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Students will show how their capital city is a combination of natural and human-designed features.
Students examine the natural and human-designed features of various capital cities, including Paris, Tenochtitlan, and Kyoto.
Students design their civilization’s capital city by choosing a name and explaining its important natural and human-made features.
Students will create symbols for their civilization’s coins.
First students research an existing country’s coins.
Then, they develop some coins of their own, including the name, denomination, designs, and the significance of those designs.
Students will learn about the study of flags, analyze existing flags, and then develop their own symbolic flag for their civilization.
First, students group existing flags into 3 – 5 categories of their choosing.
Then, they research the symbolism of a few of those flags.
Next, they design their own flag, based on one of the categories from step one.
They can develop a variant flag that is used for a specific purpose within their civilization.
Students explain how their civilization moved from a government where power was in the hands of the few to a government controlled by the people.
Students will create a new calendar for their civilization.
Students generate three questions about the modern calendar and its history to satisfy their curiosity and guide their investigation.
Students design their own calendars, creating month names and deciding how many days each month contains.
Students think about the number of days in their weeks and choose names for their weekdays based on interesting origins.
Students move their civilization from hunting and gathering to farming.
Students will develop a realistic river for their civilization.
Students pick the location and resources for their civilization.
Students will determine what makes a hero a hero.
Are those people painting the Brooklyn Bridge?
First, students watched painters working to protect the Brooklyn Bridge’s steel cables from rust and weather in 1914.
Students will judge with criteria to decide which mythological creature is the winner.
Students pick judging criteria, research the eight creatures, and decide each first-round matchup.
Students run rounds two and three, crown a champion, and explain their thinking.
Students will judge with criteria to decide which domesticated animal is the champion.
First, students work through the initial round of the tournament.
Then, they complete the remaining rounds and decide on their winner!
Students will analyze word parts with the same meaning across multiple languages.
Students investigate prefixes and suffixes in various languages using Google Translate to find opposites of English words.
Then, students note patterns and investigate how other languages make “person who” words.
After noting another round of patterns, students can pick their own word parts to investigate in the other languages.
Students sort famous structures and design one of their own.
Students will make a list of famous structures from around the world, representing all continents.
They’ll group those structures into 3 to 5 categories based on any characteristic they’d like (except location!).
Students create short labels for each group of famous structures and choose one that best represents each category.
Students choose a category and design a new structure that improves upon a famous one from the previous lesson.
Here’s a very large statue of an Egyptian Pharaoh being reassembled.
Students will judge with criteria and decide which of these eight wonders deserves to become the Eighth Wonder of the World.
First, students work through the initial round of the tournament.
Then, they complete the remaining rounds and decide on their winner!
Students will judge with criteria and determine which of these pieces of exploration technology wins the tournament.
First, students work through the initial round of the tournament.
Then, they complete the remaining rounds and decide on their winner!
Students work through a tournament to determine which of these inventions is most influential? Least useful today? Most taken-for-granted?
First, students work through the initial round of the tournament.
Then, they complete the remaining rounds and decide on their winner!
Students will analyze examples and non-examples to deduce the topic: Capital Cities.
First, students get a set of items categorized in two groups.
Students decide the correct group for three mystery items and discuss their choices with friends before the final reveal.
Finally, I reveal the topic: each example is a capital city.
Students will analyze examples and non-examples to deduce the topic: Countries vs Smaller Regions.
First, students get a set of items categorized in two groups.
Students decide where to categorize three new mystery items into groups A and B based on their own reasoning.
Finally, I reveal the topic: Countries vs Smaller Regions.
Students will research and analyze four nations in Africa, finding at least one reason why each one is not like the others.
Research Liberia, Libya, Ethiopia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo and explain why each nation is unique.
Students identify unique features of each African nation, including languages, history, and geographical characteristics, highlighting their differences.
Students will analyze examples and non-examples to deduce the topic of archipelagos.
First, students get a set of examples and non-examples to analyze.
Students decide if three given items are examples or non-examples and compare their answers with friends before the next video.
Finally, I reveal the topic.
Students will analyze graphs showing how three countries’ populations have aged over 70 years.
First, students notice changes in the age of the United States’ population from 1950 to 2020.
Next, they look at the US, Japan, and Afghanistan’s age graphs together, finding similarities and differences.
Students analyze the unique age distributions of different countries and brainstorm business ideas to meet their specific needs.
Students will compare the population of a country with that country’s total Olympic medal count and look for patterns.
Students pick 5 to 7 countries and look up the populations and counts.
Next, they calculate medals per million for each country.
Students create a bar graph to display the medals per million for various countries and identify patterns in the data.
Students will create and analyze a graph showing countries’ winter and summer Olympic medals.
Students choose several countries and predict which will perform better in summer or winter Olympic events.
Next, they find the summer and winter medal totals for each country.
Then, they create a graph and plot each country using the medal data as coordinates.
Finally, they check their predictions and then give each country an award based on their medal counts.
Students will research and analyze four microstates in Europe, finding at least one reason why each one is not like the others.
Research four European microstates and explain why each one is unique.
Students identify unique features of each European microstate, such as millionaires in Monaco and theocracy in Vatican City.
Students will analyze four US states and decide why each one is not like the others.
Research Washington, California, Florida, and Rhode Island and explain why each state is unique.
Students identify unique qualities of each state to understand how they differ from one another.
Students will analyze four mountains and determine why each is unique.
Research four mountains and explain why each one is unique.
Students identify unique features of various mountains, discussing their differences and interesting facts that set them apart.
This is probably the oldest desert on Earth. That river is its border.
Students will come up with at least one reason why each of these four countries (the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia) is not like the others.
Research the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia and explain why each country is unique.
Students will analyze examples and non-examples to deduce the topic: monarchies vs democracies.
First, students get a set of items categorized in two groups.
Students decide which items belong in group A and which ones belong in group B without any hints or guidance.
Finally, I reveal the topic: constitutional monarchies vs democracies.
Students will research and analyze US Presidents from the 19th century, finding at least one reason why each one is not like the others.
First, students will explore four 19th-century US presidents and explain how each one differs from the others in detail.
Next, students compare and contrast four U.S. presidents, noting unique facts that set each one apart from the others.
Students will research and analyze four US Presidents, finding at least one reason why each one is not like the others.
Research four twentieth-century US presidents and explain why each one is unique.
Students identify unique facts about each president that set them apart from the others in the lesson.
Students will research and analyze four 20th century, US Presidents, finding at least one reason why each one is not like the others.
Research four twentieth-century US presidents and explain why each one is unique.
Students identify unique qualities of each president to understand how they differ from one another in history.
Students will research and analyze four microstates in Europe, finding at least one reason why each one is not like the others.
Research four European microstates and explain why each one is unique.
Students identify unique features of each European microstate, such as millionaires in Monaco and theocracy in Vatican City.
Students will write at least one reason why each part of the US Federal Government is not like the others.
Research the branches of the US federal government and explain why each one is unique.
Students identify unique characteristics of each government branch and discuss the special roles they play in the system.
Students will decide which president advances in this subjective tournament.
First, students work through the initial round of the tournament.
Then, they complete the remaining rounds and decide on their winner!
Students will research and analyze four US presidents, finding at least one reason why each one is not like the others.
Research four founding-era US presidents and explain why each one is unique.
Students identify how each president is unique compared to the others based on their backgrounds and experiences.
Students explain how their civilization moved from a government where power was in the hands of the few to a government controlled by the people.
What are all of these black and white shapes?!
A packet of activities to go deep into the 13 Colonies.
Students will think from two perspectives to discuss an important decision from history.
First, students will list what they consider their historic person’s most important decisions.
Students identify the most controversial decision made by their historic figure and discuss differing opinions about that choice.
Students outline arguments for and against their historical figure’s controversial decision.
Students write a dialogue between opposing perspectives, then create a big idea both sides can accept.
A mysterious image. Reveal it slowly. Let your students wonder!
What do you notice? What do you wonder?
Students will develop an online conversation between people involved in the same event from history.
Students pick a historical figure and identify key events from that person’s life to share with the class.
Students identify additional people or groups involved in key events and summarize their opinions or involvement.
Students create a social media post that summarizes key historical events, adding comments to reflect different viewpoints and details.
Students will design an app to help a historical figure to accomplish their goals more efficiently.
Students identify a historical figure and brainstorm app ideas to help them accomplish their notable achievements.
Students design their app by creating an icon, writing a catchy title, and highlighting features that meet historical needs.