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Lesson Plan

Theodore Roosevelt: A Bully Reformer

Economics

9, 10, 11, 12

Introduction Theodore Roosevelt was the twenty-sixth president of the United States. His presidency would become the symbol of strong leadership, reform, and a square deal for Americans in the new century. When Roosevelt was...

Lesson Plan

Theodore Roosevelt and Conservation

9, 10, 11, 12

Overview In the early twentieth century, President Theodore Roosevelt was a dynamic force in a relatively new movement known as conservationism. During his presidency, Roosevelt made conservation a major part of his administration. As...

Lesson Plan

Origins of the Teddy Bear

1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Overview The term "teddy bear," used to describe a stuffed toy bear, originated in 1902 during Theodore Roosevelt's presidency. By examining the political cartoons of Clifford K. Berryman, students will learn that the teddy bear is a...

Lesson Plan

Lincoln and Presidential Power

9, 10, 11, 12

Introduction When Abraham Lincoln was elected President of the United States in 1860, his experience in politics and government included serving in the Illinois legislature and the US House of Representatives. He had also studied law...

Lesson Plan

Lincoln and Civil Liberties

Government and Civics

9, 10, 11, 12

Overview The tension between individual rights and a government’s need to preserve and protect national security during times of war has represented a constant theme throughout American history. During the John Adams administration, a...

Lesson Plan

Abraham Lincoln: A Man for All Seasons

8, 9, 10, 11, 12

Overview At one time in our country’s history we stood divided as a nation over the issue of slavery. It was Abraham Lincoln’s ideology and sense of purpose that helped to unite our country and set us on a path toward realizing the...

Lesson Plan

Women in the Great Depression: Investigating Assumptions

9, 10, 11, 12

Introduction The greatest economic calamity in the history of the United States occurred in the third decade of the twentieth century. When the stock market crashed in 1929 and the economy plummeted over the next few years, the nation...

Lesson Plan

Of Mice and Men and Migrant Farm Workers of the Great Depression

Literature

9, 10, 11, 12

Overview John Steinbeck’s famous hobos, George and Lennie, bring the migrant farm experience of the Great Depression to life in the celebrated classic of American literature, Of Mice and Men . Part of the huge grain growing industry...

Lesson Plan

Dust Bowl Stories

1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Overview Utilizing video and photos, elementary school students will synthesize some Dust Bowl experiences by creating a children's book in this multi-day activity. Background Beginning in the 1930s, drought wracked Oklahoma, Arkansas...

Lesson Plan

The 1919 Black Sox Scandal

9, 10, 11, 12

Introduction Baseball became an increasingly integral part of the American landscape in the second half of the nineteenth century and the early decades of the twentieth century. Growth of the sport occurred in conjunction with the...

Lesson Plan

The Scottsboro Trial

Government and Civics

5, 6, 7, 8

Background In 1932, times were hard for many as jobs were not easy to find and people had difficulty putting food on the table. In March of that year, nine black boys ventured out looking for work only to find themselves caught in a...

Lesson Plan

Revolutionary Propaganda: Persuasion and Colonial Support

Government and Civics, Literature

9, 10, 11, 12, 13+

Background Many students misconstrue the American Revolution as a period of unanimous support for independence from Great Britain. However, colonists generally considered themselves loyal British citizens, asserting rightful...

Lesson Plan

Colonists Divided: A Revolution and a Civil War

Government and Civics

6, 7, 8

Background The Stamp Act, the Quartering Act, the Declaratory Act, the Sugar Act, and the Tea Act were just a few of the many policies Great Britain enacted in the British North American colonies in the eighteenth century. To many...

Lesson Plan

The Boston Massacre

Art

9, 10, 11, 12

Introduction In this lesson, students will be asked to learn the disputed and agreed-upon facts of the Boston Massacre in small groups and then discuss them and propose a website definition of the Massacre as a class. This lesson...

Lesson Plan

Andrew Jackson and the Bank War

9, 10, 11, 12

Introduction When Alexander Hamilton called for a Bank of the United States in his Report on a National Bank , he envisioned a central bank that would sustain a developing national economy. The bank would, through the creation of bank...

Lesson Plan

Common Man and Contradictions: A Mock Trial of Andrew Jackson

Government and Civics

9, 10, 11, 12

Overview The election of Andrew Jackson in 1828 marked a change in American politics. For the first time a presidential candidate had been elected from west of the Appalachian Mountains, marking an end to the streak held by wealthy...

Lesson Plan

The Nullification Crisis

Government and Civics

7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13+

Background The relationship between the North and the South was tenuous when Andrew Jackson came to office in 1828. Ever since the Constitutional Convention of 1787, northerners and southerners had fought over slavery and tariffs....

Lesson Plan

Perspectives on the Trail of Tears

Government and Civics

9, 10, 11, 12

Introduction In this lesson, student groups will design and create a poster containing facts about the Trail of Tears as well as a collage and concluding statement expressing the group’s feelings about the event. Background The Trail...

Lesson Plan

TITLE IX: Striving for Gender Equity in Athletics

9, 10, 11, 12, 13+

Objectives Students will examine primary documents and secondary sources to analyze gender equity during the last quarter of the twentieth century and the first decade of the twenty-first century. Students will be able to identify the...

Lesson Plan

Baseball and Race in the United States

9, 10, 11, 12

Background On April 15, 1947, 27,000 fans packed Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, New York, to watch the Dodgers' new first baseman take to the field. They came to watch a baseball game, and they came to see a talented 28-year-old rookie,...

Lesson Plan

Bruised Egos, Battles, and Boycott: The 1980 Moscow Olympics

World History

4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

Background Politics and sports have intermingled since the inception of the Olympic Games in Greece, but not until the 1980 Olympics did people fear that politics might destroy the Olympic movement and spirit. The Union of Soviet...

Lesson Plan

Sports and Politics: Making Statements

World History

3, 4, 5

Introduction In this lesson, elementary school students will debate whether or not prominent athletes should promote political and social issues. The debate will be informed by the activism of Muhammad Ali, who resisted the drafted...

Lesson Plan

The Erie Canal and the Rise of the Market Economy

Science, Technology, Engineering and Math

9, 10, 11, 12

Objectives Students will examine primary documents and secondary sources to analyze effects of technology on economic growth in the first half of the nineteenth century. Students will be able to identify the major economic trends of...

Lesson Plan

The Battle over the Bank: Hamilton v. Jefferson

Government and Civics

6, 7, 8

Background After months of battling and compromises, the US Constitution was finally sent to Congress by the Constitutional Convention on September 17, 1787. Through the ratification process and the first decade under the new...

Lesson Plan

Banking Basics

Economics

1, 2, 3, 4

Introduction Many elementary school students are unaware of how banks make money and what causes them to fail. This lesson will provide students with a basic understanding of those two issues, linking them to the Great Depression and...

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90,976 items

Theodore Roosevelt: A Bully Reformer

Theodore Roosevelt and Conservation

Origins of the Teddy Bear

Lincoln and Presidential Power

Lincoln and Civil Liberties

Abraham Lincoln: A Man for All Seasons

Women in the Great Depression: Investigating Assumptions

Of Mice and Men and Migrant Farm Workers of the Great Depression

Dust Bowl Stories

The 1919 Black Sox Scandal

The Scottsboro Trial

Revolutionary Propaganda: Persuasion and Colonial Support

Colonists Divided: A Revolution and a Civil War

The Boston Massacre

Andrew Jackson and the Bank War

Common Man and Contradictions: A Mock Trial of Andrew Jackson

The Nullification Crisis

Perspectives on the Trail of Tears

TITLE IX: Striving for Gender Equity in Athletics

Baseball and Race in the United States

Bruised Egos, Battles, and Boycott: The 1980 Moscow Olympics

Sports and Politics: Making Statements

The Erie Canal and the Rise of the Market Economy

The Battle over the Bank: Hamilton v. Jefferson

Banking Basics

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