Curated OER
Picturing History: John Singleton Copley and British Portraiture
Young scholars observe and compare 18th century British portraits with those made by John Singleton Copley. By conducting research they explore the cultural climate of the portraits in order to write a historically accurate story.
University of California
The Vietnam War (1945 – 1975)
Have you ever wanted to do something so perfectly you wound up not doing it well at all? Young historians use primary and secondary documents to analyze the United States involvement in the Vietnam War. The issues surrounding the...
Curated OER
Fur Trading
Students take on a role such as a farming community, hunting community or a trading post. They decide which products they focus on and then trade with the other groups.
Curated OER
Ancient Gold Working
Students create a sculpture inspired by the masks, pendants, or human and animal forms found in ancient Indian art of the Americas. They focus on the techniques of metalworking, especially repousse.
Curated OER
Life in Ancient Ghana, Mali, and Songhai
Students study the ancient African kingdoms of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai. They brainstorm what they know about ancient African kingdoms before investigating the trade and barter situations, and researching one of the kingdoms for an oral...
Curated OER
College Education
What do Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg have in common? They're both billionaires, and neither one has a college degree! Using the website, scholars explore whether having a college education is truly worth the money it costs. They read...
Curated OER
Cartoons for the Classroom: The Tea Party
Investigate the Tea Party Movement through this political cartoon analysis handout! Background information gives scholars the necessary context to access the cartoon, and includes the historical derivation of the Tea Party name. Three...
Curated OER
The Happy Progress of Our Affairs: George Washington and the U.S. Constitution
Learners engage in a lesson which uses Washington's own words to illustrate the events leading to the establishment of our national government, and the crucial roles he played throughout that process.
School District of Detroit
The Articles of the Confederation
Primary historical sources can be a challenge for some readers, so these seven guided-reading questions will be very useful to US History or Government classes studying The Articles of Confederation. Each question has multiple parts and...
Curated OER
Feelings
Can your beginning Spanish class express their feelings? Provide them with this practice opportunity to test both their vocabulary development and their ability to conjugate the verb according to the subject used. Great practice!...
James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words
This exercise on the Constitution requires small groups to design a visual metaphor that expresses the concept behind one of seven principles: popular sovereignty, federalism, republicanism, separation of powers, checks and balances,...
University of California
Decolonization
The ripple effect from one small event can impact many others. Young historians research the ripple effect World War II had on decolonization in the second installment of an eight-part series. Through primary and secondary documents as...
Scholastic
Voyage on the Mayflower for Grades 6–8
Imagine living in the hold of a sailing ship for 63 days, enduring rough seas and autumn storms. As part of a study of the voyage of the Mayflower, class members examine an online resource that details life about the ship, watch a slide...
National Endowment for the Humanities
How "Grand" and "Allied" Was the Grand Alliance?
Learn more about the Grand Alliance with a scaffolded lesson plan that includes four activities. Class members use primary sources to complete a map exercise, understand the goals and objectives of each individual nation, and participate...
K12 Reader
Find the Meaning: JFK's Inaugural Speech
Analyze a seminal speech from the 20th century with an activity focused on President John F. Kennedy's inaugural address. After reading an excerpt from the address, pupils use a worksheet to practice their reading...
Curated OER
Boston Tea Party
In this reading comprehension learning exercise, students read facts about the Boston Tea Party and answer comprehension questions. Students answer eight questions.
Curated OER
Corn Field Math
Middle schoolers complete problems dealing with whole numbers, fractions and percents. After exploring the history of corn and related farming vocabulary, students work in pairs to solve multi-step problems. They incorporate the use of...
Curated OER
Corn in Legend and Myth
Seventh graders compare myths and legends about corn and use creative abilities to act them out. In this corn legends lesson, 7th graders read background information about corn and its importance. Students work in groups to research...
Curated OER
Food For Keeps
Young scholars investigate the concept of food preservation. They use the internet to conduct research, specifically the methods of processing the students' favorite foods. They are introduced to the project using realia like beef jerky...
Curated OER
Paul Revere and Point of View
Students analyze the engraving of Paul Revere to make a judgment about the time period of the Boston Massacre. The objective is that one creates an account of the event from the perspective of a British soldier.
Curated OER
The "New" European Imperialism
Discuss European Imperialism using this resource. This is an online world history worksheet. Learners answer 20 questions regarding the new European Imperialism using drop-down menus to select their answers for each question. They can...
Curated OER
The War for Independence: 4th Grade
Here is a great interactive idea that may need a little refining. Students play 3 rounds, where they answer questions explaining how different countries have gained independence throughout history. While this resource has music and...
Curated OER
Multas
Combine history and Spanish instruction with an exploration of descriptions of fines given in Florida in 1790. Partners read the brief text, fill out a graphic organizer about the crimes described, and interview each other about fines....
Digital History
The Boston Massacre
What better way to get your class interested in history than to embody important historical characters and make events come to life? Stage a realistic mock trial of the British soldiers accused of murdering five Bostonians after the...