Spotlight on Elementary Education

History is made by those who are unafraid to push the envelope and redefine the society in which they live. Encourage your students to examine the men and women who worked to make America what it is today with this creative activity. FIND OUT MORE »

Lesson Plan Reviews

Evaluate key elements of effective teaching Watch the INTRODUCTORY VIDEO
Transportation: Past, Present and Future

What pushes and pulls people into new ways of life? In this lesson, students [...] »

Civil War Photos: What Do You See?

Analysis of photographs of Civil War artillery broadens students [...] »

English Language Learners

Instructional strategies and resources for ELL
SQ3R: Survey, Question, Read, Review, Recite

Learn about SQ3R, a note-taking system for English Language Learners to help [...] »

Using Non-Linguistic Representations to Strengthen Historical Thinking

Discover alternatives to writing based student activities. Why not encourage [...] »

Teaching Guides

Explore new teaching methods and approaches
Incorporating 20th Century US Environmental History in the 6-12 Classroom

This guide consists of curated primary and secondary sources to help [...] »

What Is an "Inquiry Lesson"?

Hypothesize, test, and acknowledge how sources form different "pictures of [...] »

1916 Children's Code of Morality: A Guide for Pre-Service Teachers

Primary sources from the Library of Congress help students explore a [...] »

Stop Action and Assess Alternatives

Teach students to explore contingency with this great lesson plan idea.

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Historical Agency in History Book Sets (HBS)

Looking for ways to use fiction in your elementary history curriculum? Read [...] »

Ask a Master Teacher

Building Background Knowledge for English Language Learners
Photography, foreign language books at martin luther king memorial library in wa

How can we help our 5th-grade ELL students build background and make [...] »