Curated OER
Celebrating Benjamin Franklin
Students explore various websites featuring the life and achievements of Benjamin Franklin. They investigate Franklin's roles in colonial society as well as pictures of his various inventions. They view excerpts of historical documents...
Curated OER
Military Tactics and Battle Plans Oh Boy!
Eighth graders compare and contrast a Loyalist and a Patriot. After reading selected pages in the book, 8th graders use a graphic organizer to examine the battle plans of the colonists and the British during the Revolutionary War. They...
Curated OER
Learning from Maps and Timelines Time Travel
Students create timelines depicting the important events in the lives of the groups that arrived at the Fort St. Louis. They include the fate of La Salle and the colonists.
Curated OER
Deerfield Debates Its Future: What Constitutes Progress?
Students explore the many resources that one can use to explore a community, the Colonial Revival movement, and how the industry and technology reshaped life in Deerfield the Connecticut River Valley.
Curated OER
Gone to Texas
Fourth graders role play as empresarios attempting to bring colonists to Texas in the 1800's. They create an advertisement that encourages the immigrants to come to Texas.
Curated OER
Indentured Servitude and Immigration
Learners examine indentured servitude. In this Teaching Tolerance lesson plan, students compare indentured servitude of colonial America to the undocumented immigration of today. Learners write reflections regarding how they feel about...
Curated OER
The Right to Vote
In this voting worksheet, students identify and discuss changes in voting rights throughout American history.
Then, they identify why voting is an important right for Americans. Finally, students create voting bookmarks instead of or in...
Curated OER
Foundations
Students investigate the history of literature in America by looking at the types of genres first read in the United States. They look at the foundations of how the original colonists had the intention of transmitting religious and moral...
Curated OER
An Exercise in Seriation Dating
Students study the different types of artifacts found that were made by the colonial people. For this archaeology lesson students take part in finding ceramic and charting their results.
Curated OER
Runaway Ad - Using Primary Documents
Learners examine a runaway slave advertisement. In this American history lesson plan, students investigate a missing slave advertisement run by Thomas Jefferson in 1769. Learners make inferences based on the advertisement.
Curated OER
Learning About the Civil Rights Movement Through Photographs
Students examine the racial inequality that existed in the United States before the Civil Rights Movement. After listening to song lyrics and viewing photographs, they discover the importance of the movement in helping society move...
Curated OER
What makes a Southern Colony a Southern Colony
Eighth graders answer questions put to them by the teacher that are intended to help them understand the different lives of slaves and indentured servants in colonial times. They make a list of Aristocrats and Farmers from their text...
Curated OER
Committing to Nonviolence: A Lesson from Viva La Causa
Students examine the social change movements of the American 20th century. In this nonviolence lesson, students research the work of Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Caesar Chavez. Students compare and contrast the social...
Curated OER
The First Thanksgiving
Learners research the first Thanksgiving. In this first Thanksgiving lesson plan, students research the Internet about how the first Thanksgiving came about between the Native Americans and the Pilgrims. They complete a KWL chart, and...
Curated OER
Stop the Bus: Confronting Our Assumptions About Muslims in America
Students explore Virginia Interfaith Center's A More Perfect Union "Misunderstanding" Ad Campaign, view two episodes of PBS America at a Crossroads series, examine historical context of colonialism and geo-political tensions in Middle...
Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary
Benjamin Franklin and the Long Struggle for Independence
Students explore U.S. history by reading biographical material in class. For this Benjamin Franklin lesson, students identify the life of Franklin and the events that led him to become one of America's first heroes. Students complete an...
Curated OER
Rules, Rules, Rules
Fourth graders create their classroom rules. In this Mayflower Compact lesson, 4th graders listen to the Plymouth story and learn about the Mayflower Compact. Students analyze the Mayflower Compact and create a class compact...
Curated OER
Into the Wild: Settling the South Carolina Backcountry
Eighth graders select their own plot of land in the Backcountry to settle in the 1700s in SC. Students first find a point for settlement and sketch out the best route from the Lowcountry to arrive at the point. They...
Curated OER
Happy Endings: The Final Battle
Fifth graders explore all the myths of the battle of Yorktown. A variety of primary documents are viewed and analyzed for discussion. They become aware that what one sees and hears is not always as it seems in reality. Each group...
Curated OER
Jackie Steals Home
Students read articles relating to Jackie Robinson's breaking of the racial barrier in professional baseball. This leads to a deeper exploration of racism in the United States. They use a variety of worksheets imbedded in this plan to...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Understanding the Salem Witch Trials
Students describe some of the important elements of life in Puritan New England. They create a timeline of the events of the Salem Witch Trials. They work in groups to explore the concept of multiple interpretations of history.
Curated OER
4th Grade Social Studies
In this social studies instructional activity, 4th graders answer multiple choice questions about colonies, the Revolutionary War, geography, and more. Students complete 25 questions.
Curated OER
The Cherokee: Trail Where They Cried
Students read the Trail of Tears about the Cherokee Nation removal and write a letter pretending they are the grandparent of a Cherokee child. In this Trail of Tears lesson plan, students understand the changing of boundaries.
Curated OER
Boston Spies' Report on the Redcoats
Students collect information about British actions in Boston and send it by secret message to leaders in Philadelphia.