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
Immigration

Very few of us have ancestors who were not immigrants. Bring the topic of [...] »

The Progressive Era

Explore the ins and outs of turn-of-the-century labor law, business, housing [...] »

English Language Learners

Instructional strategies and resources for ELL
Summarizing and Paraphrasing
Photo, Year 3~Day 106 +77/365 AND Day 837: U.S. History, Old Shoe Woman, Flickr

Paraphrasing and summarizing exercises help ELL students improve at [...] »

Why Did It Happen? Making Claims about Cause and Effect

A shift in writing is required, often using new language tools, when making [...] »

Teaching Guides

Explore new teaching methods and approaches
The Research Paper: Developing Historical Questions

Research papers are not an archaic form of assessment. Learn how to help [...] »

Adapting Documents for the Classroom: Equity and Access

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

Concept Formation

In order to understand topics, you must first understand concepts. Learn all [...] »

Stop Action and Assess Alternatives

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

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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 [...] »

Ask a Master Teacher

Two-Year High School U.S. History Programs
Photo, Boys in classroom_1093, hoyasmeg, May 3, 2007, Flickr

What are the benefits and detriments of implementing a two-year U.S. history [...] »