University of California
The Civil War: Lincoln’s Speeches
Abraham Lincoln is responsible for uniting the states during the most tumultuous periods in American history, and for his elegant oratory that kept the Union believing in its cause. Young histoians analyze various speeches by America's...
Curated OER
Speech in the Virginia Convention
“. . .different men often see the same subject in different lights. . .” but the great orator Patrick Henry used all the skills at his command to craft a speech to convince listeners to see things as he did--that liberty was worth dying...
Prestwick House
Reading Nonfiction: Analyzing Joseph McCarthy's "Enemies from Within" Speech
Looking for a lesson that teaches class members how to analyze nonfiction? Use Joseph McCarthy's famous "Enemies from Within" speech as a instructional text. Worksheet questions direct readers' attention to the many historical...
Curated OER
SPEECHES TO INTRODUCE
Pupils create multimedia speeches of introduction which focus on women and Hispanics. They introduce their famous person and, using a video camera, video tape their speeches.
Curated OER
Heroes in Art
Young scholars examine the life, portraits and speeches of Frederick Douglass. They consider what made his speeches effective and why he is regarded as a national hero. They write an original speech.
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...
Curated OER
Remembrance of Things Past
Engage critical and social thinking by exploring the value of language and word choice. The class considers the article "The Silence of the Historic Present" and analyzes several presidential speeches. They engage in class...
Curated OER
Historical Moments
Here is a instructional activity designed to be an ongoing task for the entire year. Each day of the week, learners must perform research to answer a simple historical question. This particular instructional activity covers the month of...
Curated OER
Inventing and Presenting Unit 2: Effective Speeches and Building the Invention
Young scholars identify the characteristics of effective speeches. Students find elements of good speeches in the text and in the delivery of model speeches. Young scholars build a working three-dimensional model of an invention or an...
MENSA Education & Research Foundation
Utopia/Dystopia: The American Dream
America was founded by dreamers, and the American dream still resonates in our country today. Track the American dream from its Puritan beginnings to its optimistic descendants with a instructional activity that focuses on speeches...
Curated OER
Using Primary Sources to Study the Holocaust
Engage your middle schoolers with Pastor Martin Niemoller's famous poem that begins, "First they came for the communists." Now that you have their attention, send learners to the various work stations you created to have them explore...
Curated OER
In The Words of Abraham Lincoln...
Students explore the words of Abraham Lincoln. In this Abraham Lincoln lesson, students analyze segments of "The Gettysburg Address," his annual address to Congress in 1862, and his letter to Mrs. Bixby. Students conduct further research...
Curated OER
The Gettysburg Address: An American Treasure
Learners apply information found in Lincoln's speeches, especially The Gettysburg Address, to create a persuasive speech on a current topic.
Curated OER
Inventing and Presenting Unit 3: Persuasive Speaking and Invention Promotion
Students write a proposal for a speech. Students prepare appropriate visuals for use in the proposed speech. Students produce one or more graphs that summarize the results from the experimentation. Students deliver an effective speech in...
Curated OER
Violence Prevention
Compare and contrast the ideologies of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. Middle schoolers conduct research regarding civil rights and rhetorical strategies used in political speechs. They examine the strategies that both men employed...
Curated OER
Debate on Ratification: Should We Ratify the New Constitution?
Students determine whether the Constitution should be ratified. In this U.S. Constitution instructional activity, students research the roles of famous Federalists and Antifederalists in order to prepare them to participate in a...
Curated OER
Sojourner Truth
Students research Sojourner Truth. In this African-American history lesson plan, students read the speech "Ain't I A Woman?" and brainstorm descriptive words that describe Sojourner Truth. Students discuss why her acts were considered...
Curated OER
The Civil War: A Nation Divided
Students examine the clash between the North and the South. In this Civil War lesson plan, students watch segments of the Discovery video "The Civil War: A Nation Divided". Students conduct further research pertaining to the...
Curated OER
Tale of Two Speeches
Students view and read portions of John F. Kennedy's Cuban Missile Crisis speech from October 22, 1962. Later in the year, students recall what they remember about the speech and use a Venn Diagram to compare it to Patrick Henry's...
Curated OER
A More Perfect Union: Barack Obama's Race Speech at the National Constitution Center
Eleventh graders explore the process of perfecting the Union through changes made to the Constitution, and through the powers delegated to each branch of government. In this American Government lesson, 11th graders research various...
Alabama Learning Exchange
J. Alfred Hyperbolizes
Mermaids will sing to your class members as they engage in an activity related to T.S. Eliot's famous dramatic interior monologue. After engaging in a socratic seminar about literary devices in the poem, individuals choose one...
Curated OER
I Have a Metaphor
Learners locate the literary devices used in Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech. In this figurative language lesson plan, students first distinguish between similes, metaphors, analogies, personification, etc. Learners...
Curated OER
Bringing Historical Figures Alive
Students research a famous American from a specific era. In this American history lesson, students choose a famous person from a time period chosen by the teacher, write a short report, prepare a speech, plan a PowerPoint...
Curated OER
Abigail and John in Love
The second lesson in the series asks groups to analyze an exchange of love letters between Abigail and John Adams. Scholars identify the many allusions and references in the letters and consider what they can infer about the writers.