While the French were once the allies of Americans, the Napoleonic Wars saw the United States almost drawn into a war with its one-time friend. Wars in Europe threatened to draw in the early republic. A primary source-based activity...

Is the Electoral College the best method of electing the president of the United States? Your young historians will write a persuasive essay discussing the historical perspective of the college, pros and cons, and a final argument...

Beginning with a thorough presentation on the concept of Manifest Destiny and background information on the Louisiana Purchase, your young historians will then consider the demands of the Lewis and Clark expedition and compose journal...

Trying to understand the vastness of outer space can be quite a challenge for young scientists. Help put things in perspective with this cross-curricular activity as students work in pairs creating scaled models of...

Look at rates from a general perspective. The 17th part of a 29-part series provides problems that help pupils develop more general ratios from given rates. Scholars determine unit rates and ratios that are associated with given rates....

If you could write your own history textbook, what would you include? Learners play the role of textbook writers by examining evidence of the Inca Empire. With primary sources from Spanish and indigenous perspectives, as well as images,...

Teach middle schoolers how to develop healthy relationships with activities and lessons designed to create a kind and inclusive classroom. Pupils create guidelines to develop a safe and civil learning environment. They learn how to...

Much of history is distasteful. Primary sources often reveal attitudes acceptable at the time that no longer are. But to understand controversial historical events, historians must examine primary sources that represent a wide variety of...

Practice responding to controversial information with the New York Times lesson provided here. Middle schoolers watch a video interview with the director of The Lost Tomb of Jesus. After reading a companion article, they identify...

Fifth graders examine excerpts from a diary of a Confederate soldier and his experiences in a Union prison camp. After receiving character cards, they write diary entries from the perspectives of their Civil War identity. As an...

Fifth graders research the viewpoints of the major Presidential candidates. Using this information, they create brochure comparing and contrasting them on important issues. They write a persuasive essay to state the importance of voting...

Students examine political cartoons to gain an understanding of the political issues that George Washington faced. In this historical perspectives lesson plan, students analyze political cartoons about the National Bank, the title...

Students explore how to become better observers, demonstrate point of view as a literary and human function, and learn an important lesson about how to explain differing perspectives in the same situation.

Students analyze the engraving of Paul Revere to make a judgment about the time period of the Boston Massacre. The objective is that one creates an account of the event from the perspective of a British soldier.

Explore how the study of diseases and epidemics can be comprehended from a mathematical perspective. Investigate finite geometric series, calculating threshold values, and statistical models of the spread of disease. How many makes it an...

This lesson kicks off with a PowerPoint presentation on Mark Twain. Learners examine the dialect, slang, viewpoint and setting. Then use e-mail to address three topics utilizing comprehension, synthesis, and evaluation skills.

Students are read, Rosie's Walk by Pat Hutchins. In this sequencing lesson, students discover the importance of knowing how to create a map and read it. They listen to the story and complete various map making activities.

Middle schoolers research different ethnic groups that lived in the United States. They compare and contrast Spanish, African American and Native American cultures and how American culture interacted with them. They present their...

Students understand that a person's perception or judgement of something or someone is greatly influenced by one's frame of reference including one's values, beliefs, experience and country.

Students examine the different characteristics of the regions of the United States. They discuss places they have visited in the U.S., and in small groups conduct research on a selected region of the U.S. Each group labels a map of...

Students map data on employment in wood products manufacturing in Oregon counties. In this Oregon forest lesson, students discover the percentage of people employed in the forest manufacturing industry. Students create a box and whisker...

Eighth graders study the famous explorer Christopher Columbus.  In this World History lesson, 8th graders analyze and compare primary and secondary sources.  Students discuss as a class the accomplishments of Columbus....

Study and research the American Civil War in this explanatory writing lesson. Middle schoolers complete six activities to learn about the American Civil War and soldiers' views of the war. The lesson includes several options to complete...

Introduce your middle schoolers to the lives of past Native Americans. First, learners work together to put photographs in a sequence. Then, using their sequence, they create stories to share with the whole class. No matter how old your...