This Teacher Resource Guide is designed for incorporation into history and social studies curricula. It will introduce your students to some of the events and issues that shaped George Washington’s life. The activities should enhance your students’ knowledge of Washington and expand their horizons about this complex and interesting man.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan
This Lesson will help instruct the student to compare and contrast arguments/ideas by Democratic-Republicans and Federalists about the acquisition of Louisiana Purchase through the use of graphic organizers, debates, written reports and/or videos.
Material Type: Lesson Plan
In this lesson, students analyze 3 primary source documents (an editorial by Alexander Hamilton, and back-and-forth letters by Senators Rufus King and Timothy Pickering) in an effort to answer the central historical question: Why did Federalists oppose the Louisiana Purchase? The teacher models sourcing and contextualization to help students analyze the documents while the students fill in a graphic organizer. A final class discussion attempts to uncover the Federalist criticsŰŞ real motivationsŰÓwas their opposition practical or political?
Material Type: Lesson
Examples of Youth Activism in U. S. History with Links to Teaching and Learning ResourcesThe Lowell Mill Girls, 1830sThe Lowell Mill Girls Go on Strike, 1834Harriet Robinson: Lowell Mill Girl Teenage Soldiers in the Civil War, 1861-1865The Boys of War: Portraits of Children Who Served in the War The March of the Mill Children, 1903Philadephia Mill Children March Against Child Labor Exploitation, 1903, Global NonViolent Action Database, Swarthmore CollegeSee Influential Biography page on Mother Jones The American Youth Congress, 1934Background on the American Youth Congress from Eleanor Roosevelt Papers ProjectWhy I Still Believe in the Youth Congress by Eleanor Roosevelt, April 1940The Declaration of the Rights of American Youth, American Youth Congress, July 4, 1936The Little Rock Nine, 1957Little Rock School Desegregation Ruby Bridges, 1960Ruby Bridges Goes to School The Birmingham Children's Crusade, 1963How the Children of Birmingham Changed the Civil Rights Movement Tinker v. Des Moines, 1965In this case the Supreme Court ruled that school students are persons under the constitution; school officials do not possess absolute authority over their studentsSupreme Court Case Summary Students for A Democratic Society (SDS), 1960sLargest radical student organization in the 1960sLinks to Resources from SDS and other organizationsBerkeley Free Speech Movement, 1964-1965Free Speech Movement and the New American LeftClips from Decision in the Streets by Harvey Richards on YouTubeBerkeley Fight for Free Speech Fired Up Student Protest Movement School Girls Unite, 2004 to PresentBrief History of an Historic Youth-Led Campaign Dakota Access Pipeline Protests, 2016Youth Activism and the Dakota Access Pipeline, The Choices Program, Brown University Additional examples of youth activism can be found in the Democratic Teaching Section on the wiki resourcesforhistoryteachers from the College of Education, University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Material Type: Lesson Plan
This site includes documents from the Continental Congress, the Constitutional Convention and ratification debates, and the first two federal congresses. These documents record American history in the words of those who built our government.
Material Type: Reading
This lesson presents 13 documents and photos related to the 1804-6 expedition into the newly acquired Louisiana Territory. The documents include a list of Indian presents Lewis purchased, his receipts for wine and tobacco, Jefferson's letter to Madison announcing the purchase of Louisiana, and Jefferson's message to Congress communicating the discoveries of the expedition.
Material Type: Lesson Plan
Starting with the Gold Rush, Chinese migrated to California and other regions of the United States in search of work. As several photographs show, many Chinese found work in the gold mines and on the railroads. They accepted $32.50 a month to work on the Union Pacific in Wyoming in 1870 for the same job that paid white workers $52 a month. This led to deep resentment by the whites, who felt the Chinese were competing unfairly for jobs. White labor unions blamed the Chinese for lower wages and lack of jobs, and anti-Chinese feelings grew. The cartoon "You Know How It Is Yourself" expresses this sentiment. Several political cartoons in this topic are graphic representations of racism and conflicts between whites and Chinese. "Won't They Remain Here in Spite of the New Constitution?" shows a demonized figure of political corruption protecting Chinese cheap labor, dirty politicians, capital, and financiers. "The Tables Turned" shows Denis Kearney (head of the Workingman's Party of California, a union that had criticized Chinese laborers) in jail, being taunted by Chinese men. In 1880, President Rutherford B. Hayes signed the Chinese Exclusion Treaty, which placed strict limitations on the number of Chinese allowed to enter the United States and the number allowed to become naturalized citizens. In 1882, Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act, which prohibited immigration from China (The Act was not repealed until 1943). The two-part cartoon from the July-December 1882 issue of The Wasp reflects how some citizens saw the situation. After the Act was passed, anti-Chinese violence increased. One illustration depicts the Rock Springs Massacre of 1885, a Wyoming race riot in which 28 Chinese were killed by British and Swedish miners. The "Certificate of Residence" document illustrates that Chinese individuals were required to prove their residence in the United States prior to the passage of the Exclusion Act. The poster offering a reward for Wong Yuk, a Chinese man, makes it clear that the United States was actively deporting Chinese. Despite discrimination and prejudice, this first wave of immigrants established thriving communities. Photographs taken in San Francisco's Chinatown show prosperous businesses, such as the "Chinese Butcher and Grocery Shop." Wealthy merchants formed active business associations, represented by the image "Officers of the Chinese Six Companies." The Chinese celebrated their heritage by holding cultural festivals, as shown in the photograph from 1896. The photographs "Children of High Class," "Golden Gate Park," and "Chinese Passengers on Ferry" are evidence that some Chinese adopted Western-style clothing while others wore more traditional attire.
Material Type: Diagram/Illustration, Primary Source, Reading
Material Type: Unit of Study
In the United States, the nineteenth century was a time of tremendous growth and change. The new nation experienced a shift from a farming economy to an industrial one, major westward expansion, displacement of native peoples, rapid advances in technology and transportation, and a civil war. In this lesson, works of art from the nineteenth century are paired with written documents, including literary selections, a letter, and a speech. As budding historians, students can use these primary sources from the nineteenth century to reconstruct the influence of technology, geography, economics, and politics on daily life. In this lesson students will: Learn about daily life in the United States in the 1800s through visual art and literature; Understand some of the ways in which nineteenth-century life was affected by technology, geography, economics, and politics; Apply critical-thinking skills to consider the various choices artists and writers have made in depicting daily life around them; Make personal connections to the nineteenth century by placing themselves in the contexts of works of art and readings.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Assessment, Lesson Plan, Unit of Study
In this lesson, students analyze similarities and differences among depictions of slavery in "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn", Frederick Douglass' "Narrative", and nineteenth century photographs of slaves. Students formulate their analysis of the role of art and fiction, as they attempt to reliably reflect social ills, in a final essay.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan
This seventh grade annotated inquiry provides students with an opportunity to explore how words affect public opinion through an examination of Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Students will investigate historical sources related to the novel and reactions in the North and South in order to address the compelling question, “Can words lead to war?” This query takes advantage of the mixed messages students often receive about the power of words. Students’ understanding about how words can make a difference is often grounded in discussions of words used to bully, instead of the power of words to encourage reform. This is an ANNOTATED inquiry with additional information on the questions, tasks, and sources within.
Material Type: Lesson Plan
By the end of this section, you will be able to:Explain the importance of the Supreme Court's Dred Scott rulingDiscuss the principles of the Republican Party as expressed by Abraham Lincoln in 1858
Material Type: Module
Material Type: Unit of Study
This Political Cartoon, published in Harper's Weekly in October 1862, shortly after the Battle of Antietam, summarizes the idea behind the Emancipation Proclamation. In it an axe-wielding President Lincoln threatens to cut down the tree a Confederate Soldier is using as refuge. Labeled "Slavery," the tree/soldier relationship in the cartoon is meant to convey the idea that slavery in the south was supporting the Confederate war effort - note also the poor state the Southern soldier appears to be in, shoeless and ragged (one Maryland resident who observed the invading Confederate army described them as "scarecrows"). Lincoln sought to frame the Emancipation of slaves as a "fit and necessary war measure for suppressing [the] rebellion," arguing that ending slavery in the south would deprive the Confederate army of the Home Front labor support slaves provided, thus ending the war quicker. The comic is specifically about the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation (issued at the end of Sept, 1862), which was a warning to the South that if they did not cease their rebellion before January 1, 1863, he would pass the formal Emancipation Proclamation - hence the title "Lincoln's Last Warning."
Material Type: Primary Source
By the end of this section, you will be able to:Assess the strengths and weaknesses of the Confederacy and the UnionExplain the strategic importance of the Battle of Bull Run and the Battle of Shiloh
Material Type: Module
"The Civil War in Art: Teaching and Learning through Chicago Collections" is intended to help teachers and students learn about the Civil War—its causes and effects—and connect to the issues, events, and people of the era through works of art. Web resource explores the Civil War through over 120 zoomable images from Chicago collections, with text and questions for students. The site presents essays about: The Civil War and American visual culture, the causes of the war, the military experience, emancipation and the meaning of freedom, the northern homefront, Lincoln, and remembering the war. Other resources include classroom projects for teacher use, an in-depth glossary of art and historical terms, and links to additional Civil War resources.
Material Type: Diagram/Illustration, Lesson Plan, Primary Source, Reading
From Lee's Surrender to Grant to Lincoln's Assassination. Created by Sal Khan.
Material Type: Lesson
This unit has been developed to guide students and instructors in a close reading of Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address.” The activities and actions described below follow a carefully developed set of steps that assist students in increasing their familiarity and understanding of Lincoln’s speech through a series of text dependent tasks and questions that ultimately develop college and career ready skills identified in the Common Core State Standards.
Material Type: Lecture, Lesson Plan, Reading
Students will examine an image of civilians affected by the Vietnam War. They will research and discuss the reasons the Vietnam War began, why America became involved, and what some of the long-term effects of this war have been
Material Type: Diagram/Illustration, Lesson Plan
Eighth grade students in Michigan continue their study of United States History from the development of the Constitution through Reconstruction. Geographic, civics/government, and economics content is integrated within the historical context. Students should understand the relevancy and connections of this history to their lives. Students will use significant content knowledge, research, and inquiry to analyze issues. They develop reasoned arguments and write a persuasive civic essay addressing issues from the past within a historical context.
Material Type: Textbook
