PBS
President Theodore Roosevelt: Foreign Policy Statesman or Bully?
Can a negative perception of a president's foreign policy harm his or her historical legacy? A project that winds the clock back to the date of Theodore Roosevelt's death puts students at the editorial desk of a fictional newspaper....
Curated OER
Presidents
Students conduct a research project. In this United States Presidents activity, students draw a presidents name out of a box and complete a research activity on their president. Research options include writing a two page paper,...
PBS
Evolution of the Presidency: Theodore Roosevelt to Franklin D. Roosevelt
How much power should a president be allowed to exert? Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin D. Roosevelt exercised their power according to their interpretations of the United States Constitution, and these interpretations affected the...
Polk Bros Foundation
American Presidents
Emanuel Leutze's painting Washington Crossing the Delaware. Alexander Gardner's photograph of Abraham Lincoln. What do these works of art tell us about the character of these American Presidents? After examining the techniques the...
Curated OER
Legendary Life Cycles
Upper elementary historians research a legendary person who had an impact in the the history of the United States. Learners research the life of their person of choice, and construct a legendary timeline using computer software which...
Curated OER
"In God We Trust": The Camden Man Who Put the Missing Motto on the Dollar Bill
Here is a fascintating lesson which relates how the motto "In God We Trust" came to appear on all US currency. It turns out that a man from Arkansas came up with the idea and petioned his congressman and President Eisenhower himself to...
Curated OER
President for a Day
Students explore the duties of the US President. In this history lesson plan, students use research to gain information about presidents. Students utilize various forms of research, pictures, library books, textbooks, newspaper,...
Theodore Roosevelt Association
Roosevelt's Legacy: Conservation
The legacy of Theodore Roosevelt carries through modern American politics, economics, foreign policy, and society. But his proudest and most profound efforts were in the world of conservation, and in preserving the natural beauty of...
Curated OER
President Obama's Address to Students Across America
Students write about goals, responsibility, and persistence, and listen to President Obama's speech. In this President Obama lesson students create concept webs, listen with a purpose, and list the challenges of our generation.
Curated OER
We the People: An American Government Project
High schoolers identify key representatives in the legislative and executive branches of the Federal and State governments
Curated OER
The Manhattan Project
Students discover the technological and scientific requirements for making the atomic bomb, the immediate effects of an atomic bomb, and the social and political changes that have resulted from the Manhattan Project.
PBS
Master of the Airwaves: How FDR Used Radio to Ease the Public’s Fears
The political and economic climate during the 1930's was uncertain and tumultuous. But Americans' minds and hearts were eased with the reassuring words of their president, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and addresses over the radio. High...
Heritage Foundation
The Powers of the Executive
Are executives as powerful as they sound? High schoolers find out about the US president and executive branch. A variety of activities include scaffolded reading sections, research assignments, and collaborative group work.
Classroom Law Project
How do we hire a President?
What are the job requirements for the office of president of the United States? What attributes should a candidate possess? Are the qualities needed to govern the same as those needed to win? What can an analysis of the...
Curated OER
Picturing First Families
Learners complete a variety of activities as they study Washington, D.C., the Presidency, and George Washington. They take a virtual trip to Washington, D.C., and visit the National Portrait Gallery, the White House, and the Library of...
Curated OER
Persuasive Practice: A Mt. Rushmore Addition
Budding authors research a US President and persuade the National Park Service to add him to Mt. Rushmore. In addition to the persuasive essay, individuals are required to develop a visual presentation using a web-based software that...
Miami-Dade County Public Schools
Honoring All Who Served Veterans Day
November 11th, Veterans Day, is a holiday set aside to honor all those who have served in the military. Here's a resource packed with ideas, activities, projects, and materials that will provide inspiration for ways to celebrate those...
Curated OER
Tales of Truman's Travels Fifty Years Ago
Fourth graders study President Truman and the Whistlestop Campaign. For this US history lesson, 4th graders complete a KWL about President Truman and write letters to stops on Truman's Whistlestop Campaign. Students create a presentation...
Curated OER
The Changing Role of Women
Eleventh graders examine the evolution of women's rights in America. As they analyze primary documents and discuss historical events, learners determine how Abigail Adams, Eleanor Roosevelt, Lady Bird Johnson, Margaret Sanger, and James...
PBS
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
What rights are guaranteed to students? Do they align with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was approved by the United Nations in 1948? Middle and high schoolers present persuasive arguments about the rights they believe...
John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum
Red States/Blue States: Mapping the Presidential Election
Young historians investigate how voting patterns have changed by comparing the outcome of the 1960 election to the outcome of the recent election. A creative final assessment has participants making a news show wherein they provide...
Alabama Department of Archives and History
Military Conscription in World War I: Alabamians Express Their Opinions
If called, would you go? Should the US government have the power to impose a draft during any war? The Selective Service Act of 1917 (aka the Conscription Act of 1917) authorized the drafting of men into the military for only the...
Brown University
Following the U.S. Presidential Election
Election years provide the opportunity to evaluate news media as well as the next prospective president. High schoolers read about the same event in several different news sources, varying in type, origin, and political leaning,...
Mississippi Whole School Initiative
Dream Big...With Your Eyes Wide Open
For many people, Barack Obama's presidency was the next step in Martin Luther King, Jr's dream of America's future. Explore the dreams of Americans past and present, as well as the young Americans in your class, with a set of activities...