Class members examine two documents—The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and The Rights of Migrants in the United States—and then use reports in the media to assess how well the US is doing in ensuring these rights.

Ezell Blair, Jr., David Richmond, Franklin McCain and Joseph McNeil changed history. Their sit-in at the lunch counter of the Woolworths in Greensboro, North Carolina on February 1, 1960 became a model for the nonviolent protests that...

A role-playing scenario has middle-schoolers imagining that they are refugees forced to flee their community and integrate into a new one. Then, some play the roles of members of the new community and the class brainstorms ideas about...

For classes tackling To Kill a Mockingbird, this lesson plan sets readers up for discussions or essay writing with questions and prompts. The prompts encourage individuals to explore beyond the novel itself, looking at...

When thinking about the American whaling industry most imagine Moby Dick and Nantucket sleigh rides, harpoons and scrimshaw, whale-oil lamps and baleen in women's corsets. But it may come as a surprise that the industry was also...

Can there be peace in Cambodia? Immerse your class in a realistic negotiation setting during a riveting simulation. Learners assume the roles of key players in a group sparring with an opposing group to try to achieve peace in the midst...

Groups read primary and secondary sources detailing the ambush at Bloody Brook on September 18, 1675 and the attack on The Falls in May of 1676. After examining the results of each attack, groups reflect on the language...

Eighth graders explore the role of Jefferson Davis and his leadership of the Confederacy during the Civil War. They examine the command system used in the Confederacy and analyze the effectiveness of the command system.

A good outline to a larger project, these slides pose questions about Abraham Lincoln's views, motives, and politics surrounding the Emancipation Proclamation. The discussion questions and key points are helpful in the context of a...

Discuss South African apartheid, the anti-apartheid movement, and the literature and music it inspired. Slides contain images and facts about life in South Africa during apartheid, social uprisings such as Soweto, and the various...

A political cartoon is timely and thought-provoking. Learners analyze the symbolism found in the cartoon as it relates to current tensions between North and South Korea. Three in-depth analysis questions guide and stimulate class...

Learners read New York Times articles, letters, and listen to songs written from a soldier's perspective during the Civil War in order to understand who was fighting in the Union Army. This is a great instructional activity, complete...

Providing the details of different religious wars in 16th - 17th century Europe, this presentation includes pictures and maps to help contextualize these important events. The last slide prompts viewers to answer a question about the...

Class members compare the ways the subject of immigration is treated in The Tempest, Act I, scene ii, Act II, scene i and Act III, scene ii with patterns in American history. After tracing their own family’s journey, a series of...

Celebrate the geography of the Americas and develop map skills through a series of activities focused on the Western Hemisphere. Learners study everything from earthquakes and volcanoes of the Americas and the relationship...

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...

How are short stories from South Africa connected to issues of civil rights in the United States? A unit plan uses South African short stories to discuss issues such as apartheid, colonization, and civil rights. Questions and activities...

Perfect for a geography or world cultures lesson, the slides in this presentation cover the topography, demographics, and climate of Central America, South America, and the Caribbean. From the apex of the Andes Mountains, to the depths...

How did free and enslaved blacks work to craft freedom for themselves and their families before the Civil War? Young historians read about the life of Thomas Day, a free black man who also owned slaves and had abolitionist ties in...

As I Lay Dying is a beautiful book and a wonderful vehicle for understanding, interpreting, and comparing themes. The class reads and analyzes the novel, discusses possible interpretations, and characterizations. They compare the themes...

Here is a suitable set of slides to use when teaching about the layers of the atmosphere, climate, global winds, and types of clouds. These slides will support a few different lectures. You will probably want to replace the diagrams with...

To understand how the Homestead Act of 1862 changed the US and the lives of the people during that time, class members examine primary source materials including letters, broadsides, and images. They then assume the voice of a...

The Harlem Renaissance brought forth many American art forms including jazz, and the writings of Zora Neale Hurston and Langston Hughes. Using a carefully curated set of documents from the Library of Congress, pupils see the cultural...

It's not easy to measure the weather. Pupils learn about what all weather has in common—the atmosphere. Scholars discover how a meteorologists must be able to measure aspects of the atmosphere and decipher the data. They then create a...