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
The Boston Massacre: Fact, Fiction, or Bad Memory

Help students think about where evidence for history comes from.

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Organizing History Through Images

In this lesson, students will organize photographs both chronologically and [...] »

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English Language Learners

Instructional strategies and resources for ELL
Increasing Participation in Whole-Class Discussions

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

Talking History

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

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Teaching Guides

Explore new teaching methods and approaches
Interpreting Political Cartoons in the History Classroom

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

What Is an "Inquiry Lesson"?

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

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 [...] »

Teaching with Timelines
Image, Squared Circles-Clocks, 25 Oct 2006, Leo Reynolds, Flickr CC

Construct an ongoing, shared classroom timeline in middle and elementary [...] »

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Ask a Master Teacher

Rubrics for Learning Menus
Screencap, Bringing History Home Student Learning Chart, 2 March 2012

Creating the perfect rubric is an impossible task. Creating a usable, easily [...] »

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