Chicago Botanic Garden
Accessing Prior Knowledge: Global Climate Change Survey
Begin a unit on weather and climate change by assessing prior knowledge of the topic. Learners respond to a survey with questions that ask what they think causes climate change, the effects of climate change, and if it is important...
Curated OER
Old Stone House Lesson Plan
From stagecoach to railroad tracks, your class will discover how advancements in travel in the United States during the nineteenth century played an integral role in the industrialization and development of American society. The main...
Curated OER
Constitutional Acts (Chapter 3)
Help your students review constitutional acts in this review worksheet, which could also be used as a class quiz. Five matching questions and five multiple choice questions address checks and balances, the powers of the Senate and House,...
Curated OER
US Policy In Somalia
Students investigate the US policy for the country of Somalia. They conduct research using a variety of resources. They locate the country and then discuss major geographical features of the areas. Students discuss the present US...
Curated OER
Searching for Meanings Benath the Surface of the Poem
Students read "Soccer Until Dusk". As a class, they discuss the various settings and actions in the poem and discuss the life in Guatemala and compare it with the United States. To end the lesson, they complete a journal reflection...
Curated OER
History/Mystery: Regionalism and Ethnicity in the American Detective Novel
Students use mystery novels to focus on the history and ethnicity of different regions of the United States. As a class, they are introduced to the elements of a mystery and compare them to the other types of novels they have read. In...
Syracuse University
Erie Canal
While canals are not the way to travel today, in the first half of the nineteenth century, they were sometimes the best way to move goods and people. Scholars examine primary sources, including maps and pictures, to investigate the role...
Smithsonian Institution
Art to Zoo: Life in the Promised Land: African-American Migrants in Northern Cities, 1916-1940
This is a fantastic resource designed for learners to envision what it was like for the three million African-Americans who migrated to urban industrial centers of the northern United States between 1910 and 1940. After reading a...
Curated OER
Naming the States of the U.S
Fifth graders study the 50 states on a map. In this social studies lesson, 5th graders identify the names of the states and location. Additionally, students work in small groups to name and locate as many states as they can on a blank...
Curated OER
The Role of Geography -- The United States and the Republic of Turkey
Preteens review the five themes of geography. In groups, they examine the United States and Turkey to discover how geography can impact the way people live. They create a foldable for each country, listing information for each of the...
Curated OER
Figure of Speech
Examine the changing nature of language in the U.S. View and discuss excerpts from a PBS documentary with your class and then conduct Internet research, and complete a team project on the evolution of teen expressions.
Curated OER
East Timor: The World's Newest Country
This isn't just a hand-out or a reading passage; it's more like a mini book on the history, colonization, independence, and culture of the South East Asian country of Timor. There are extensive readings and discussion questions for...
Curated OER
States and Capitals, Mountains and Rivers
Students identify geographical locations in the midwestern United States. In this geography lesson, students identify 12 states and capitals and geographical features in the region by using U.S. maps. Students use blank maps to fill in...
Curated OER
Development of the English Colonies
Learners research one of the original 13 colonies using the included worksheet. They also record their findings on a poster board to use during a class presentation. Students then take notes on the presentations using the provided...
Curated OER
Louisiana's Indian Tribes At the Time of the Louisiana Purchase
Learners research primary readings concerning first hand accounts of the Indian tribes living in and around Louisiana's River systems. They complete a brief character sketch of each tribe characterized in the digital readings. These...
Curated OER
Industrial Revolution in America: Exploring the Effects of the Heat Engine on the Growth of Cities
Students research the development of the steam engines. In this US history lesson, students analyze the impact of this invention to civilization. They discuss the events leading to the growth and development of different cities.
Curated OER
Mural Mania
Learn about your home state. After listening to stories about your state, identifying symbols, and discussing what makes your region special, your class creates a mural.
Curated OER
Cartogram of the Great Compromise
Students create cartograms of populations during 1790.
Curated OER
Go To The Head of the Cloud
Young scholars pretend they are water droplets traveling through the water cycle. Using their text, they discover the steps in the cycle and the different paths water can take. They write a report about their journey through the water...
Curated OER
How the West Was One: A Layered Book
Students create a layered book about the information they learn about the Western region of the United States. In this Western states lesson plan, students create a book about the land, economy, and culture.
Curated OER
Regions of the US: Gulf Stream, States and Their Capitals
Fifth graders identify one way of dividing the US into geographical regions and then consider alternate ways of doing the same. They locate each of the fifty states and their capitals on a map. They research the Gulf Stream region.
Curated OER
Mexican Cessation
Eighth graders create a propaganda poster. In this US history lesson students research the various sides during the Mexican-American War. They present their poster and their position for or against the war.
Curated OER
Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay Landscape Long Ago and Today
Combine a fantastic review of primary source analysis with a study of Captain John Smith's influence on the Chesapeake Bay region in the seventeenth century. Your young historians will use images, a primary source excerpt, and maps...
Curated OER
The Geography of China
Viewers will love this field trip to China, complete with information about China's economy, topography, geography, climate, and demographics. Maps and photos help to support the claims in the slides, especially in some interesting...