Welcome to Teaching Materials

Interpreting Political Cartoons in the History Classroom
In Teaching Guides

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
Opening Up the Textbook: Rosa Parks

The textbook is examined as one source among many, rather than a final [...] »

Civilian Conservation Corps

Examine the role of African Americans in the Civilian Conservation Corps [...] »

English Language Learners

Instructional strategies and resources for ELL
Google Translate
Screen shot, Languages supported by google translate, 1 april 2011

Looking to translate documents or text? Google Translate can help.

[...] »
The Struggle for Time: Using Persuasive Essays to Teach Elementary History

From chanting to formal essay framing—discover creative ways to frame ELL [...] »

Teaching Guides

Explore new teaching methods and approaches
Structured Academic Controversy (SAC)

Are classroom discussions about winning the argument or about understanding [...] »

Well-behaved Women [and Men] Seldom Make History

Help your elementary school students get more out of historical biographies [...] »

Document-Based Whole-Class Discussion

Classroom discussions need not be argumentative and unproductive. Discover a [...] »

Using Blogs in a History Classroom

Setting up and maintaining a blog for your classroom is easy (and typically [...] »

Adapting Documents for the Classroom: Equity and Access

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

Ask a Master Teacher

Teaching the Homebound or Hospitalized
Color print, Insurance Ad, Boy in Bed, Nickolas Muray, 1935

Teaching the homebound or hospitalized student offers a chance to explore [...] »