Trey from Phish and Dave from the Dave Mathews Band took a trip to Africa to explore music, culture, and history. Your class watches this episode from VH1's Music Studio to understand how African culture and music have influenced modern...

Whether you are teaching a newspaper unit in language arts, covering the First Amendment and censorship in social studies, or focusing on writing ethics in journalism, a unit based on the foundations of journalism would be an excellent...

After analyzing newspaper articles portraying different perspectives of the explosion of the Battleship USS Maine, your young historians will take a stand on which position is the most believable in both discussion and writing.

Students determine how religion influences social change. In this religion and social change lesson, students examine how the religious beliefs of Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. were inspirational as they worked to reduce...

The contributions of Ida B. Wells to the Civil Rights Movement are the focus of this social studies lesson plan. Middle schoolers read a handout regarding Wells, discuss the handout, and write about non-conformist behavior.

Students plan and implement a change in their neighborhood, school or nation. In this social action lesson, students share concerns about their neighborhood, school or nation and brainstorm ways to solve the problem. Students select a...

Eighth graders consider cross-curricular connections between social studies, singing, and current events. They listen to the song, "I Can't Cry Hard Enough." view scenes from September 11, then create presentations using images, a...

Spread the love with a heart-warming lesson plan about Jeffrey Wright, a physics teacher who helps his class cultivate empathy by himself being an empathetic role model. After watching a video about how Jeffrey works his magic, class...

High schoolers examine the third pillar of Islam. They discover the influence of Islamic ideas and practices on other cultures, Explore the various meanings of social group and the ways that each group functions. Then, they research the...

Ah, the classic business cycle model: recession, depression, recovery, prosperity. And then there was the Great Depression. Groups investigate the economic conditions that led to and social movements of the 1920s that great out of the...

Cultural discourse can start through a variety of venues. Learners begin to think about how our minds, memories, and identities shape our attitudes toward culture and history. They analyze seven pieces from the Dongducheon art exhibit...

The right to public education was not always so clear in American history. Readers study several primary and secondary source documents, including property deeds, maps, and photographs, about the founding of local schools during the...

Academics turn into storytellers in an engaging activity on activism. The activity focuses on promoting social change in local communities with stories. Young historians plan a storybook to target a specific audience and social issue and...

The teen years are nothing but a series of personal, social, and academic changes. Help kids understand what to expect as they mature and give them ways to make good decisions. After discussing they types of changes they'll go through,...

The war on drugs doesn't have definite results. An interesting lesson examines the social, political, and economic effect of the war on drugs. Academics learn how the war on drugs has led to mass incarcerations and negatively affected...

After the Revolutionary War, the success of the United States was far from guaranteed. Foreign powers coveted the new land, and Great Britain challenged American sovereignty. Learners consider the challenges facing the new nation using...

Looking for a valuable resource on the spread of infectious diseases? Here is a activity in which pupils simulate the spread of diseases and learn about how to prevent them from spreading. Class members read case studies about diseases,...

Everyone has the power to change their own lives. Young historians learn how they can become agents for change in their own lives and the community. The lesson focuses on positive role models and what motivates individuals to promote...

Students explain the history of the Social Security Act and the FICA tax. They describe what Social Security is and whom it is intended to help. They explain the purpose of the FICA tax.

Class members examine human migration. For this population lesson, they read an article entitled, "Freedom of Movement" and respond to discussion questions about the article related to guest worker programs.

The ultimate legacy of Emmett Till's violent death is its role in the non-violent roots of the Civil Rights Movement. A lesson compares contemporaneous articles with the lyrics of Bob Dylan's "The Death of Emmett Till" and prompts...

Break the chain. An engaging lesson plan examines why it is so hard to break free of the prison system in the US. Academics participate in a reader's theater, read primary sources, and discuss their thoughts. The lesson plan explains the...

After watching a short online film about a soccer player Nolusindiso Plaatje and his help with the Grassroot Soccer program, a community education effort aimed at spreading awareness about HIV/AIDS prevention, use a lesson...