The Great Fire by Jim Murphy provides the text for a study of the Chicago fire of 1871. The plan is designed as a close reading activity so that all learners have the same background information require for writing. Richly detailed, the...

Upper graders investigate how the Seventh Day Adventists are objectors to the practice of war. The lesson covers the Civil War and examines the church's position about the practice of war. The research extends to modern wars and learners...

Artists working in different media often explore the same themes—to model how these same themes weave their way through different forms of artistic expression, scholars analyze images by Dorothea Lange, identifying key themes in her...

Students examine the facts and myths that surround the "First Thanksgiving" (the harvest celebration of 1621) at Plimoth Colony. They study the role that historians play in the collection and dissemination of history and use their...

Students examine the use of imagery to hold a reader's attention in an excerpt from John Deever's memoir "Mr. John and the Day of Knowledge". They are introduced to background information about the Ukraine and create original imagery.

Students examine the advantages of being flexible when visiting or living in a different culture. They read and discuss a first-hand account by a Peace Corps volunteer in Kazakhstan, and write a letter from the point of view of a...

Use the Peace Corps to explore a different place and different perspectives. Your class reads the personal narrative "Cross-Cultural Dialogue" by Roz Wollmering, completing an attached story frame sheet in preparation for a class...

Students identify needs within the community.  In this community service lesson, students look around their community for areas that are in need of service/assistance.  Students contact the appropriate people and set forth to...

Most of us have heard of Rosa Parks, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and Martin Luther King, Jr. But what about Claudette Colvin, Virginia Durr, Freedom Summer, or the Birmingham Children's Crusade? A five-lesson unit prompts class...

Students evaluate how important it can be to speak a language other than their own. They analyze the role language plays in bridging cultural differences and compare their reasons and see if the class can reach a consensus on the...

Fourth graders analyze Abraham Lincoln's poems "The Bear Hunt" and "My Childhood's Home" for word choice and deeper inquiry into the vocabulary he uses to convey emotion. They identify rhyming words and patterns in these poems. ...

Learners examine the importance of speaking more than one language. They read and discuss an account written by a Peace Corps teacher in Ukraine, answer discussion questions, and discuss why English is taught in Ukraine.

At the heart of this resource is a beautifully detailed PowerPoint presentation (provided in PDF form) on the overall physical geography of Australia, basic facts about the country, Aboriginal history, and Australia culture and lifestyle.

Students create their own lucky charms. For this St. Patrick's Day lesson, students discuss symbols of luck. Students make their own lucky charms out of clay.

Student discuss whether coming to the United States was good for certain groups of immigrants. Using the internet, they examine settlement patterns for immigrants over a period of time. In groups, they role play the role of a family...

Students examine the Lewis and Clark expedition. They develop skills for historical analysis. They locate a variety of geographic features encountered by the expedition, and create a timeline that documents Lewis and Clark on their journey.

Students view situations from more than their own point of view. They use the incidents in the author's story to explore the concept of crossing cultures and reflect on what it is like to feel like an outsider (in the way that the author...

Fifth graders write a first draft of an oral presentation about the American Revolution and take their work through the writing process.

Analyze the use of balanced sentences and parallelism in a narrative. Included in this resource is a narrative about serving as a Peace Corps volunteer in Kazakhstan titled, "The Train Ride Home". Middle and high schoolers review...

Eighth graders read text and view films about the Kennedy administration. In this preseidential administration lesson, 8th graders interview someone who lived during Sputnik, write summaries of lectures, and create posters demonstrating...

Students read and analyze a personal narrative written about a Peace Corps Volunteer teaching English in Guinea-Bissau, Africa. They discuss the concept of crossing cultures, analyze maps, complete worksheets, and develop a writing...

Students act as surveyors. In this George Washington lesson, students read transcriptions from Washington's surveying journal and then try surveying skills on their own.

Students appreciate the diversity of motives for immigration to the United States. They gather first person data and develop a persuasive presentation. They create a historical comparison of the motives for immigration to the community.

Third graders describe local services being provided on a tour of their town. During community-based instruction, they visit several local government buildings. Upon their return, 3rd graders document in their journals, the services...