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Voyage to Freedom - What Does It Mean?
Fifth graders investigate the Underground Railroad by creating a quilt. For this U.S. History lesson, 5th graders discuss the history of slavery through a class "word splash" and by reading an Underground Railroad map online....
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John Brown's Raid on Harper's Ferry and John Brown's Body
Fourth graders discuss John's Brown's Raid on Harper's Ferry. In this John Brown activity, 4th graders analyze a newspaper article about the raid, and write a descriptive obituary about John Brown. Students view pictures of John...
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Twain: Tom Sawyer—Mythic Adventurer
Students take a closer look at archetypes. In this characterization lesson plan, students examine the setting and the characters of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer as they read and analyze the novel. Students consider how Twain mythically...
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Lincoln Theme--Gettysburg
Fifth graders explore the significance of the Gettysburg Address. For this United States history lesson, 5th graders listen to a Gettysburg Address recording and look at photos of the battlefield. Students discuss their observations and...
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An Age of Exploration
Learners investigate U.S. history by examining North American timelines. In this American exploration lesson, students research the events that led to Columbus finding America and participate in a jeopardy game regarding his adventure....
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Early Settlements
Students embark on a journey through colonial times. In this early settlement lesson, students come to understand what life was like for the settlers in the early colonies. Students research and create projects illustrating their...
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Rockin’ the World: Rock and Roll and Social Protest in 20th Century America
Students explore protest songs. In this interdisciplinary instructional activity, students examine issues-based music by summarizing lyrics and revealing inferences, generalizations, conclusions, and points of view found in the songs.
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Underground Railroad
Fourth graders use internet cites to explore the Underground Railroad. They also learn the importance of the Emancipation Proclamation. Focus questions are included.
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The Greek Gods
What were the early Greek myths? Have elementary students examine the Persian Wars and read various Greek myth in order to identify the cause and the results of the Persian Wars. Myths, activities, simulations, and a unit plan are links...
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African-American Participation in Wars and Conflicts
Students research the enlistment of African Americans, including particular divisions and individuals, in different conflicts. They, in groups, research past American military conflicts, and report on the experience of African Americans...
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The Supreme Court
High schoolers examine the Fourteenth Amendment. In this Supreme Court lesson, students define due process and equal protection as they analyze the impact of the amendment and the Supreme Court on workers' rights in the early 20th...
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Sojourner Truth, African American Woman of the 19th Century
Students examine Sojourner Truth's philanthropist acts during her life. They discover that everyone has the right to be heard by their government. They compare and contrast the woman's movement and the anti-slavery movement.
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Writers of the 19th Century
Students are introduced to women authors during the 19th century. In groups, they read about the criticism they faced during this time period by the public and literary community. Using the internet, they research one author to...
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Constitutional Amendments And Gay Marriage
Upper graders critically examine the history and process of amending the U.S. Constitution in light of the current issue facing the courts on legalizing gay marriage. They read a variety of articles, watch news clips, and develop a...
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Constitutional Amendments and Gay Marriage
High schoolers study the legal battles involving same-sex marriage. They examine primary sources and a video regarding the 14th amendment and its implications for gay marriage. They analyze a report of a California case that was sent to...
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What Would Pink Say
Students create Venn diagrams of similarities and differences between two main characters in Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco.
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The Impact of the Cotton Gin
Fourth graders study Eli Whitney and the cotton gin. In this lesson on the cotton gin, 4th graders use primary and secondary sources to gather information about Eli Whitney, the cotton gin that he invented and how it changed the south.
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Defenders of Justice
Students research abolitionists, civil rights advocates, and their allies to learn about racism and justice. In this racism and justice instructional activity, students define justice and sing a song about activism. Students review the...
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The John Travolta Syndrome
Students examine the influence of music and film on contemporary fashion. For this popular culture lesson, students research select films featuring John Travolta. Students research selected time periods in American history as well....
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A House Divided: Slavery in the United States
Students explore the history of the United States and slavery. In this slavery lesson plan, students view primary sources, complete journal writing, view videos, and answer short answer questions.
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Checkmate: What is the History of Chess?
Young scholars create a timeline. For this history of chess lesson, students use the Internet to examine the chess history timeline. Young scholars read books on the history of chess, answer questions and create a timeline...
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Words In The News
Learners are asked to match the civil wars with the main dates they were fought. They work in groups and try to match the vocabulary with the definitions. Students work with other groups to pool their knowledge. They are told that they...
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Tracing the Route of Bracero
Students make a map showing the work of a Bracero Worker. In this Bracero lesson, students listen to a worker in an online oral history as he explains his work locations and crops. They use a map to plot the areas he worked and the crops...
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The Fact Finders
Students analyze agricultural data and make predictions about events in history. In this history lesson, students correlate the relationship between historic events and issues in agriculture to see if there is a correlation. They analyze...