Lessons and Source Collections

Lesson Topics

• Pueblo Revolt of 1680: Why did the Pueblo people revolt against the Spanish?

• Labor in Colonial America: How did labor in the American colonies reflect colonial ideas about freedom?

• Religious Diversity in the Colonies: Were the American colonies religiously diverse?

• Revolutionary War: What did the "revolution" mean for different groups of Americans?

• Critics of the Constitution: Why did some Americans oppose the ratification of the U.S. Constitution?

• Women in the Early Republic: What was the role of women in early American society?

• War of 1812: How did the War of 1812 reshape American identity?

• King Kamehameha: How did King Kamehameha's leadership shape the Hawaiian islands?

• The Missouri Compromise and Abolition: How did the Missouri Compromise intensify debate over slavery?

• American Indian Removal: How did the forced removal from their land impact the lives of American Indians?

• Second Great Awakening and Reform Movements: How did the Second Great Awakening influence reform during the Antebellum period?

• Westward Expansion: How did Westward Expansion change the West?

• Tejanos and the Fight for Texan Independence: How did Tejanos contribute to the fight for Texas independence?

• Violence in Congress: Was violence in the Antebellum Congress a cause or effect of sectionalism in the United States?

• The Civil War: How did different groups of people participate in the Civil War?

• Freed People and Reconstruction: What did freed people want after claiming their freedom?

• Women and the 15th Amendment: Did the 15th Amendment propel or slow down the women’s suffrage movement?

• Tammany Hall: Was Tammany Hall good for democracy?

• Chinatowns: Why did Chinese immigrants form Chinatowns in many American cities?

• Jane Addams and Immigration: How did Jane Addams’ work at Hull House influence American attitudes and policies towards immigrants in the early 20th century?

• Liliʻuokalani: How did Queen Lili'ukalani work to preserve Hawaiian identity during a time of great change?

• The Hello Girls: Did the Hello Girls advance women’s rights?

• The Scopes Trial: What did the Scopes Trial reveal about tension between conservatism and liberalism in the 1920s?

• Critics of the New Deal: Did the New Deal go too far or not far enough?

• Japanese American Incarceration: How did Japanese Americans respond to incarceration?

• Americans and the Holocaust: How did Americans respond to the Holocaust during WWII?

• Freedom in Postwar America: Did Americans experience an expansion or contraction of freedom in the postwar era?

• Indian Occupation of Alcatraz: Was the Indian Occupation of Alcatraz successful?

• Delano Grape Strike: How did the Delano Grape Strike help advance the rights of Hispanic farm workers in the United States?

• Public Perception of the Vietnam War: How did the Vietnam War antiwar movement influence public perception of government authority?

• AIDS Crisis: How did the AIDS crisis challenge the way people thought about illness and the people impacted by it?

• Vietnamese Refugees: Why did Vietnamese refugees come to the United States?

• 9/11: How did 9/11 impact the lives of Muslim Americans?

Lesson Topics

• The Neolithic Revolution: How did the Neolithic Revolution transform human society?

• Women in Ancient Mesopotamia: What was the role of women in Ancient Mesopotamia?

• Geography of Ancient Egypt: How did geography shape Ancient Egypt?

• Religion in Medieval India: How did different religions interact in Medieval India?

• Democracy in Ancient Athens: How democratic was Ancient Athens?

• Hasmonean Dynasty: How did the Hasmonean Dynasty balance Jewish identity with the realities of power and empire?

• Christianity and the Roman Empire: Did Christianity kill or help preserve the Roman Empire?

• The Dark Ages: How “dark” were the Dark Ages?

• Byzantium: Was the Byzantine Empire more Roman, Greek, or something new?

• Golden Age of Islam: How did the discoveries and inventions from the Golden Age of Islam shape the modern world?

• Feudalism in Japan and Europe: How did feudalism in Japan compare to feudalism in Europe?

• Polynesian Navigation and Oceanic Societies: How did Polynesian navigators explore and settle the Pacific?

• The Crusades: How did the Crusades disrupt Europe and the Middle East?

• Yuan Dynasty of China: How did the Yuan Dynasty transform China?

• Mansa Musa's Pilgrimage to Mecca: How did Mansa Musa’s pilgrimage to Mecca shape the global perspective of the Mali Empire?

• Rise and Fall of the Mayans: How did the environment influence the rise and fall of the Mayan Civilization?

• The Black Death: What did the Black Death reveal about medieval European society?

• The Renaissance: Was the Renaissance truly a time of progress?

• The Dutch Golden Age: Was the 17th Century truly a “Golden Age” for the Dutch Republic?

• India and the East India Company: How did British rule through the East India Company affect Indian society and cultural identity?

• The Haitian Revolution: How did different groups around the world respond to the Haitian Revolution?

• China and the Century of Humiliation: Was the 19th century truly a “century of humiliation” in the history of China?

• Meiji Restoration and Industrialization: Did the Meiji Restoration modernize Japan or Westernize it?

• African Resistance to European Imperialism: What strategies did Africans use to resist European imperialism?

• Rubber Booms in the Amazon Rain Forest: How did rubber booms transform South America at the turn of the 20th century?

• Women in the Mexican Revolution: What role did women play in the Mexican Revolution?

• Outbreak of World War I: Was the outbreak of World War I inevitable?

• MS St. Louis: Why did countries like the United States and Cuba refuse entry to the Jewish refugees aboard the MS St. Louis?

• Decolonization in the Middle East: Did decolonization in the Middle East lead to greater independence or new forms of foreign control?

• Banana Republics: How did U.S. actions during the Cold War affect the banana republic countries like Guatemala?

• Apartheid: What role did apartheid play in shaping South Africa's national identity?

• Rwandan Genocide: How did the aftermath of the Rwandan Genocide affect the communities and individual lives of survivors?

Lesson Topics

• Topic 1.5 The Sudanic Empires: Ghana, Mali, and Songhai - How did trade influence the development of the Sudanic Empires?

• Topic 1.9 West Central Africa: The Kingdom of Kongo - How did the adoption of Christianity transform the Kingdom of Kongo?

• Topic 2.4 African Resistance on Slave Ships and Antislavery Movements - How did African resistance on slave ships influence antislavery arguments and strategy?

• Topic 2.12 Legacies of the Haitian Revolution - What was the legacy of the Haitian Revolution around the world?

• Topic 2.17 African Americans in Indigenous Territory - How did the expansion of slavery influence relationships between Black and Indigenous people?

• Topic 3.1 The Reconstruction Amendments - How did the Reconstruction Amendments redefine American citizenship?

• Topic 3.6 White Supremacist Violence and the Red Summer - How did African Americans respond to white supremacist attacks in the early twentieth century?

• Topic 3.9 Black Organizations and Institutions - How did “self-help” during Jim Crow help to grow Black organizations and institutions?

• Topic 3.13 Envisioning Africa in Harlem Renaissance Poetry - How did Harlem Renaissance poets express their relationships to Africa in their poetry?

• Topic 4.3 African Americans and the Second World War The Double V Campaign and the G.I. Bill - How did World War II impact African Americans’ pursuit of equal rights?

Lesson Topics

• McCleary v. State of Washington

• Values in a Community

• Camp Harmony

• Indian Residential Schools

• 2021 Afghan Refugee Crisis

• Vietnamese Refugees in Washington

• Long Lake Dam

• Northwest Power Act

• Apples

• Boeing’s Impact on Washington & the World

Topics and Sources

• Eminent Domain: Does eminent domain protect or endanger the public and their rights?

• Majority Rule and the Rights of Minorities: How is majority rule and the rights of minorities balanced in the United States?

• Principles in Founding Documents: How did early American papers establish principles in the United States?

• Purpose of Government: What powers does the U.S. government have to accomplish its purposes?

• The U.S. and China: How do a country’s core beliefs about freedom and authority shape who holds power in government?

• Two-Term Tradition: How did an unwritten presidential tradition shape expectations about executive power over time?

• The Civil Rights Act of 1964: How did citizen action and public pressure influence the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

• Naturalization: How has the United States decided who can become a citizen?

• Elections and Barriers to the Electorate: Who has the power to vote in a democracy?

• Tribal Government and Sovereignty In and Around the United States: How does the US government define and structure Tribal sovereignty?

• Political Parties: How do political parties shape American politics even though they are not mentioned in the Constitution?

Lesson Topics

• The Supply and Demand of Chicken Eggs in America: How do changes in supply and demand influence the price of chicken eggs in the United States?

• Pollution and Market Failures: How does pollution affect the way goods are produced and sold in a market economy?

• Redlining: How do government banking policies decide who can and can not build wealth in the United States?

• Inflation: Why does the U.S. government manage the causes and effects of inflation?

• The Amish: Culture in Economic System - How can religious beliefs, governmental structures, and customs influence exchanges of goods and services?

• Role of Government in the U.S. Economy: How has the role of government in the U.S. economy changed over time?

• Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act: How did the Smoot-Hawley Tariff impact the American economy and global trade in the 1930s?

• The War in Ukraine and Global Trade: How has the War in Ukraine affected trade around the world?

Lesson Topics

• Tex-Mex: How has cultural activity around the U.S.-Mexican Border influenced unique foods and cuisine?

• Venice: How did Venice’s unique location shape its settlement and economy?

• Conflict and Cooperation in the Amazon: How do countries cooperate and clash over the Amazon region?

• Oil in the Middle East: How has access to oil influenced economic activity in the Middle East?

• Spread of Buddhism: How did Buddhism spread through Asia and influence the cultures it encountered?

• K-pop Around the World: How did K-pop develop in South Korea and spread to different world regions?

• Global Deforestation: How have humans reacted and adapted to deforestation around the world?

• American Indian Borders and Regions: How were Indigenous borders influenced by conflict and cooperation in North America?