John Cunningham Elder

This resource has students analyze the bitter "campaign" of 1800, in which Thomas Jefferson unofficially ran against sitting President John Adams. The classwork assumes that students have some familiarity and background knowledge of the election itself, provides a quick check for understanding of the election, and then invites students to rate who had better "burns" (insults) before prompting them to reflect on why the campaign was so bitter. The resource includes:An introductory Do Now / bellri

This activity has students imagine that they are stranded on a desert island, and asks them to make difficult choices about what items they would keep, and what rules and consequences they would enforce. This is designed to be a single lesson that previews some of the themes and topics they'll read about in William Golding's "The Lord of the Flies." A separate, multi-week unit plan is available for download as well.

This resource is intended as a 1-2 day analysis of sources that depict changes in American society, politics, culture and the economy as a result of the Civil War. There are numerous sources that depict these changes, and students are asked to analyze them through a variety of lenses: - New technology - Changing roles in society - New meaning of freedom - Tragedy - Large-scale death and destruction The lesson/s culminates in a written responses in which the students analyze the changes they beli

In this activity, students evaluate decisions Thomas Jefferson made as President - his decision to purchase the Louisiana Territory, his conduct during the election of 1800, his complicated and contradictory beliefs about slavery and American Indians, and as a challenge, his use of military force to combat the Barbary pirates. This classwork comes with a handy graphic organizer students can use to put themselves in Jefferson's shoes, as well as brief scenarios and background information for the

This 40-minute lesson introduces students to the Greek myth of Daedalus and his son Icarus. It is part of a 2-day lesson introducing students to Aristotle's concept of the "Golden Mean," but can be used as an independent lesson. The download includes a detailed lesson plan comprising the objective, minute by minute breakdown, and anticipated student misunderstandings, as well as the classwork itself. Due to copyright issues, I have not included the myth itself, but it is readily available for fr

As a busy school leader, it is easy to lose sight of your priorities. I've internalized the checklist mentality to create an weekly adaptable weekly organizer and tracker to help me keep all my priorities straight. The tracker includes: Days, dates & time blocksSpace and tallies for classroom observationsCoaching and 1:1 meetingsBig eventsAn end-of week reflection to inform the start of my next weekOver the years, I've adapted this to be short-hand abbreviations and codes, on the off chance I lo

This is the first lesson of a 5-7 day unit on extinction and conservation, intended for an Environmental Science or Biology class. During this unit, students will: learn about the "Big 5" mass extinctions in earth's history; compare sources and evidence about past mass extinctions and our current extinctions; determine, based on evidence and differing scientific viewpoints, whether we are currently experiencing a sixth mass extinction; analyze new and innovative approaches to species conservatio

This resource is intended as a supplementary guide to help students understand and analyze Franz Kafka's "The Metamorphosis." The guide includes: - background information about the text itself - a breakdown of basic literary structures and conventions - graphic organizers to aid students in plot summary, quote analysis and analysis of literary devices

History notebooks are incredible tools that serve multiple purposes: 1) a space to capture essential knowledge and information necessary to any thoughtful analysis of history; 2) a tool to prompt analysis, reflection and discussion; and 3) arguably the most important study guide they can have. When done well, good history notebooks connect students more deeply to the class and their own learning. This resource outlines how students can set up their notebooks for a history class. It includes dail

This resource both provides you a tool to capture your weekly planning - assignments, quizzes, tests, projects, etc. - as well as maximize transparency to your students. When used effectively, it creates clarity of expectations, increases student engagement, and ultimately improves student academic performance. This resource includes:A front and back fully completed sample (from a past 7th Grade US History unit I taught)A blank version you can completeOptions to include your school's grading sca

This resource is a helpful compilation of some basic facts, quotes and beliefs for 7 of the major founding fathers during the American Revolution. To be used as a reference guide or to assist students in completing classwork.

The Harlem Renaissance is an oft-cited but often overlooked period of American history, during which African American art and social commentary reached profound new heights, both in celebration of African and Black culture and heritage, and in direct condemnation and criticism of the bitter racism that plague both North and South. This resource asks students to examine multiple works of art created by African American artists during the Harlem Renaissance. It was situated towards the end of a un

This packet offers a wide variety of tools and helpful analysis templates to guide students in understanding Albert Camus's classic novella, "The Stranger." This novella was used in conjunction with two other texts - Henrik Ibsen's "An Enemy of the People" and Franz Kafka's "The Metamorphosis" - as well as Milos Forman's film adaptation of Ken Kesey's "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" as part of an advanced high school literature class entitled "The Individual and Society." Included in this gui

This one-day classwork provides an overview of the causes and lasting impact of Bacon's Rebellion and has students reflect on differing perspectives of the time period. The classwork is scaffolded with sentence starters, key definitions, and graphic organizers.

This is the second lesson of a 2-day mini-unit on the Golden Mean. The first lesson introduced students to the myth of Daedalus and Icarus. This lesson can be condensed by removing the section connecting the myth to the Golden Mean. This download comprises a detailed lesson plan with the objective, minute by minute breakdown and anticipated student misunderstandings, in addition to the classwork itself. Note: Due to copyright issues, the download does not include the text explaining Aristotle's

Quiz Format: - 27 multiple-choice questions (with 4 answer choices) - Includes 6 document-based questions - MC questions be easily adapted to be short answer or open response - Correct answers have been boldedThis quiz covers major topics from the Reconstruction Period of American history, which lasted from 1865 to 1877.

About this resource: This resource is intended as a 2- or 3-day lesson review to prepare students for a unit exam on the Civil War. Traditional test review gives students sample questions to respond to. While this is helpful, it doesn't ask students to think deeply about or synthesize knowledge. It also presents additional challenges - the top-performing students likely find the questions to easy or an unhelpful form of review, while other students may need more comprehensive review of topics th

This is a 5-7 day unit plan on extinction and conservation, intended for a high school Environmental Science or Biology class. During this unit, students will: learn about the "Big 5" mass extinctions in earth's history; compare sources and evidence about past mass extinctions and our current extinctions; determine, based on evidence and differing scientific viewpoints, whether we are currently experiencing a sixth mass extinction; analyze new and innovative approaches to species conservation; a

In this homework assignment, students are tasked with writing an editorial that critiques the vision for racial equality and uplift as outlined by one of the following Black intellectual leaders: Marcus Garvey, W.E.B. Du Bois, or Booker T. Washington. Students must use outside evidence to inform their editorial, and further prove that their writing is of the time period. The assignment includes a brief explanation of each leader's beliefs, as well as scaffolds to guide student drafting and writi

This resource allows students to record and review key information about the first seven Presidents of the United States. Using the format included, more Presidents can be added easily.