Lemelson Center: Tracing the Roots of America's Motion Picture Industry

Five segements from Ken Burns' documentary series Prohibition, easily accessed on the PBS website, are at the center of a terrific short unit on the roots of America's ambivalent relationship with alcohol. Engage your secondary...

This is an excellent resource for teachers to use for incorporating the motion picture Glory into the classroom! Breaking down the film into particular noteworthy and telling scenes, the guide offers important considerations for...

Students investigate how Jews established roots in America. Students determine the difference between religious tolerance and separation of church and state. Students participate in a role-play activity using primary and secondary...

Does the psychology of teams shut down open-minded thinking? According to psychologist Jonathan Haidt, the key to civility and open-minded discussion in our highly polarized society may be understanding our inherent moral roots. Haidt...

From creating simple flip books to watching Saturday morning cartoons, we have all experienced the magic of animation. But how is it that a series of still images can be brought to life? It all has to do with the speed at which our brain...

The Library of Congress provides information on Thomas Edison's profound contribution to the music industry.

Introduce class members to Presidential Medal of Freedom winner, activist, writer, and lecturer Gloria Steinem with a PBS resource that not only investigates Steinem's ancestry but also encourages learners to trace their own.

Students identify 50 States and the major geographic features, regions, and political representation of each. In connection, they investigate the causes and effects of European colonization on North America. They identify the formation...

On today's 60-Second Civics, we learn about the ancient roots of the idea of civil disobedience. This episode originally aired in November 2011.

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...