First graders read a book about Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad. In this underground railroad lesson, 1st graders learn songs and code words that the slaves used to communicate with one another. Students discuss how all...

Second graders practice decision making. In this government lesson students role play making different types of decisions. They discuss how decisions affect life. The Great Binding Law of the Iroquois Confederacy is used as a focus.

Students investigate the controversial planned mosque at Ground Zero. In this current events lesson, students watch 3 public service announcement clips sponsored by the Council on American Islamic Relations and discuss their...

Explore how the issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation affected everyday individuals in the Civil War era. Learners are given the opportunity to read and evaluate primary and secondary source material, and then to compose a writing...

This is a standard multiple-choice assessment on the life and ideas of George Washington Carver. It includes 20 questions on topics covering information about his birth and education, major career moves, teaching principles, ethics, etc.

Using and online tool called TimeRime, class members create timelines that include what they consider to be the top 10 most important events from the first semester of world history. The first few pages of the assignment focus on how to...

Economist Adam Smith supported free enterprise, he but critiqued mercantilism. These two ideas—seemingly contradictory—may be difficult for some young historians to grasp. A reading that explores these ideas guides scholars in unraveling...

North Korea, a shadowy nation distrustful of America, is working on a nuclear weapons program. What should the United States do? The question has plagued American presidents for years, but now young scholars get to make their...

Students watch and listen to a PowerPoint presentation about the Treaty of Versailles, then write an editorial criticizing the Big Three. Students write from the perspective of a German in 1920 who has just learned of the harsh terms of...

If you have been searching for a plan to run a model U.N. simulation, this plan provides some bare bones for your lesson. Scholars break into blocs to research and discuss global issues and come up with collaborative solutions. In their...

"Back Him Up!" Scholars will analyze how World War I posters displayed, on the home front, often attempted to stir up emotions. As they examine the different ways people used propaganda posters during the war, they will create their own...

Students use video, Internet research and discussion to consider the presidency of Richard Nixon. They obtain information from multiple perspectives and form an opinion of how Richard Nixon should be remembered.

Imagine advertising for a product but not being paid to do so. Welcome to the world of Viral Messaging. Class members first view a T-Mobile flash mob video that went viral and has been seen by over 14 million viewers. After analyzing the...

"Board Game Helps Fight Real World Ebola," a video produced by Voice of America, provides the text for a guided instructional activity that asks viewers to analyze the propaganda techniques used in the video. Groups then select a example...

What motivated Europeans to explore the New World, and what effects did their exploration have on Native American populations? The second installment of a 16-part American Passages series prompts pupils to watch a video and read several...

Using an online internet simulation, learners will role-play various members of a family living in rural Haiti. The objective is to increase global awareness by requiring them to consider poverty as an obstacle to education in Haiti....

Fourth graders, using Apple's iMovie, create a digital documentary to raise awareness about the existing child labor in Nepal.

High schoolers research the passage of the 19th Amendment as an illustration of the mutual influence between political ideas and cultural attitudes. They also read the Seneca Falls Declaration and explore the cultural shifts it both...

Many developmentally disabled young scholars struggle with accurately conveying messages and interpreting those of others around them, especially when they are non-verbal. This lesson contains fun activities and exercises, such as...

"Without concerned citizen action to uphold them (human rights) close to home; we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world. . ." Eleanor Roosevelt's comment is used to set the stage for the conclusion of a five-lesson unit...

Students evaluate websites after gathering information from various search engines.  In this Civil War lesson, students browse the web and find strategies for rating websites.  Students choose the best sites in their opinion...

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...

Learners cite connections among Franklin's Albany Plan of 1754, his Plan of Confederation of 1775 and the U.S. Constitution and/or the Declaration of Independence. In an essay, they give examples of the philosophical and political...

A great activity focuses on important cultural and historical places in the state of Arkansas. Learners are introduced to six important places in Arkansas, then create a report on a place in Arkansas. Some excellent photographs, resource...