In this activity, students research why countries declare their independence, the process for declaring independence, and declarations of independence in other parts of the Western Hemisphere. Students also focus their research on the United States' Declaration of Independence and how the American colonists' first began the process for their independence.
In this activity, students critically examine the Constitution of the United States including the amendment process, its relationship with slavery, and the structure of the branches of government. Click the Download PDF or DOC button to access additional resources for this activity including a speech from Benjamin Franklin, several letters from George Washington, John Jay, and Alexander Hamilton, and sections from the Constitutional Convention.
In this activity, students investigate nonviolent protests during the Civil Rights Movement. Students uncover individuals and events that led to the end of segregation and equality as citizens. Click on the Download PDF or DOC button to access additional resources.
In this activity, students investigate the factors that may have contributed to the American Revolution. Students consider social, economic, and geographical factors. Click on the Download PDF or DOC button to access additional resources.
In this activity, students explore the meaning behind memorials and monuments. Then, students design and build their own monument.
This lesson includes a video of Eugenia Phillips, a spy for the South, and object cards with different women's roles along with women's outfits from the Civil War era. Students research various women's roles from the Civil War era, research their clothing, and gather evidence regarding its importance to their role.
This is an activity guide for using the children's book: Freedom on the Menu: The Greensboro Sit-Ins, written by Carole Boston Weatherford and illustrated by Jerome LaGarrigue. This is a story about the civil rights movement told by a young girl. The activity guide includes links to audio files containing songs for students to sing together and act out the emotions they hear or feel. The guide also includes lyrics. Students can create their own "Freedom Song".
This is an activity guide using the children's book: Mr. Lincoln's Whiskers by Karen B. Winnick. The book is about a little girl who sent President Abraham Lincoln a letter asking him to grow a beard. He did--and was the first President of the United States to wear a beard. Students identify President Abraham Lincoln by his beard and top hat. After reading the story, students make their own top hat.
This is an interactive learning activity about the flag that inspired the national anthem. Students can explore various hot spots on the flag to discover the history, creation, and preservation of the flag.
In this activity, students are challenged to discover why Mrs. Pickersgill sewed the original Star-Spangled Banner so large. Students will measure and mark off the dimensions with strings and then create a "human" flag using as many students as needed. Students can research information and photos of the Star-Spangled Banner at the following link included in the activity: https://amhistory.si.edu/starspangledbanner/.
In this activity, students will be able to identify Benjamin Franklin and his inventions. Students experiment with static electricity and create a "magic picture".
This is a collection of photographs describing the changing role of women during World War II. These changing roles also changed stereotypes of gender roles and allowed women to participate in other activities.
In this activity, students investigate social, economic, and geographic influences that led to westward expansion in the United States prior to the Civil War. Students will also identify technologies and conflicts that occurred from expansion and analyze whether manifest destiny was truly achieved. Click on the download PDF or DOC button for additional resources such as song lyrics, maps, photographs, and newspaper articles.
In this lesson plan, students investigate the experiences of immigrants in the mid-nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. After reviewing evidence, they develop an argument to decide if the American Dream came true for the immigrants who came to New York. Click the Download PDF or DOC to access the following additional resources:
In this lesson plan, students investigate students' rights and the First Amendment. Click on the download PDF or DOC button to access additional resources including the following story from the Washington Post about students expelled for posting rap videos to their social media sites.
After reading the story, students analyze the actions of both the students and the school.
In this learning activity, students will research economic and social changes and expansion in the United States after World War II. Students will identify programs that had an economic impact on society such as the G.I. Bill of Rights, suburbanization, and immigration. Click on the Download PDF or DOC button for additional resources including charts, graphs, photographs, and maps.
In this lesson plan, students evaluate the human costs of consumer products (specifically sugar). Students are asked to consider any inhumane means of producing consumer goods today. Click on Download PDF or DOC button for access to additional resources including child labor charts, maps, photos, and descriptions of work on sugar plantations.
In this learning activity, students research the history of American currency. Students discuss objects that were traded or bartered before the use of coins or paper money. Students take a closer look at the symbols in the Great Seal on paper money. Students design their own currency.
In this learning activity, students explore the significance of the Statue of Liberty. Students gain a deeper understanding of the meaning of the Statue of Liberty after visiting an interactive website, viewing lithographs, and visiting the Ellis Island website. Links to these websites are included.
In this activity, students will gain a better understanding of the role of community helpers such as police officers and fire fighters. Students listen to the story: The Little Chapel That Stood by A. B. Curtiss. The link to the online reading from the author is included: http://www.abcurtiss.com/the-little-chapel-that-stood.html. A link to the reading guide is also included. Students will view a certificate given to a community helper for appreciation. Students will then design their own certificate of appreciation for a community helper.
This lesson introduces the process the class will use to design games for the remainder of the unit. The class walks through this process in a series of levels. As part of this lesson the class also briefly learns to use multi-frame animations in the Game Lab. At the end of the lesson, they have an opportunity to make improvements to the game to make it their own.
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In this multi-day lesson, the class uses the problem-solving process from Unit 1 to create a platform jumper game. After looking at a sample game, the class defines what their games will look like and uses a structured process to build them. Finally, the class reflects on how the games could be improved and implements those changes.
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The class plans and builds original games using the project guide from the previous two lessons. Working individually or in pairs, the class plans, develops, and gives feedback on the games. After incorporating the peer feedback, the class shares out the completed games.
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The class explores a variety of different teapot designs to consider how design choices are made and why. Using the teapots as an example, the class will explore the relationship between users, their needs, and the design of the objects they use.
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Using user profiles, the class explores how different users might react to a variety of products. Role-playing as a different person, each member of the class will get to experience designs through someone else's eyes.
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In small groups, the class uses the design process to come up with ideas for smart clothing. From brainstorming to identifying users, to finally proposing a design, this is the first of several opportunities in this unit to practicing designing a solution for the needs of others.
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See how a paper prototype can be used to test and get feedback on software before writing any code. To help out a developer with their idea, the class tests and provides an app prototype made of paper.
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Users have been testing an app, and they have lots of feedback for the developer. The class needs to sort through all of this feedback, identify the common themes and needs, and start revising the prototype to make it better meet the users' needs.
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Up to this point, the users that the class has considered have all been remote, and the only information from users has come through text or role-playing. Now the class will rely on each other as potential users, and pairs will get to interview each other to identify needs that could be addressed by developing an app.
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Using the interview information from the previous lesson, the class comes up with app ideas to address the needs of their users. To express those ideas and test out their effectiveness, each student creates and tests paper prototypes of their own.
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To kick off the app design project, the class organizes into teams and starts exploring app topics. Several example socially impactful apps serve as inspiration for the project.
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Dive into app development by exploring existing apps that may serve similar users. Each group identifies a handful of apps that address the same topic they are working on, using those apps to help refine the app idea they will pursue.
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Paper prototypes allow developers to quickly test ideas before investing a lot of time writing code. In this lesson, teams explore some example apps created in App Lab, using those apps to help inform the first paper prototypes of their apps.
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In this lesson, teams test out their paper prototypes with other members of the class. With one student role playing the computer, one narrating, and the rest observing, teams will get immediate feedback on their app designs which will inform the next version of their app prototypes.
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Having developed, tested, and gathered feedback on a paper prototype, teams now move to App Lab to build the next iteration of their apps. Using the drag-and-drop Design Mode, each team member builds out at least one page of their team's app, responding to feedback that was received in the previous round of testing.
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