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
What Really Happened? Comparing Stories of the First Thanksgiving

Take a variety of perspectives into account before moving past the first [...] »

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
World Digital Library
World Digital Library home page

Use this tool to translate primary source material!

[...] »
Increasing Participation in Whole-Class Discussions

English Language Learners often have difficulty contributing to class [...] »

Teaching Guides

Explore new teaching methods and approaches
Mystery Strategy for Elementary Students

Using the premise of a mystery, elementary students act as history [...] »

Adapting Documents for the Classroom: Equity and Access

Documents are riddled with difficult vocabulary. Don't be afraid to adapt [...] »

Stop Action and Assess Alternatives

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

[...] »
Free Speech Teaching Guide 2: Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969): Defining and Arguing Hate Speech

This teaching guide includes a structured guide to explaining the case [...] »

Internationalizing History

Discover the resources you need to "globalize" your U.S. history lesson [...] »

Ask a Master Teacher

Making the Most of Maps
Offset lithograph, Map Reading Class, c. 1904-1927, NYPL Digital Gallery

Have you always wanted to use maps in your classroom, but been unsure how to [...] »