Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Assessing the Character of the Colonies: Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students read a primary source document about the rules of civility and behavior in the presence of company. Using the text, they make assumptions about how life was like in the colonies. They compare and contrast the culture of the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Patchwork Path

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders investigate slavery by reading a book with their classmates. In this abolitionist movement lesson, 4th graders read the story The Patchwork Path, and discuss the creation of the Underground Railroad. Students create...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Gather Your Own Oral History

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Students investigate the concept of oral history. They read chapter 10 of a history text that is provided through the school and the teacher should search for a text to provide the background knowledge. Students define and practice the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Day Before

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students explore the impact a major event has on people and on history as their team selects an event and publishes their own magazine to recreate the times in which such an event occurred.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

I Spy with my Little Eye…

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Learners read an article on Vienna. In this ESL lesson, students explore a recent incident between Russia and the United States, then complete several activities that reinforce the information in the article.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Waldseemuller's Map: World 1507

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Students investigate the 1507 word map. In this world geography lesson plan, students examine the details of each section of the map and then draw conclusions about how the people of 1507 understood the world. Students are evalated on...
Unit Plan
1
1
Curated OER

Unit 1: Building Historical Background Knowledge: The Road to Revolution 1754–1776

For Teachers 9th - 10th Standards
What were the conditions that led to the American Revolution? What are the conditions that lead to revolution in other times and places? Class members examine primary source materials and use evidence drawn from these documents to craft...
Website
University of North Carolina

Art History

For Students 9th - 12th
Art analysis might help uncover some of life's most puzzling questions, such as the mystery behind Mona Lisa's smile. The handout, from the Writing for Specific Fields series, is particularly useful for those interested in pursuing art...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The American Dream

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students define the American dream. In this primary research lesson, students search the Library of Congress digital collections for primary sources regarding the ideal of the American dream.  Students create presentation to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Ancient World Explorer

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students investigate the ancient structures of Mesopotamia, Egypt, India, and China. In small groups, they conduct research, evaluate their findings within the group, create visual aides, and complete an Internet treasure hunt.
Interactive
Curated OER

The First Years of the Union (1797-1809)

For Students 7th - 12th
In this online interactive history worksheet, students respond to 11 short answer and essay questions about the United States between 1797 and 1809. Students may check some of their answers on the interactive worksheet.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Horse Warriors

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students compare the Roman Empire, medieval Europe and feudal Japan. In this warrior societies lesson, students research the 3 warrior societies and share their research findings with their classmates.
Worksheet
Curated OER

IB History of the Americas Historiography: Limits of the Historical Record

For Students 9th - 12th
In this historical record worksheet, high schoolers read about analyzing primary sources and then complete the 3 listed activities to create their own historical accounts.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Sand Creek Massacre

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders study the events that occurred during the Sand Creek Massacre and write about them in their journals. They make comparisons between the events at Sand Creek and modern day human rights events.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Secrets from the Sea

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students utilize technology for research. They research the potential causes of the sinking of the Hunley.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Unionism versus Secessionism in Virginia

For Teachers 11th
Eleventh graders, in groups, analyze newspaper articles and then debate and discuss if Virginia should succeed from the Union or not.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Tackling Terror

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students discuss their fears of terrorism. In this terrorism lesson plan, students discuss the Madrid terror attacks, the history of terrorism, and share coping strategies.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Attitudes About Slavery in Franklin County, Pennsylvania

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine the historical attitudes towards slavery in Pennsylvania. They read transcriptions from two Pennsylvania newspapers and compare/contrast the county's Republican and Democratic Parties' positions on slavery.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Terrible Transformation: Freedom Denied

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students learn about the legal foundations for slavery and explore autobiographical writings of slaves. Students trace the development of laws that enforced the slave status of Africans and their descendants.
Lesson Plan
Stanford University

Sheg: Document Based History: Reading Like a Historian: Historical Thinking

For Teachers 9th - 10th Standards
[Free Registration/Login Required] This chart elaborates on the historical reading skills of sourcing, corroboration, contextualization, and close reading. In addition to questions that relate to each skill, the chart includes...
Lesson Plan
Stanford University

Sheg: Reading Like a Historian: Intro to Historical Thinking: Lunchroom Fight

For Teachers 9th - 10th Standards
[Free Registration/Login Required] A fight breaks out in the lunchroom and the principal needs to figure out who started it. But when she asks witnesses what they saw, she hears conflicting accounts. Why might these accounts differ? As...
Lesson Plan
Stanford University

Sheg: Document Based History: Reading Like a Historian: Mapping the New World

For Teachers 9th - 10th Standards
[Free Registration/Login Required] Students read primary source documents to solve a problem surrounding a historical question. This document-based inquiry lesson allows students study two 17th-century maps of Virginia and think...
Lesson Plan
Stanford University

Sheg: Document Based History: Reading Like a Historian: Stamp Act

For Teachers 9th - 10th Standards
[Free Registration/Login Required] Students solve a problem surrounding a historical question by reading primary source documents. This historical inquiry lesson allows students to engage in key aspects of historical thinking as they...
Lesson Plan
Stanford University

Sheg: Document Based History: Reading Like a Historian: Snapshot Autobiography

For Teachers 9th - 10th Standards
[Free Registration/Login Required] What is history? And why do historical accounts differ? In this lesson, students create brief autobiographies and then reflect on the process to better understand how history is written. Exploring these...