The Gilded Age unit brings awareness to the turbulant changes that characterized the end of the nineteenth century. Students investigate the rise and fall of the Populist movement, the textbook's account of the Battle of Little Bighorn, the lead-up to the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, and the historic labor clashes surrounding Homestead, Haymarket, and Pullman. Three lessons--Populism and the Election of 1896, the Homestead Strike, and the Pullman Strike--help students develop the skill of close reading as they carefully go rthough documents and interpret the author's rhetorical choices.

The American Imperialism Unit covers the Spanish-American War and the War in the Philippines. The lessons approach historical inquiry from different angles: one asks students to contrast newspaper accounts of the explosion of the Maine, while a more elaborate inquiry lesson delves into the causes of the Spanish-American War. In a third lesson students examine pro- and anti-imperialism political cartoons of the period. Finally, students are asked to interpret some of the brutal actions that took place in the Philippines.

This unit explores perspectives on the central issues of the Progressive Era. Students examine the middle class reformers' attitudes towards immigrants; draw inferences about historical context by analyzing documents that relate to segregation of San Francisco schools in 1906; and question the reliability of Jacob Riis's photographs as accounts of the past. The unit includes cognitive modeling lessons - one that compares the perspectives of Booker T. Washington and W.E.B Dubois, and one that juxtaposes muckracking journalist Lincoln Steffens with political boss George Plunkitt. The Background on Woman Suffrage prepares students for the Anti-Suffragists lesson plan on why Americans opposed woman suffrage.

The World War I and 1920s unit explores political, social, and cultural tensions that gripped a rapidly modernizing America. Lessons ask historical questions about key events: Why did the U.S. enter the First World War? Why did Congress reject the League of Nations? What caused the Palmer Raids? Were those who criticized U.S. involvement in World War I anti-American? Why was Marcus Garvey a controversial figure? What was life like for Mexican and Mexican-American laborers during the 1920s? Why was the Butler Act controversial? What led to the 18th Amendment? Included is an Opening Up the Textbook lesson on the causes of the 1919 Chicago Race Riots.

Students will discuss the definition of a biography and determine what elements it contains.  Using SC DISCUS, they will research a famous person of their interest and create a web graphic organizer with key achievements and personal information from their life. Peer feedback will be given on the web creation and then an oral presentation will be given.

This module supports the content covered in School Librarians Advancing STEM Learning (SLASL), Webinar #1: Selecting Standards & Creating Learning Objectives.     MODULE #1 SLIDES: Selecting Standards & Creating Learning ObjectivesIn this module you will prepare for completing parts #1-9 of the planning template by:Evaluating collaboration best practices for your innovative project;Analyzing the role of a standard in creating a unit of learning;Applying understandings of standard components to the creation of essential questions;Examining the role of the summative assessment in guiding inquiry units; andEvaluating  student objectives for specificity and effectiveness. Follow-Up TaskI. Create Your Unit Template: Create a copy of the Unit Template, linked below, as a Google Document. You will draft your unit in your new document. When your unit is final in a few months, you will publish it into OER Commons.      UNIT TEMPLATE: Text-Based STEM Inquiry(Important note: please add Joanna Schimizzi, Letha Goger, and Gail March as able to comment on the draft unit when you set it up your Google doc. We will be there to cheer you on with feedback and support along the way!)II. Complete Sections #1-9: Prior to our next webinar (March 30th), please plan to work together to complete sections #1-9. Please stop when you have completed Sections #1-9 and do not work ahead!

Recorded webinar session from March 2, 2016, presented as a professional learning component to STEM teacher and school librarian participants of the IMLS funded School Librarians Advancing STEM Learning (#SLASL 2016) project. Webinar #1: Selecting Standards & Creating Learning Objectives.

The realities of slavery and Reconstruction hit home in poignant oral histories from the Library of Congress. In these activities, students research narratives from the Federal Writers' Project and describe the lives of former African slaves in the U.S. -- both before and after emancipation. From varied stories, students sample the breadth of individual experiences, make generalizations about the effects of slavery and Reconstruction on African Americans, and evaluate primary source documents.

For teachers in K-Grade 5 classrooms, the author of this article reviews the reading comprehension strategies known as Summarizing and Synthesizing. She provides links to web sites and to a book that will provide more background information and lessons. The article appears in the free, online magazine Beyond Weather and the Water Cycle, which focuses on the seven essential principles of climate science.

This book list contains children's books that have been screened for accuracy in depicting scientific concepts. Each book's content is briefly described and its cover pictured. The topics of the books support learning in Grades K-5 about the issue's theme. The list appears in the free, online magazine Beyond Weather and the Water Cycle, which focuses on the essential principles of climate literacy.

When designing a text-based lesson, educators must consider many factors that will impact the success of the lesson. One of the most important factors is choosing an appropriate anchor text. An anchor text is the main text that all learning stems from during the lesson or unit.

This module will support educators as they explore questions that help them analyze a proposed text.

 This lesson plan was created by Jani Randall, a sixth grade teacher at Elkhorn Public Schools in Nebraska.  The attached Remote Learning Plan is designed for Grade 6 English Language Arts students. Students will read the article and then answer a prompt using text evidence in paragraph form.  Students will read the text, and then support claims from the text with their writing.  This lesson plan addresses the following NDE Standard: NE 6.1.6IIt is expected that this lesson will take students 60 minutes to complete.

An introduction to emotional and logical appeals, using To Kill a Mockingbird and the Civil Rights Movement as context.

This nonfiction article, written for students in grades 4-5, explores the relationships between various tundra species: marsh marigolds, bot flies, and caribou. Modified versions are available for students in younger grades.

This article describes robots that are helping scientists explore the Gakkel Ridge deep below the Arctic Ocean and links to informational text about them. Versions are available for students in grades K-1, 2-3 and 4-5. Related science and literacy activities are included.

In this blended lesson supporting literacy skills, students watch video dramatizations of Percy Julian's struggles with racism and how he refused to let it limit his possibilities in life. Students develop their literacy skills as they explore an English language arts focus on understanding character. During this process, they read informational text, learn and practice vocabulary words, and explore content through videos and interactive activities. This resource is part of the Inspiring Middle School Literacy Collection.

This list of children's books recommends nonfiction titles that supplement basic information found in lessons and activities of this themed issue of the online magazine Beyond Weather and the Water Cycle. The books are grouped by topic -- water, weather and climate, and atmosphere. Each book is described by its content, reading level, and possible uses in the classroom. Covers are pictured. The online magazine is produced for elementary school teachers and is structured around the essential principles of climate sciences and climate literacy.