African American history during the Jim Crow era includes encounters with poverty, racism, disrespect, and protest. Harper Lee develops all four of these themes in her famous 1960 novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. To help students understand...

Students compare their wants and needs, then read a news article about a family that downsized their home to help African villagers. In this current events and poverty in Africa lesson, the teacher introduces the article with a...

Students examine the socioeconomic conditions in Montgomery, Alabama in the late 1950's including the poverty and living condition of the blacks during this time by watching a documentary. They determine how these living conditions lead...

What makes a good life? What makes life hard? Get your class thinking about the global picture with this extensive packet. They read quotes from around the world, analyze statistical data from every continent, then read and answer...

After locating Latin American countries on a world map, children read about how microbanks are loaning money to help start small businesses. Involving both current events and economics, the teacher introduces the article with a map...

Learners will share ideas about class mobility. They create a timeline that chronicles milestones in their own lives, and synthesize their learning by writing personal essays about their class status and aspirations for the future.

U.S. immigration is the focus of a unit on social justice. Over the course of a school year, young historians read a variety of texts to learn about four waves of immigration that have occurred over time in the U.S. An emphasis on...

Prejudice? Religious intolerance? Political sedition? Class distinction? Plight of women? Voltaire satire, anyone? A literary newspaper offers an opportunity for readers of Candide to make text-to-self and text-to-world connections as...

Learners take a closer look at the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson, including the Great Society and the passage of the Voting Rights Act, through image analysis and primary source worksheets.

Students are introduced to the challenges faced by Afghanistan today as it begins the rebuilding process after years of war. They work in groups to identify the elements important to rebuilding a society. Each group assembles to...

Study the nutrition of elderly people and how it helps them to remain independent and healthy.  Learners investigative the nutrition concerns of the elderly. MyPlate, vitamine requirements and sensory changes in the elderly are...

Learners explain the history of the Social Security Act and the FICA tax. They describe what Social Security is and whom it is intended to help. They explain the purpose of the FICA tax.

Over several days, learners communicate and defend an argument regarding environmental justice issues in Chester, PA. After discussing the issue and viewing a video about the location of several toxic waste facilities in Chester, they...

Learners graph results of a survey about attitudes and tolerance in their school. They discuss the social climate of their school. Students complete a questionnaire, and tabulate the raw data from their class. They create a bar graph...

Review one of the most memorable cases in the history of the United States. After reading To Kill A Mockingbird, young scholars read and select court transcripts and other primary source material from the Scottsboro Boys Trial of 1933....

With a combination of images, maps, and valuable information, this presentation is a strong resource for a history class that is coming out of a WWII unit and into a Cold War unit. Some points are outlined for students, while others are...

Introduce your class to the often-mysterious world of Iran in this informative and engaging presentation. With political, social, and religious upheavals, Iran's recent history is a hot topic in recent news - as is its future. After this...

Consider using this worksheet, another in a series of sentence completion exercises, as the basis of a lesson on test taking or comprehension strategies, as a critical thinking exercise, or as extra practice for up-coming standardized...

 “Everything will end up okay if you believe hard enough.” “People create their own luck, good or bad.” Prior to reading Candide, class members respond to an anticipation guide that focuses on the issues of optimism, prejudice, and...

"Would a rational and well-regulated world include human suffering?" "If the plight of human suffering is the 'best of all possible worlds' do humans have freewill?" Class members develop their position on an issue raised by Candide,...

Candide is a dense text. To assist in analyzing Voltaire's satire, groups employ a cubing strategy based on Bloom's taxonomy. Complete directions for the strategy, a template for the cube, a worksheet, and a topic list are included. 

What are the trade-offs when looking to get the most benefit from an energy source? Small groups compare the cost-to-emission levels of several energy sources by looking at the information graphically. The groups utilize this...

The release of Martin Luther King, Jr. from the Birmingham jail, the Children's March, and the bombings of the Gaston Motel and the home of Reverend A.D. King's home. As part of a study of the civil rights movement, class members...

Explore identity and community through an expository essay based on The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros. This two-week unit on writing an essay provides a brief description of each day and all of the worksheets and...