University of Kansas
Newspaper in the Classroom
Newspapers aren't only for reading—they're for learning skills, too! A journalism unit provides three lessons each for primary, intermediate, and secondary grades. Lessons include objectives, materials, vocabulary, and procedure, and...
Smithsonian Institution
Mobilizing Children
Scholars find out how the government used propaganda to mobilize children to help in the war effort. Lesson exercises include analyzing a quote from Franklin Roosevelt, viewing propaganda images and posters, and participating in a lively...
Administrative Office of the US Courts
Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier
Freedom of speech is not always free. Scholars investigate how the First Amendment provides for the right to express opinions. Through the court case Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier, they analyze free speech using primary documents—and hopefully...
National History Day
Reporting on World War I
Throughout history, newspapers have reported the events of the day as they unfolded. Using primary and secondary sources from World War I, scholars uncover how the American people learned of the events of the War to End All Wars. History...
Curated OER
Cruise the News
Young scholars utilize newspapers as a resource to complete various tasks. They read articles, write summaries, investigate the classified section, write commercials, and circle spelling words.
Curated OER
First Things First: Using the Newspaper to Teach the Freedoms of the First Amendment
Students use the newspaper as a tool to make connections about what the five freedoms guarantee in the First Amendment. In this first amendment lesson plan, students analyze events in the newspaper to form conclusions about the freedoms...
Curated OER
The Airline Ticket Mystery
Students use newspapers and television stories to search for mysterious behavior. Using mysteries in the airline industry, they identify the economic concept and the steps to unravel the mystery. They answer a mystery question to help...
Curated OER
From the Beginning of Time, Online: Using the Internet to Explore History
Students use the Internet to research historical events. They compare and contrast different websites to find the best information. They write summaries based on the information they found and give presentations.
Curated OER
Introduction to Canada
Ninth graders investigate the country of Canada by examining their media in this geography lesson. They use the Internet to research Canadian newspapers and analyze a topic covered by both US and Canadian media sources. After comparing...
Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
Harriet Beecher Stowe Sends Uncle Tom’s Cabin to Victoria and Albert, 1852
Harriet Beecher Stowe's plea for abolition is not only laid plain in her acclaimed novel, Uncle Tom's Cabin, but in her written correspondence as well. High schoolers read a letter written by Stowe to Prince Albert and Queen Victoria to...
Curated OER
The IMF in Action: What Does the IMF Do?
Young scholars use newspapers and the internet to discover what the IMF does. They work together in groups to brainstorm occupations which need another language to be spoken. They also examine data related to trading among countries.
Curated OER
The Bill of Rights is for US Today
The first ten Amendments of the U.S. Constitution are vital for young people to understand. Provide the foundation of the laws that govern our country with this junior high school lesson. Groups use the newspaper to identify rights...
Curated OER
Samuel's Choice
The book, Samuel's Choice is used to illustrate the decisions that African Americans who were enslaved during the Revolutionary War had to make. The series of four lessons is designed to be implemented after the book is read. The book,...
Curated OER
An Investigation of Primary and Secondary Sources Using The Records on Mary McLeod Bethune
Students listen to a summary of the life of Mary Bethune. They read or listen to an excerpt from an interview with Mary Bethune. They discuss the differences between the transcript and the draft of the biography.
Curated OER
GROUP NEWSPAPER PRESENTATIONS
Students in groups are to develop their own newspapers while keeping to a World War I outline.
Curated OER
Near v. Minnesota
Learners discuss what free press means and what it would be like without this right. They read the summary from the Near v. Minnesota case. In groups, they analyze a problem and report to the class.
Curated OER
Help Wanted: President of the United States
Students consider qualities and United States president should have. In this government instructional activity, students research the responsibilities of the president and use that information to create an advertisement that describes...
Curated OER
The Front Page: Asking Geographic Questions
High schoolers examine how to ask geographic questions. They read an article with details omitted, list possible geographic questions, and write a summary of the article.
Curated OER
Safety And Water Safety
Students investigate the concept of safety in and out of the water. They conduct research using a variety of resources. Students focus upon the role of police officers in the keeping of safety and then discuss the different types of...
Curated OER
Samuel's Choice - Social Studies Using Children's Literature
Fifth graders read a book about independence, freedom, and slavery. Students create a story map of the book. They research the causes of the Civil War. Students write a newspaper article from the point of view of an American colonist.
Curated OER
Newspaper Reporting and Writing
Students will examine advertisements, explore ways to inform, locate pictures of Hemingway, read sports articles, and follow directions to create a finished project - a newspaper. their newspapers are multifaceted with not only...
Curated OER
Tectonic Plates, Earthquakes, and Volcanoes
Challenge geography classes to locate the major volcanoes and earthquake faults on a world map. In groups, they identify the pattern made and examine the relationship between the locations of the faults and volcanoes and tectonic...
Curated OER
Encapsulating Moments in Time
Learners look back at this year in history and evaluate important events, discoveries and people from 1998. They, in groups, create 1998: Year in Review. While 1998 has come and gone, the idea and intent for this lesson can be used now.
Curated OER
Group Newspaper Project
Explained as part of a whole-unit, a group newspaper project gives life to any study on WWI. This plan has historians using notes from class to "illustrate" WWI to their classmates through various articles. Not much information is...