History

Lesson Plans

High School Lesson Plans

Human Migration: The Story of the Cultural Landscape

This lesson will help students understand key concepts of human migration through the examination of maps and census data. They will then research and document the impact of migration on a region's cultural landscape. Students will examine migration patterns on a global and national scale as a class, and then apply that understanding to a migration story about their own community.

Was There an Industrial Revolution? New Workplace, New Technology, New Consumers

In the decades before the Civil War, a significant number of inventions and innovations appeared, transforming American life. Also of great consequence was the development of the American system of manufactures. This system, in which individual workers were responsible for only part of a finished product, helped make store-bought goods more affordable. As a result, people began to buy goods from stores rather than making them-the American consumer was born.

Impressive achievements to be sure, but revolution means dramatic, rapid change. Are the changes that took place in manufacturing and distribution during this period best described as a "revolution" or as steady change over time? What research tools can help students judge the nature of change during the First Industrial Revolution? Can answers be found in census data? This lesson provides students with the opportunity to form, revise, and research questions for an investigation of the First Industrial Revolution, using resources available on EDSITEment-reviewed Web sites and links.

The Treaty Trail: U.S.-Indian Treaty Councils in the Northwest

In this exercise, students will have the opportunity to examine artworks that are more than a century and a half old, approaching them not from an artist's perspective, but also as primary, historical documents that reveal clues about the time period during which the U.S. and Pacific Northwest Indians held their treaty councils.

African Americans: 1800-1870

This assignment uses a specific area of history-life of African Americans 1800-1870-to teach students not just the factual content of this era in history, but also how to conduct research using a variety of sources including special reference works, primary documents, and interviews with experts. The students will be guided by teachers to use area resources as well as national resources to learn about the living and working environment of both slave and free African Americans from places throughout the United States.

Developing a Gateway to the West: A Chicago Success Story

By examining the maps and census data, students gain an understanding of how various factors influence a city's development.

The Human Toll of the Civil War

This lesson uses primary sources and comparative statistics to help students understand the effects of the Civil War on the U.S. population.

Puerto Rican Women's Labor Movement

Official documents, census data, newspaper articles, and photographs from this time period in Puerto Rico's history shed light on the complicated roles women have played in Puerto Rican society. American companies and government officials recognized that working women were necessary for increased industrialization. Women's participation in these new industries provided the opportunity for them to become household breadwinners and participate in the labor movement alongside men. This participation in industry and in the labor movement, however, brought a slew of government regulations about women's health, primarily birth control and forced sterilization, often based on eugenic assumptions about the racial inferiority of Puerto Rican women.

The Kanaka Village at Fort Vancouver: Crossroads of the Columbia River

Students learn about the interaction between Native American and European cultures in the Pacific Northwest in the 1800s.

The Growth of Cities in the 19th Century

The purpose of this lesson is to introduce students to how and why the cities of the United States grew during the 19th century.

Poverty, Labor, and Liberalism

In this lesson, students recognize the distinction between liberal and conservative political views. They use household income data from the U.S. Census Bureau to gain an understanding of the economic range of households today. Students then imagine what their lives might be like given a particular income. They discuss whether their income affects their perspective as a liberal or conservative. They express their views by writing a persuasive letter on a contemporary political issue.

Interpreting Economic Indicators

Students will access US Census Bureau data from its Web site and interpret five random economic indicators. Students will then develop hypotheses as to the potential impact these indicators had on the business cycle as compared to the Gross Domestic Product statistics. Finally, students will share their conclusions with other classmates who completed research, and develop a consensus as to the business cycle the economy was in.