocabulary words, take a Political Orientation Survey, and write a position...
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Cole Porter: You're the Top

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners watch selected film clips about Cole Porter and discover his uniqueness. In groups, they research associates of the Porter's and present reports on them. Then, they write position papers on prominent people of the Jazz Age. ...
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Stand Up And Sing

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students examine pieces of sheet music and identify context, purpose, and perspective with regard to the political, social, and economic conditions existing at that time. They create a cover illustrating a topic of the Progressive Era.
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Did Disco Change America?

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students examine the economics of a time period along with the music.
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Isn't It Romantic?

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders investigate the ideas, literature, music, and art of the Romantic Movement. They apply romantic ideals to their original writing and art, analyze poetry, discuss key vocabulary, and analyze artwork from this era.
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Social and Cultural Issues in the Civil Rights Movement

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students watch videos, listen to speeches and analyze the information that is presented about the civil rights movement. They examine visual art of the period.
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Renaissance: Rebirth to Revolution

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders use a variety of resources to research the Middle Ages and Renaissance over a nine-week period. Working in cooperative teams, they become experts on specific topics. Students hold a Renaissance Faire and role-play as...
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Harlem Renaissance and Toni Morrison's Jazz

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students study the historical time of the Harlem Renaissance, including key events and figures. They read literature that weaves fiction and history and survey some of the references to the Harlem Renaissance in the novel, Jazz, by Toni...
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Exile: Cuba and the United States

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers gain an understanding of U.S./Cuban Relations. In this world history lesson plan, students examine the events of the Cuban revolution and their effect on U.S.-Cuban relations and U.S. foreign policy.
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Entertainment and Recreation in the Early Twentieth Century and Today

For Teachers 11th
Eleventh graders research entertainment and recreation in the early twentieth century using primary sources and the book From the Hidewood, by Robert Amerson. They compare the rural experience of the time period to the national...
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Sew, You Want To Quilt?

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students become familiar with the achievements of the artist Faith Ringgold. They take notice of the patterns in their environment. They connect the mathematical concept of patterns to create a class quilt.
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A Personal Narrative on the Immigration Experience

For Teachers 9th - 11th
The students create a personal narrative on their experiences with immigration. In this lesson, students are asked to read and understand examples of narrative writing as well as evaluate lyrics from Ben Folds Five to determine elements...
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Bossy Britain Upsets Colonists

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Learners examine the causes of dissatisfaction that led to the American Revolution. Then they make a Flap Vocabulary Book and glue on a map of the thirteen colonies and make a title page called "Road to War in it." Students also...
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Celebration and Satire- Beginning Level

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students examine art elements in a late-19th-century self-portrait painting. In this visual arts instructional activity, students analyze the painting "A Centennial of Independence" and identify the color, shape, and symbols in the art...
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“Home on the Range”

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders analyze the song "Home on the Range" and identify its meaning and setting.  In this timeline and retelling instructional activity, 4th graders use dictionaries to find definitions of unfamiliar words, create a...
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Master Spy

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students explain that a code is a system of symbols, letters, words, or signals that are used instead of ordinary words and numbers to send messages or to store information. They practice deciphering a variety of secret codes used in...