History Commons^™

Slave Narratives Oral History Lesson Plan

Lesson plans

This unit explores the value and shortcomings of using oral histories for historic record by examining ex-slave narratives relating to Arkansas.

This lesson plan was produced for 6^th grade, 7^th grade, and 8^th grade students, but may be altered by teachers to fit other grade levels.

Women's Suffrage Lesson Plan

Lesson plans

This unit explores the Women's Suffrage Movement in Arkansas through the use of primary and secondary sources. Students will read newspaper articles and pamphlet excerpts to understand the goals and history of the movement. A list of various activities related to original primary and secondary resources allows teachers the flexibility to choose parts of this lesson plan to use and adapt as needed.

This lesson plan was produced for 6^th grade, 7^th grade, and 8^th grade students, but may be altered by teachers to fit other grade levels.

Arkansas Statehood Lesson Plan

Lesson plans

This lesson explores, through the use of primary and secondary sources, the process of Arkansas Territory becoming a state. Students will read newspaper articles and pamphlet excerpts to understand the political issues surrounding Arkansas becoming a state in 1836. A list of various activities related to original primary and secondary resources allows teachers the flexibility to choose parts of this lesson plan to use and adapt as needed.

This lesson plan was produced for 8^th grade, 9^th grade, 10^th grade, 11^th grade, and 12^th grade students, but may be altered by teachers to fit other …

Great Depression In Arkansas Lesson Plan

Lesson plans

This unit explores the effects of the Great Depression in Arkansas through the use of primary and secondary sources. A choice of activities allows teachers to adapt this lesson for various types of students.

This lesson plan was produced for 8^th grade, 9^th grade, 10^th grade, 11^th grade, and 12^th grade students, but may be altered by teachers to fit other grade levels.

German Immigration In Arkansas Lesson Plan

Lesson plans

This lesson plan will introduce students to the legacy of German immigration in Arkansas in the nineteenth century. Using primary source documents, students will explore how German immigrants came to America, what challenges they faced in Arkansas, and the subsequent impact of German culture on Arkansas.

This lesson plan was produced for 9^th grade, 10^th grade, 11^th grade, and 12^th grade students, but may be altered by teachers to fit other grade levels.

Railroad Development Lesson Plan

Lesson plans

This unit explores the development of railroads and their impact on the economic development of Arkansas through the use of primary and secondary sources. Students will read newspaper articles and pamphlet excerpts to understand how the railroads affected industry and settlement across the state. A list of various activities related to original primary and secondary resources allows teacher the flexibility to choose parts of this lesson plan to use and adapt to various types of students.

This lesson plan was produced for 7^th grade, 8^th grade, and 9th^th grade students, but may be altered by teachers to …

Reconstruction Lesson Plan

Lesson plans

This lesson plan explores the lives of various people in Arkansas and the changes their lives went through at the beginning of the Reconstruction Era, and provides images of documents, transcriptions, and online links to primary and secondary resources focusing on the changing rights, racial tensions, and the elections in 1868. Two articles about 1868 racial riots in Conway County, Arkansas, offer students the opportunity contrast varying interpretations of an event, examine how several days with additional information can change a story, and compare it to other race riots in Arkansas and around the world. Students will also examine the …

Native American Removal In Arkansas Lesson Plan

Lesson plans

This unit explores Native American removal in Arkansas through the use of primary and secondary sources. Students will read newspaper articles, manuscripts, and pamphlet excerpts to understand the story of Native American removal in Arkansas. A list of various activities related to original primary and secondary resources allows teachers the flexibility to choose parts of this lesson plan to use and adapt as needed.

This lesson plan was produced for 6^th grade, 7^th grade, and 8^th grade students, but may be altered by teachers to fit other grade levels.

Arkansas Folk Music Lesson Plan

Lesson plans

This lesson plan will introduce students to Arkansas folk music and three of its pioneers, Almeda Riddle, Jimmy Driftwood, and Patsy Montana. Through primary source analysis of recordings and sheet music students will identify characteristics of folk music, compare folk music to other styles of music, discuss the significance of the song, and consider the social and historical context of the lyrics.

This lesson plan was produced for 6^th grade, 7^th grade, 8^th grade, 9^th grade, 10^th grade, 11^th grade, and 12^th grade students, but may be altered by teachers to fit other …

World War I Lesson Plan

Lesson plans

This unit explores World War I in Arkansas through the use of primary and secondary sources. Students will read newspaper articles and pamphlet excerpts to understand the impact that World War I had on Arkansas. A list of various activities related to original primary and secondary resources allows teachers the flexibility to choose parts of this lesson plan to use, and adapt as needed.

This lesson plan was produced for 6^th grade, 7^th grade, and 8^th grade students, but may be altered by teachers to fit other grade levels.

Arkansas Settlement Lesson Plan

Lesson plans

This unit explores the factors contributing to the settlement of Arkansas and surrounding regions. Students will consider economic, social, political, and geographical elements factoring into the exploration and settlement of early American territories and the state of Arkansas.

This lesson plan was produced for 6^th grade, 7^th grade, and 8^th grade students, but may be altered by teachers to fit other grade levels.

Desegregation In Arkansas Lesson Plan

Lesson plans

This lesson explores desegregation in Arkansas through the use of primary and secondary sources. Students will read newspaper articles, manuscripts, and pamphlet excerpts to understand the story of desegregation in Arkansas. A list of various activities related to original primary and secondary resources allows teachers the flexibility to choose parts of this lesson plan to use and adapt as needed.

This lesson plan was produced for 9^th grade, 10^th grade, 11^th grade, and 12^th grade students, but may be altered by teachers to fit other grade levels.

Symbols Of Statehood Lesson Plan

Lesson plans

This unit will introduce students to the Arkansas flag and its history, and explore the concept of symbols. Students will have an opportunity to develop their own Arkansas state flag, using symbols of their choosing.

This lesson plan was produced for 5^th grade, 6^th grade, 7^th grade, and 8^th grade students, but may be altered by teachers to fit other grade levels.

Captains Of Industry And Robber Barons, David Evensen

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

As we move though our unit on the Gilded Age, we will spend time taking about the era’s Captains of Industry and Robber Barons. In this age, capitalism in the United States begins to reflect our current market economy. In this lesson we will see Captains of Industry and Robber Barons test the boundaries of that system. The emergence of men like Carnegie, Rockefeller, and Morgan and how they bring about government subsidies, labor reform, money in politics, political corruption, and larger government over-site in commerce, industry, and labor.

Native American Land Cessions, 1867-1890, David Evensen

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

As we move though our unit on the Gilded Age, we will spend time taking about the era’s Westward expansion. In this age, the United States (US) made and broke several treaties with Native Americans. In this lesson students will be able to describe and feel the impact of federal policies on indigenous nations. The surrender of Chief Joseph, the Dawes Act, the death of Sitting Bull, and the massacre at Wounded Knee all show how the United States navigated their policy with Native Americans. It is important to teach this portion of US history so students can have an …

Native American Land Cessions, 1867-1890: An Annotated Bibliography Of Selected Sources, David Evensen

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

Annotated Bibliography to accompany the Native American Land Cessions 1867-1890 lesson plan.

Rough Patches On The Railroad, Annotated Bibliography Of Selected Sources In The Gilded Age, 1877-1900, Dylan Koenig

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

Annotated bibliography to accompany Rough Patches on the Railroad lesson plan.

Inventors And Inventions Of The 19th Century, Dylan Koenig

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

As we dive deeper into the Gilded Age, the students begin to understand the idea of change in this era. The prior lesson discussing the chaos and drastic change of America, the students will understand the amount of change. Change is everywhere and is constant. Drastic upgrades with technology are sweeping across the country at a rapid pace. This causes change in industry and improves the lives of people in a general sense. Tasks that were once difficult are made easier with a new invention or an upgrade of an old one. Products that were once made manually and involved …

Rough Patches On The Railroad, Dylan Koenig

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

As we continue to dig deeper into the Gilded Age, we begin to see the importance the railroad made for the expansion of the United States. The Transcontinental Railroad was one of the America’s biggest accomplishments in all of its history. It gave companies the ability to move resources across the country in ways that were once either very difficult or impossible to do. The railroad system boosted the economy and was developing the country at a pace that would make it one of the most powerful countries in the world. As time went on, more and more expansion of …

The Election Of 1896: The Fall Of The People's Party, Olivia Lee-Benton

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

The People’s Party (also known as the Populist Party) was a short-lived political party that was a result of agrarian unrest. The party was formed on the consolidation of multiple organizations, most notably, Farmer’s Alliance and the Knights of Labor. Formally established in 1892 with the creation of the Omaha Platform , the People’s Party called for numerous resolutions, the free coinage of silver in particular. This would have made it so that both silver and gold would be used as a currency with a ratio of 16:1 (bimetallism), causing more money to be in circulation. In this lesson, we …

The Election Of 1896: The Fall Of The People's Party: An Annotated Bibliography Of Selected Resources, Olivia Lee-Benton

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

Annotated bibliography to accompany The Election of 1896: the Fall of the People's Party lesson plan.

Analyzing Populist Party Primary Documents, Cassandra Nelson

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

We will be exploring the platform of the Populist Party and the mission of the Populist Party. In order for students to understand the Populist Movement and why it was extremely popular during this time period, they must understand what the Populist Party stood for and how they were different from the other major political parties of the time. Students will have the opportunity to analyze two primary documents and compare and contrast the ideas for the Populist Party and the goals that the Populist Party wants to reach. There will also be a major focus on vocabulary for this …

The Gilded Age And Technological Innovations, Kayla Peterson

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

This lesson will include the students teaching about the technology of the Gilded Age to a classroom of middle school students. The lesson will be one week in length and is designed for an AP US History Class. This information is important for students to know because students can begin to grasp how much is different in today’s society compared to the Gilded Age. It is also important to link back how much changed during this time period with the new innovations and inventions that came about. During the lesson, I would like the students to be thinking like teachers …

Suffrage Or No Suffrage, Kayla Peterson

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

This lesson focuses on the Women’s suffrage movement, which was started during the Gilded Age (1865-1900). By studying and learning about this movement, students will begin to grasp how much was changed during and by the women who continually fought for equality and rights. In this lesson, students will learn the thoughts and thinking of the time period by analyzing primary documents from the era. By studying this information, students will, hopefully, start to really understand and and realize how different our world today would have been different if these women never stood up and fought for their rights.

Suffrage Or No Suffrage, An Annotated Bibliography Of Selected Sources, Kayla Peterson

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

Annotated bibliography to accompany the Suffrage or No Suffrage lesson plan.

The New Middle Class In The Gilded Age, Payton Pulkrabek

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

As the Carnegie’s and Rockefeller’s led the way for the wealthy and the struggling poor worked tirelessly, there was a rather large portion of individuals that did not quite fit within the two extremes of rich and poor. During the Gilded Age, many institutions were questioned for the first time in United States history, one of them being the class system. While many Americans were weary of actually placing a class system in society because of negative connotations with Europe, a class system already existed in society during the late nineteenth century, it just did not have an official title. …

The Haymarket Disaster And The Knights Of Labor, Payton Pulkrabek

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

During the Gilded Age, numerous political, social, economic, and cultural reforms were taking place all at once. One of the major reforms of the time was labor because of the problems workers and their employers had with each other. Up until the 1860s, most Americans either worked on a farm or ventured into the city to obtain an industrial position in a cut-throat factory. Life working in the factories was hard and lacked regulation. Child labor, instant job termination, low and unreliable wages, and long hours were the common job expectation. It was not until grassroots movements and labor organizations, …

The Haymarket Disaster And The Knights Of Labor, An Annotated Bibliography Of Selected Sources, Payton Pulkrabek

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

Annotated bibliography to accompany The Haymarket Disaster and the Knights of Labor lesson plan.

Independent To Imperialist -- The Spanish American War, Tom Stoffel

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

By utilizing primary sources without knowing what the outcome is supposed to be, students will “perceive events and issues as people experienced them at the time, to develop historical empathy as opposed to present-mindedness.” Students will evaluate the message Theodore Roosevelt sent to Dewey and decide if Roosevelt made the correct decision. Students will also learn key terms relating to what lead to the Spanish American War, what events happened in Cuba and debate if Yellow Journalism still occurs today. To finish the day we will cover how and if the Spanish American War changed the course of American foreign …

The Captains Of Industry, Nickolas Szymanski

Curriculum Unit on the Gilded Age in the United States

As we begin to explore the Gilded Age (1870-1900), that era in American History sandwiched between the Civil War/Reconstruction and the Progressive Era to the Great War, students will grasp how the Captains of Industry had a huge part to play in the Chaos of the late 1800s. Students will not only explore who they were and why they were important but to explain why they rose to such great power and how the government had to regulate them. This lesson will cover the three main Captains of Industry Andrew Carnegie, John Rockefeller, and JP Morgan. I will go in …