Welcome to Teaching Materials

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
American Tourists and the Holy Land, 1865-1900

Help students make connections between religion, technology, and [...] »

American Presidents

Analyze letters written by America's presidents to learn more about these [...] »

View All »

English Language Learners

Instructional strategies and resources for ELL
Talking History

Students shy or hesitant to speak up? Check out these tips to get students [...] »

Bracero History Archive
Bracero History Archive

Explore resources on the Bracero guest worker program from the mid-20th [...] »

View All »

Teaching Guides

Explore new teaching methods and approaches
Applying KWL Guides to Sources with Elementary Students

To engage with a source, ask, "What do I know, what do I want [...] »

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 [...] »

Truth in Transit: Crafting Meaningful Field Trips

Leave your students with intellectually and emotionally significant memories [...] »

Using Old Maps as Tools to Explore Our World

Maps show far more than how to go from point A to point B! Discover how to [...] »

Interpreting Political Cartoons in the History Classroom

Political cartoons are often conceptually complex, but offer valuable [...] »

View All »

Ask a Master Teacher

Constructivism: Actively Building Knowledge
Photoprint, Making a sandman, 1964, Ozzie Sweet, Flickr Commons

Traditional concepts of knowledge and pedagogy view the student as a "fact [...] »

Browse Questions »