Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Homes of the West

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders read about homes in Utah over time and design models of the homes.  In this homes of the west lesson, 4th graders draw and label five homes that existed in the west. Students research each home and gather information...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

War of 1812

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders locate the major land forms and bodies of water on a map of Louisiana. In groups, they discuss the role of the Mississippi River in the Battle of New Orleans and how land and water affect the outcome of battles. To end...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

African Slaves in Haiti

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders examine how Africans were treated in the Caribbean and Haiti after reading about the Atlantic Slave Trade. From a multicultural information passage, they complete a time line on Toussiant L-Ouverture and write an obituary.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Life on Plymouth Plantation

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders research life of Plymouth Plantation and write letters about life there home. In this Plymouth life lesson, 3rd graders complete a webquest as they gather information about the journey to America on the Mayflower and the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lake Tahoe Then and Now

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students investigate the differences in Lake Tahoe from the past to the present. In this geography lesson, students read the book Washoe Seasons of Life and identify the descriptions of the land and lake. Students create a Venn diagram...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Chinese Calligraphy

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Young scholars explore Chinese calligraphy. In this art and social science lesson, students copy the Chinese character ideograms in order to create words or phrases.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders complete activities for the book The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush, by Tomie dePaola. In this literature lesson, the students read the story and summarize the main events. They look for story elements focusing on the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Exploring Folk Traditions and Folk Beliefs

For Teachers 9th
Ninth graders work together to brainstorm an idea to focus on the similiarties and differences between various cultures. Individually, they interview family members using questions they created based on their topic. They use their...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Going, Going, Ghost

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders research ghost towns. In this geography lesson, 3rd graders locate ghost towns on a map and choose one location to research. Students construct a research paper and present it to the class.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Intermediate Guided Reading Lesson Plan

For Teachers 2nd - 3rd
Students read Knots on a Counting Rope, by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault. In this guided reading lesson, students evaluate the characteristics of a realistic fiction piece. They are asked comprehension questions during and after...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What Caused the Great Depression?

For Teachers 10th
Analyze the many causes of major political, economic, and social developments during the 1920s and 1930s, with emphasis on the Great Depression. Read photographs from the 1920's and the 1930's, then write a brief explanation of what you...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Learning from the Past: A New Approach

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Young scholars research nonprofit organizations. As they research, they learn how those living in the colonial period formed community organizations to provide for the common good of their society. Each pupil chooses one organization to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Archeological Pow-Wow

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students, in groups, examine the use of artifacts and fossils to study people, plants and animals from the past.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Predicting the Past

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Learners study how archaeologists record the past. They discuss archaeology and artifacts. They view a list of artifacts discovered by Marquette at the Illinois Village and answer questions regarding them. They complete a test about...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Clothing of the Tribes

For Teachers 2nd
Second graders compare and contrast the different clothing worn by the Eastern Woodland Indian Tribe and the Plains Indian Tribe.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Mapping Constellations

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Students become familiar with constellations. In this space science lesson plan, the teacher introduces constellations by showing students the star patterns and reading myths. Students, observe the stars nightly, then choose one...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Mosaic America on Film: Fact Versus Fiction

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders define race, ethnic group, and culture. They identify the ways in which words are used in political cartoons and examine the way visual elements in a cartoon determine the meaning of words and enhance their impact. They...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

"We, the People": New Voices in the Constitutional Debates

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners study the goals set out for the Constitution. They examine the resolutions arrived at to resolve three major conflicts which arose during the writing of the Constitution. They discuss or write down a one-sentence summary of...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Child's Journey through Medicine

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Young scholars experience a variety of activities that relate to human physiology and their functions. They create graphs and charts after testing their heart rates and blood pressure They conduct a survey of the student body and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Fires and Fire Suppression

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students examine their assumptions about forest fires. They explore the conflicts involved with the forest service's new strategy. in addition, they will study one case where a prescribed natural burn had a significant impact on a later,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Flip of Life in the 13 Colonies

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders create a flip book illustrating the 13 original colonies. They study the growth and development of each of the three groups of the original colonies. They use maps to observe and interpret geographic information and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Child's Journey Through Medicine

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders identify the symptoms of asthma. In this biology instructional activity, 5th graders draw and label models of heart and lungs. They conduct a survey on asthma and construct graphs based on result.
Lesson Plan
Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media

European Explorers

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
To compare how the Spanish, French, and English approached the exploration of North America, class groups examine primary source documents and become experts on one of four explorers: Francisco Coronado, Robert LaSalle, Samuel de...
Lesson Plan
Indian Land Tenure Foundation

Tribal Origin Stories

For Teachers K - 2nd
The teacher reads and retells Californian tribal origin or creation stories that come from the traditions of a variety of California Indian tribes. Then, pupils get together in groups and retell the stories they just heard; just as...