Potato Famine From: Zinn Education Project Grade Level: HS, (College) Remote Ready: With Modifications Time: 1-2 class periods Length of Reading: Paragraphs Link: Hunger on Trial: An Activity on the Irish Potato Famine and Its meaning for Today Students are divided into 5 groups, each representing one of the following: Irish Tenant Farmers, British Landlords, British Government, Anglican Church, or the system of Colonial Capitalism. Just like "The People vs. Columbus, et al," activity, students defend their group vs charges of genocide and indicate which group they find guilty. Each group is given a paragraph of background on their group. You might consider adding your own reading assignment on the Potato Famine. < Back Next > More Information: Grade Level: HS, (College): This lesson is meant for high school students; however we think it would be well suited for college students too This Activity Involves: Secondary Source: This activity utilizes secondary sources. Group Work: This activity calls for working in pairs or groups or having a group discussion. A mural on Whiterock Road in Belfast commemorating the Irish famine. Source: Public domain.

Boston Massacre (Advanced) From: Gilder Lerhman Grade Level: HS, (College) Remote Ready: With Modifications Time: 1 Class Period Length of Reading: Pages Link: Boston Massacre This activity utilizes the Jigsaw method. Put students in groups of 5 (this number is modified from the original lesson). All students read the secondary source and view the engraving of the Boston Massacre. But each student in the group reads a different primary document. Students can re-group and discuss the primary source with others who read the same source, if necessary. Then each student goes back to their original group and explains their primary source to others who did not read it. The groups and/or the class then discuss what happened in the Boston Massacre based on the differing perspectives expressed in the sources. Gilder Lehrman resources are free but you must log in. < Back Next > More Information: Grade Level: HS, (College): This lesson is meant for high school students; however we think it would be well suited for college students too This Activity Involves: Primary Source: This activity utilizes primary sources. Secondary Source: This activity utilizes secondary sources. Group Work: This activity calls for working in pairs or groups or having a group discussion. Image: Paul Revere, The bloody massacre perpetrated in King Street Boston on March 5th 1770 by a party of the 29th Regt., Engraving, Library of Congress, 5/23/25, https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2008661777/.

Declaration of Independence From: Digital Inquiry Group Grade Level: (MS), (HS), (College) Remote Ready: With Modifications Time: 1 Class Period or Less Length of Reading : Paragraphs Link: Declaration of Independence First, students read 2 historian's (Bailyn and Zinn) interpretations on the question of weather colonial leaders were motivated by selfish or ideological reasons (this totals 4 short paragraphs). Students fill-out a worksheet. Secondly, students re-write the preamble of the Declaration of Independence in their own words. Finally, students go through the grievances listed in Declaration and categorize them as grievances that would affect only the rich and powerful or all the colonists. < Back Next > More Information: Grade Level: (MS), (HS), (College): We put these in parentheses because there is no specified age group for the activity; however, we think it would be well suited for middle school, high school, and college students This Activity Involves: Primary Source: This activity utilizes primary sources. Secondary Source: This activity utilizes secondary sources. Writing Exercise: This activity requires a writing assignment such as a discussion post, journal entry, or lengthy response to a prompt. Almost all of our activities require students to answer questions with short responses, but this icon refers to a slightly longer writing assignments. Image: Trumbull, John (painter). Illman Brothers (engravers). “The Declaration of Independence.” Library of Congress, 1876, https://lccn.loc.gov/2018645792.print. Accessed: 7.18.2020.

Was Robert E. Lee All That? From: The Atlantic Grade Level: (HS), (College) Remote Ready: Yes! Time: 1 Class Period or Less Length of Reading: Pages Link: The Myth of the Kindly General Lee Check out this article from The Atlantic debunking Lee's awesomeness and describing the Lost Cause (3 printed pages). Everyone gets 5 free articles from The Atlantic each month without a subscription. < Back Next > More Information: Grade Level: (HS), (College): There is no specified age group for this activity; however, we think it would be well suited for high school and college students This Activity Involves: Secondary Source: This activity utilizes secondary sources. Vannerson, Julian. Portrait of Gen. Robert E. Lee, officer of the Confederate Army, The Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Online Catalog. Wikimedia Commons, 22 August 2025, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Robert_Edward_Lee.jpg .

Native American Policy From: Gilder Lehrman Grade Level: MS, HS Remote Ready: With modifications Time: 1-2 class periods Length of Reading: Pages Link: Native American Policy Jigsaw with 6 primary sources documents on Native American assimilation and Indian removal. Each document is 1 page long printed. Students write summaries of docs and/or answer questions. Comparison worksheet provided. < Back Next > More Information: Grade Level: MS, HS: This lesson is meant for middle school and high school students This Activity Involves: Primary Source: This activity utilizes primary sources. Keppler, Joseph Ferdinand, Artist. Our Indian policy - a house of cards / J. Keppler. N.Y.: Published by Keppler & Schwarzmann. Photograph. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, .

Lewis and Clark's Treatment of Native Americans From: Digital Inquiry Group Grade Level: (MS), (HS), (College) Remote Ready: With modifications Time: 1-2 class periods Length of Reading: Pages Link: Lewis and Clark SAC Students read docs (5 docs, each 1 page or less) and fill out graphic organizer. "Students are [then] assigned to teams to locate evidence [within the docs] to support or refute the claim that Lewis and Clark were respectful to Native Americans." And they discuss their conclusions in groups of 4 with 2 people refuting and 2 people supporting. In the last 10 minutes of the debate all 4 group members work to build a consensus. Includes background info and slides for brief lecture. < Back Next > More Information: Grade Level: (MS), (HS), (College): We put these in parentheses because there is no specified age group for the activity; however, we think it would be well suited for middle school, high school, and college students This Activity Involves: Primary Source: This activity utilizes primary sources. Group Work: This activity calls for working in pairs or groups or having a group discussion. Image: “Captain Lewis shooting an Indian.” Library of Congress,Philadelphia: Printed for Mattheew Carey, 1810, https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2001699660/. Accessed: 8.15.2020.

Slavery From: SPLC Learning for Justice Grade Level: MS, HS, (College) Remote Ready: With Modifications Time: Depends Upon Lesson Length of Reading: Pages Link: Teaching Hard History After clicking on the link above, scroll to the "We the People" artwork and the "The American Revolution and the Constitution (1763-1787)" Heading. And then choose the Summary Objective that most interest you. Also see "Summary Objective 7" below the "Slavery in the Early Republic (1787-1808)" heading and brick flag artwork. You will be linked to a short list of wonderful online resources and their descriptions. < Back Next > More Information: Grade Level: MS, HS, (College): This lesson is meant for middle school and high school students; however, we think it would be well suited for college too This Activity Involves: Primary Source: This activity utilizes primary sources. Secondary Source: This activity utilizes secondary sources. Movie: This activity involves a clip, film, or documentary. Image: Ilkay, Captivity , File #129222009, Photo, Adobe Stock, 5/23/25, stock.adobe.com .

An Early History of Slavery (African and Indigenous) From: SPLC Learning for Justice Grade Level: MS, HS, (College) Remote Ready : With Modifications Time: Depends Upon Lesson Length of Reading: Pages Link: Teaching Hard History Framework This site features short, curated lists of wonderful online resources and their descriptions, organized by topic. Follow the link, and scroll to the ship artwork and the "Pre-Colonial and Colonial Era (to 1763)" Heading. And then choose the Summary Objective that most interests you. < Back Next > More Information: Grade Level: MS, HS, (College): This lesson is meant for middle school and high school students; however, we think it would be well suited for college too This Activity Involves: Movie: This activity involves a clip, film, or documentary. Secondary Source: This activity utilizes secondary sources. Primary Source: This activity utilizes primary sources. Image: Ilkay, Captivity , File #129222009, Photo, Adobe Stock, 5/23/25, stock.adobe.com .

Analyze a 1775 Newspaper From: History Matters Grade Level: (MS), (HS), (College) Remote Ready: With Modifications Time: 1 Class Period Length of Reading: Paragraphs Link: Analyze a Colonial Newspaper Read this 1775 newspaper article about a protest in Rhode Island during the Revolution where patriots burned British tea. What makes this resource so special is the link to five short 1-5 minute audio clips from a Smithsonian historian who is analyzing the same article. < Back Next > More Information: Grade Level: (MS), (HS), (College): We put these in parentheses because there is no specified age group for the activity; however, we think it would be well suited for middle school, high school, and college students This Activity Involves: Primary Source: This activity utilizes primary sources. The New York Gazette or the Weekly Post-Boy. New York: Printed by J. Parker and W. Weyman, September 13, 1756. The Robert Charles Lawrence Fergusson Collection. https://www.americanrevolutioninstitute.org/discover-the-collections/newspapers/ .

Examining Passenger Lists; Virginia vs New England From: Digital Inquiry Group Grade Level: (MS), (HS), (College) Remote Ready: With Modifications Time: 1 Class Period or Less Length of Reading: Paragraphs Link: Examining Passenger Lists Have students compare a list of passengers headed to Virginia with another list of people headed to New England. They fill out a graphic organizer and answer a couple of questions in pairs or groups. < Back Next > More Information: Grade Level: (MS), (HS), (College): We put these in parentheses because there is no specified age group for the activity; however, we think it would be well suited for middle school, high school, and college students This Activity Involves: Primary Source: This activity utilizes primary sources. Group Work: This activity calls for working in pairs or groups or having a group discussion. Image: Vinckeboons, Joan. Map of Atlantic Coast of North America from the Chesapeake Bay to Florida. [?, 1639] Map. https://www.loc.gov/item/2003623403/.

Slave Voyages From: Slavevoyages.org Grade Level: MS, HS, College Remote Ready: With Modifications Time: Depends upon which lesson(s) you choose Length of Reading: Paragraphs Link: slavevoyages.org Slavevoyages.org has amazing resources, including databases on the Trans-Atlantic and Intra-America slave trades, maps, images, and lesson plans. Watch the Slave Ship in 3D Video , a 4 1/2 minute film, which shows a digital recreation of a slave ship voyage. Then either: Try Researching the Transatlantic Slave Trade , a database scavenger hunt from slavevoyages.org. It acquaints your students both with the slave trade and database searching skills. OR Check out Slave Voyages Lesson Plans . Each lesson plan has an abstract you can read before downloading it. OR Check out these slave trade maps on slavevoyages.org and have students answer these questions from Cheryll Cody, featured on the AHA website . More Info, Reviews, Bookmark it to Your Profile < Back Next > More Information: Grade Level: MS, HS, College: This lesson is meant for middle school, high school, and college students This Activity Involves: Primary Source: This activity utilizes primary sources. Movie: This activity involves a clip, film, or documentary. Map Activity: This activity asks students to examine map(s) (interactive or standard). Image: Unknown, Slave Barracoon, Sierra Leone, 1840s, Drawing, Slavevoyages.org , 5/23/25, https://www.slavevoyages.org/resources/images/category/Places/34/detail .

Was Andrew Jackson a Hero or a Villain? From: Parlay Universe Grade Level: (HS), (College) Remote Ready: With minimal modifications Time: 1 class period or more Length of Reading: Pages Link: Heroes or Villians in U.S. History: Andrew Jackson Students check out two short articles and two videos. These articles are 4+ and 2 printed pages respectively. Skip the article in step 2; it's the same as in step 1. The videos are 15 min and 10 min long respectively. Then students answer questions about whether he was a hero or villain. Finally, they respond to 2 of their classmates comments. < Back Next > More Information: Grade Level: (HS), (College): There is no specified age group for this activity; however, we think it would be well suited for high school and college students This Activity Involves: Movie: This activity involves a clip, film, or documentary. Primary Source: This activity utilizes primary sources. Secondary Source: This activity utilizes secondary sources. Andrew Jackson . Photograph. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, .