In this video from PBSLearningMedia, John Green teaches students about the beginnings of the American Revolution. John argues that the Seven Years War, which is often called the French and Indian War in the US, laid a lot of the groundwork for the Revolution. Other stuff was going on in the colonies in the 18th century that primed the people for revolution. One was the Great Awakening. The religious revival was sweeping the country, introducing new ideas about religion and how it should be practiced. At the same time, thinkers like John Locke were rethinking the relationship between rulers and the ruled. So in this highly charged atmosphere, you can just imagine what would happen if the crown started trying to exert more control over the colonies. This video can be used when teaching students about the role of essential documents in the establishment of colonial governments, including the Magna Carta, the English Bill of Rights, and the Mayflower Compact
This clip from the Smithsonian Channel discusses the Trail of Tears and how it got its name. The Indian Removal Act of 1830 resulted in the forced relocation of over 15,000 Cherokee people--a third of whom died during the journey to Oklahoma.
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This free, interactive website helps middle and high school-aged students explore the effects of the Tennessee Valley Authority during the Great Depression and New Deal Era. The website includes videos, photographs, handouts, primary resources, and more.
This lesson provides information on the impact that the Tennessee Valley Authority had on the Tennessee Valley region during the Great Depression. Lesson plans are provided on the website including introductory activities and extension activities. Lesson plan powerpoints are also available. Full-length videos are provided on the website with video response questions as well as interactive graphics for student use.
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Students will actively listen to the audio of two brief articles about the history of slavery worldwide and in the United States. Using a document that includes landmark dates, the students will use the content of those audio sources to summarize information that identifies the establishment of the slave trade and Triangular Trade routes in the Western Hemisphere as they learn about the overall history of the slave trade worldwide and in the U.S. They will cite information that they have summarized using the citation tool in a library database.
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In this lesson, the students will learn about the Boston Massacre and how this event led to the American Revolution. The students will understand that when governments are unjust, sometimes people revolt. The students will compare and contrast the two sides of the American colonists in the 1770’s, “Colonists Should Fight the British for Independence” versus “Colonists Should Not Fight the British for Independence.” In addition, the students will create a web video on one event that led to the American Revolution. This lesson is designed to integrate technology, such as WeVideo, with social studies.
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In this lesson, students analyze political cartoons and letters to the editor in order to identify the range of reactions to the Brown V. Board of Education Supreme Court decision and the ways in which the court's mandates were blocked. Students will also connect a current issue to the Brown V. Board of Education case.
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In this video from PBSLearningMedia, John Green lists a whole lot of the battles of the US Civil War in seven and a half minutes. We get a lot of requests for military history, so we offer a list of battle names, with some commentary about outcomes and lots of really interesting pictures.
**Sensitive: This resource contains material that may be sensitive for some students. Teachers should exercise discretion in evaluating whether this resource is suitable for their class.
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Join host John Green to learn about Vikings, one of our most requested subjects on Crash Course. Many of the preconceived notions you have about Vikings may not be true. They weren't simply pagan raiders striking terror into the hearts of defenseless European Christendom. They were some of the greatest travelers of their time, and they weren't always traveling to steal. In many cases, they were traveling to trade. John will teach you about Viking trade goods and Norse Mythology - and some blood, guts, and dragons for good measure.
**Contains material that may be sensitive for some students. Teachers should exercise discretion in evaluating whether this resource is suitable for their class.
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In this passage, students will learn about Greek architecture, like painting, literature, and other forms of art that reflect the ideals of the people who build it. The Parthenon is the best example of ancient Greek architecture. The structure, created between 447 B.C.E. and 432 B.C.E., tells us a lot about the Greek way of thinking.
Note: You will need to create a free account to access this resource.
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Students will create a commercial, song, poster or skit to inform others about what to do to prepare for a natural disaster. Students will complete an online activity about disaster preparedness.
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This is a collection of photographs and student activities that teach engineering skills by teaching students about the four forces of flight (drag, lift, weight, and thrust). Students are also challenged to a paper airplane test!
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In this video from PBSLearningMedia, John Green teaches students about the Cold War, which was the decades-long conflict between the USA and the USSR. The Cold War was called cold because of the lack of actual fighting, but this is inaccurate. There was plenty of fighting, from Korea to Viet Nam to Afghanistan. The Cold War started, in short, by growing out of World War II when the Soviets occupied Eastern Europe and the US-supported western Europe. This setup would spill across the world, with client states on both sides.
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Throughout 1929 daily papers reported that the future looked bright for investors -- even after the devastating market crash in October. Learn more with these primary sources, from American Experience: "The Crash of 1929."
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In this reading passage, students learn about map elements including legend, symbols, keys, and grids. Maps help people understand the world. A world map shows where places are on Earth. That map helps us see how close or far one country is from another. A road map includes streets and highways. It helps travelers figure out how to get where they want to go.
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In this lesson, students will explore the invention of the steamboat and the role it played in the economy, transportation, and culture of the lifestyles of plantation owners, yeoman farmers, slaves, and townspeople of early nineteenth-century Alabama. Students will compare and contrast steamboats, wagons, and stagecoaches as different modes of transportation for goods as well as people. Students will create a steamboat advertisement to illustrate the importance of the invention of the steamboat in Alabama.
This lesson was created in partnership with the Alabama Department of Archives and History.
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This is a WebQuest from iCivics to help students learn about four civic tactics that supporters of women's suffrage took to move the nation to ratify the 19th Amendment, which granted women the right to vote. Teachers can use this resource while teaching a lesson on women's suffrage.
You will need to create a free account in order to access some of the content on this site.
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In this video from PBSLearningMedia, the kids head to the Tribal Archives of the Poarch Band of Creek Indians to view artifacts and records that show them more about the Creek Indians and their importance in Alabama.
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Many Kentuckians turn against the war when Lincoln enlists black soldiers. There is also anger toward Lincoln because of the political and economic conditions. On April 14, 1865, Lincoln is assassinated.
This resource is part of the KET Lincoln: "I, Too, Am a Kentuckian." collection.
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Students will participate in a collaborative guessing game with another classroom from a "mystery place" somewhere on the globe through a video conference. This game helps students learn about geography, culture, and the similarities and differences of how children live all over the world. Students are to prepare questions ahead of time to help them pinpoint their location. These questions are not only focused on geography but culture as well. While honing their questioning and conversation skills each class takes turns answering questions about each other until their location has been pinpointed.
This activity was created as a result of the DLCS COS Resource Development Summit.
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In this activity, students will use De Bono’s Six Thinking Hats, a problem-solving process, to discuss and evaluate the United States’ decision to use atomic weapons on Japan during World War II. This activity will allow students to think critically about this big decision while looking at it through a multitude of perspectives. By the end of this activity, the students will come to a decision as to what they would have done if they were to make this difficult decision.
This activity was created as a result of the DLCS COS Resource Development Summit.
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Students will interpret various primary sources for reconstructing the past, including documents and photographs about dam designs. Students will gain the skills necessary for researching by locating credible and original sources, and determining if the sources are primary or secondary. Students will use technology to create a presentation, highlighting primary and secondary sources.
This unit was created as part of the ALEX Interdisciplinary Resource Development Summit.
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In this interactive game from iCivics, students take the helm of their own country and work together with others to solve international problems. Students determine the appropriate course of action in diplomacy, evaluate domestic and international interdependence, explain how countries cooperate to achieve mutual goals and manage national resources during times of international crisis. This game can be played when teaching a lesson on territorial conflicts for reinforcement or after as an assessment.
You will need to create a free account in order to access some of the content on this site.
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In this video from PBSLearningMedia, students learn about the development of a transportation system in Alabama, which first included river towns, then upland towns serving as railroad stops, and then highway towns as roads were built to connect the shortest distance between places. Politics and highway construction have gone hand in hand as elected officials made decisions about where roads would be built and how monies would be spent. President Eisenhower established the Interstate System and automobile travel became the major source of transportation for people and goods.
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John Green teaches you about one of the least funny subjects in history: slavery. John investigates when and where slavery originated, how it changed over the centuries, and how Europeans and colonists in the Americas arrived at the idea that people could own other people based on skin color.
**Sensitive: This resource contains material that may be sensitive for some students. Teachers should exercise discretion in evaluating whether this resource is suitable for their class.
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The Civil Rights Movement had a tremendous impact on Alabama. During a Civil Rights learning unit students will learn a tremendous amount regarding Alabama’s history in making progress towards racial equality. Primary sources can strengthen student understanding.
Google Expedition application, and virtual reality tools of the like, offer students an opportunity for increased comprehension by providing context to the learning content. There is a host of tours to search and engage with in order to break down the classroom walls and offer students an experience beyond the classroom. Each tour is created with background information and leveled questions for the guide/teacher.
This activity was demonstrated during the Exploring Today's Classroom (ETC) Summit.
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This collection includes photographs of places, people, and objects that might have influenced westward expansion and the development of transcontinental railroads.
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In this video from the Johnny and the Sprites episode, "The Sprites' Rules". Johnny gives the Sprites an idea of making rules so they can work functionally. However, the Sprites get carried away and find themselves dancing, singing, and humming continuously. They go back to Johnny to ask him what went wrong. The video can be played to introduce a lesson on describing how rules provide order, security, and safety in the home, school, and community. The video is 3 minutes and 32 seconds in length.
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In this video from PBSLearningMedia, students learn Native Americans used special traps to catch fish during the springtime when certain species of fish would migrate. Learn how these fish traps worked and how Native Americans utilized every part of a fish.
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The process of how a bill becomes a law can be pretty complex. As if just getting through committee isn't difficult enough, bills have to navigate a series of amendments and votes in both houses, potentially more committees, further compromise bills, and even more floor votes, just to end up on the chopping block of the President. The President can stop a bill in its tracks with a veto, but a presidential veto isn't necessarily the end of a bill's life.
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In this learning activity, students will learn the history of the United States of America Flag as a national symbol and understand the importance of the United States of America Flag. The students will watch A Brief History of the United States Flag to help identify the American Flag as a national symbol. Finally, the students will use a 3-2-1 Exit Ticket to ensure they understand the learning activity.
This activity results from the ALEX Resource Development Summit.
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In this activity, students explore the controversy surrounding the Treaty of Versailles and consider if the treaty might have caused World War II.
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This article from Khan Academy provides an overview of the scandal that brought down Richard Nixon. Students can read the article and answer the questions at the end of the article as an assessment. The article can be read in a whole group setting or individually. The article can be assigned to students through Goggle Classroom.
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This free, interactive website helps middle and high school-aged students explore Holocaust history and themes of identity and personal responsibility. Part of the larger Museum of Jewish Heritage Holocaust Curriculum website, Coming of Age During the Holocaust features first-person accounts of young people who survived the Holocaust, integrating compelling videos, narratives, and primary documents with online discussions and engaging activities.
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This week, Adriene and Jacob teach you about macroeconomics. This is the stuff of big picture economics and the major movers in the economy--taxes, monetary policy, inflation, and policy. We need this stuff because if you don't have a big picture of the economy, crashes and panic are more likely. Of course, economics is extremely complex and unpredictable. Today we'll talk about GDP as a measure of a country's economic health, the basics of economic analysis, and even a little about full employment and unemployment.
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Visit Moundville Archaeological Park in this episode of Yellowhammer History Hunt to see how the Native Americans of the Mississippian Period lived. Considered the “Big Apple” of its time period, AD 1000 to AD 1450, Moundville was an important political, economic, and religious center.