magnifier
Teach PA History
magbottom
 
Lesson Plans For Teachers
30 results

…But What Does It Mean? Symbolism in Artwork
Grade Level: Elementary School
Discipline: Arts and Humanities; Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; History
Historical Period: New Nation - 1761-1800; Expansion and Reform - 1801-1855

In this elementary-level lesson, students will learn about the importance of symbolism and prior knowledge in the interpretation of artwork. After defining symbolism and seeing a simple example, students will analyze and identify symbols in The Artist in His Museum, 1822, a self-portrait created by Charles Willson Peale in 1822. They will then be given additional factual information about Peale's life and be asked to revisit their initial perceptions and confirm or revise their thoughts. Finally, students will be asked to create their own self-portrait using appropriate use of symbols and present their work to the class.

"The Greatest Show on Earth: Then and Now"
Grade Level: Elementary School
Discipline: Arts and Humanities; Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; History
Historical Period: New Nation - 1761-1800; Contemporary Pennsylvania - 1975 to Present

In this elementary-level lesson, students discover the beginnings of the colorful entertainment of the circus in the United States. They recall their own experiences at or impressions of the circus and compare them to the first circus in our nation–John Bill Ricketts" circus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on April 3, 1793. Students explore interesting primary sources about the first days of the circus, including a diary entry of George Washington which provides historical evidence of his attendance at a show and an audio clip of the type of music played during Ricketts" circus performances. As a final activity, students create a circus advertisement poster reflecting their understanding of the early circus.

"The Scientist and The Prince: Two Interesting Early Pennsylvania Immigrants
Grade Level: High School
Discipline: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; Geography; History
Historical Period: New Nation - 1761-1800

During the early years of our new nation, Pennsylvanians welcomed a number of interesting, famous and unusual immigrants into their new state. The famous, infamous and intriguing came to live, set up religious communities, create fortunes and have political influence. This lesson is a brief look at two of the most influential and eccentric of these early immigrants: Prince Demetrius Gallitzin and enlightenment scientist Joseph Priestley.

150 Years of Abolition in Pennsylvania
Grade Level: High School
Discipline: Arts and Humanities; Civics and Government; History
Historical Period: Colonization and Settlement - 1601-1760; New Nation - 1761-1800; Expansion and Reform - 1801-1855

In 1688 Pennsylvania Quakers were credited with making the first formal protest against slavery. However, support for abolition in Pennsylvania was not universally strong over the next 150 years. In this lesson, students will trace the struggle for abolition from the original Quaker request to the burning of Pennsylvania Hall.

Abolish the Office of Governor
Grade Level: High School
Discipline: Civics and Government; Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; History
Historical Period: New Nation - 1761-1800

As the democratic ideology inspired by the American Revolution was taking hold in the colonies, Pennsylvania governance was undergoing a revolution of its own, resulting in the Constitution of 1776. In this lesson, students do a close reading of a historical document, consider how democratic the Pennsylvania Constitution of 1776 was in scope, and write a persuasive essay from the point of view of a historic figure.

The Battle of Brandywine
Grade Level: Middle School
Discipline: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; Geography; History
Historical Period: New Nation - 1761-1800

One of the most important aspects of any battle is the "battle plan", or the strategy used to position the troops for the most effective defense or attack. In this lesson, students will analyze and evaluate the Battle of Brandywine by simulating Phase I of the battle and then predicting the outcome. First, students will construct a scale model of the battlefield and then role-play the actions of the Patriots and the British. They will further analyze both the short-term and long-term results of the battle.

Bushy Run: A decisive battle of Pontiac's Rebellion
Grade Level: Middle School
Discipline: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; Geography; History
Historical Period: New Nation - 1761-1800

Colonel Bouquet led 460 men out of Carlisle to raise the siege of Fort Pitt. Students trace his route from Carlisle to Fort Pitt and will re-live what happened near Bushy Run on August 4th and 5th that changed the course of Pontiac's Rebellion. They will analyze Thomas Hutchins' 1765 map of the Bushy Run battle scene and letters from Bouquet to Amherst, and a modern topographic map.

The Conestoga Wagon
Grade Level: Elementary School
Discipline: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; Geography; History
Historical Period: New Nation - 1761-1800; Expansion and Reform - 1801-1855

Students will research the Conestoga wagon to understand how this invention provided a better means of transporting goods and supplies to markets in the east and west. They will trace wagon routes, interpreting journal entries to learn about the traveler and their interactions with places along the way. Research will include analyzing a photo and artifact related to the Conestoga wagon, cargo carried by wagons, and documents related to travel.

Cornplanter and the Fate of His Land
Grade Level: Middle School
Discipline: Arts and Humanities; Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; Geography; History
Historical Period: Colonization and Settlement - 1601-1760; New Nation - 1761-1800; Post-WWII Pennsylvania - 1946-1974; Contemporary Pennsylvania - 1975 to Present

In this middle-level lesson students will learn about the famous Seneca chief Cornplanter and the tract of land which he was granted "in perpetuity" as a gift from the United States government for his helpful negotiation skills. 10,000 acres of this land was flooded when the Kinzua Dam was created in the 1960s as a flood control measure. As a class, students will use primary source material and logical argument to debate this controversial land/water rights issue from the perspective of both the United States Government and the Seneca.

Crossing the Delaware: A Visual Myth or Reality?
Grade Level: Middle School
Discipline: Arts and Humanities; Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; History
Historical Period: New Nation - 1761-1800

Emanuel Leutze's painting, Washington Crossing the Delaware, will be analyzed for its historical inaccuracies in this middle-school-level lesson. Emanuel Leutze's painting, Washington Crossing the Delaware, is a well-known portrayal of the event during the American Revolution in Pennsylvania. The daring, famous maneuver directed by General Washington in 1776 was painted by Leutze in 1851. While Leutze's painting remains a symbol of the American spirit, it does contain several historical inaccuracies. Students will analyze the painting then compare the accuracy of the painting to a textbook description of the event of Washington's crossing. Students will demonstrate their analysis of the event and the painting by developing a persuasive argument supporting or opposing the public display of the Leutze's painting in the school.

Daily Life in Pennsylvania's Historic Cloistered Religious Communities
Grade Level: Middle School
Discipline: History
Historical Period: Colonization and Settlement - 1601-1760; New Nation - 1761-1800; Expansion and Reform - 1801-1855

Students will look at daily life in three religious communities in Pennsylvania that flourished in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries: the Ephrata Cloister, Bethlehem, and Harmony. They will examine primary sources such as Conrad Beissel's Rules of the Solitary Life, three memoirs written by Moravian women, the 1766 town plan of Bethlehem, plus the Articles of Association of the Harmonists as well as written reports on the Harmonist Society by members of the community and visitors. Through an examination of daily life in these communities we learn that William Penn's "Holy Experiment" had taken hold in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The lure of religious freedom initially attracted dissidents who were able to follow their dream by creating their own religious settlements.

The Decisive Victory: Philadelphia and the Winning of the War for American Independence
Grade Level: High School
Discipline: Arts and Humanities; History
Historical Period: New Nation - 1761-1800

A major turning point in the American Revolution was Washington's victory at Philadelphia in 1776 and 1777. His military skill set him apart as the first great leader of the new nation. The courage and determination of his men was decisive in securing the young country's independence. In this lesson, students will use a variety of primary sources to explore key individuals and events in the Philadelphia Campaign.

Digging, Smelting and Forging: But Why in Pennsylvania?
Grade Level: Middle School
Discipline: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; Geography; History; Science and Technology
Historical Period: Colonization and Settlement - 1601-1760; New Nation - 1761-1800; Expansion and Reform - 1801-1855; Civil War and Reconstruction - 1856-1876

This middle-school lesson plan will use images, natural resource maps, and a blast furnace computer animation to answer the question posed in the lesson title. Students will learn about the natural resources needed to make iron, the process of smelting iron, as well as several economic factors (population, transportation) influencing the development and growth of the iron industry in Pennsylvania.

Edible Coal Mining
Grade Level: Middle School
Discipline: Ecology and Environment; Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; Geography; History; Science and Technology
Historical Period: New Nation - 1761-1800; Expansion and Reform - 1801-1855; Civil War and Reconstruction - 1856-1876; Development of the Industrial Pennsylvania - 1877-1900; The Emergence of Modern Pennsylvania - 1901-1928; The Great Depression and World War II - 1929-1945; Post-WWII Pennsylvania - 1946-1974; Contemporary Pennsylvania - 1975 to Present

Bituminous coal has been, and still remains, a crucial part of our daily lives–but do we ever think about it? It is a main source of electricity and has been used to fuel the manufacture of iron and steel. It also has played a part in the production of various items you may not associate with coal such as paint, plastics, rocket fuel, dishes, bricks, perfume, or even vitamins. Students will gain an appreciation of the many uses of bituminous coal and explore ways that this important resource is extracted from the ground. Students will then have the opportunity to create land formations displaying different types of coal mines using edible items.

Gather the Stones!
Grade Level: Elementary School
Discipline: Ecology and Environment; Economics; Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; History; Science and Technology
Historical Period: Colonization and Settlement - 1601-1760; New Nation - 1761-1800

In this elementary level lesson, students will explore the purpose and importance of a gristmill to early Pennsylvanians. The procedures for creating flour will be reviewed and the importance of mills will be demonstrated through the order of General George Washington, Commander of the Continental Army, to remove grist millstones in proximity to the British troops. During the American Revolution steps had to be taken to deprive the enemy of potential supplies. Control of local resources by both the British and Continental armies was an economic battle within the larger military conflict.

George Washington and the Beginnings of the French and Indian War
Grade Level: Elementary School
Discipline: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; Geography; History
Historical Period: Colonization and Settlement - 1601-1760; New Nation - 1761-1800

In this lesson, students will learn that the war occurred because of a struggle for control of the Ohio Valley by the British, French, and Indians. Students will trace the route of George Washington from Virginia to Ft. Le Boeuf as he delivers the message from Governor Dinwiddie to ask the French to leave. They will read and transcribe excerpts from his journal, identify problems encountered, and locate the places referenced on the map. Students will participate in a point-of-view activity to learn about the different goals for each group.

It's Just a Barn
Grade Level: Middle School
Discipline: Ecology and Environment; Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; Geography; History; Science and Technology
Historical Period: New Nation - 1761-1800; Expansion and Reform - 1801-1855; Civil War and Reconstruction - 1856-1876; Contemporary Pennsylvania - 1975 to Present

In this middle school level lesson, students will learn the importance of the Pennsylvania Barn to the development of agriculture through its diffusion to other farming regions. They will examine the architectural features of the Pennsylvania Barn, relate its structure to the physical features of the land, and study the evolution of agricultural practices due to mid-19th century emphases on increased agriculture education and experimentation.

Life in a Coal Patch
Grade Level: Elementary School
Discipline: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; Geography; History
Historical Period: New Nation - 1761-1800; Expansion and Reform - 1801-1855; Civil War and Reconstruction - 1856-1876; Development of the Industrial Pennsylvania - 1877-1900; The Emergence of Modern Pennsylvania - 1901-1928; The Great Depression and World War II - 1929-1945; Post-WWII Pennsylvania - 1946-1974; Contemporary Pennsylvania - 1975 to Present

In this elementary lesson students will explore daily life in a bituminous coal patch through many photographs and oral histories of the people who lived there. As a class, students will use these resources to create one poster describing life in a coal patch town. Then using the poster to inform their writing, students will also create a short story imagining themselves to be a part of a coal mining family in one of several historical situations.

Mary's Choice: To Go or Stay?
Grade Level: Elementary School
Discipline: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; Geography; History
Historical Period: Colonization and Settlement - 1601-1760; New Nation - 1761-1800

In this elementary lesson, students will discover the captivity narrative and learn three different ways to read it: for information (of the different cultures), for fun (the plot and suspense), and to understand the time period in which it was written. Students will apply these reading skills to excerpts from the story of Mary Jemison, a young girl living in the Pennsylvania frontier who was captured by Native Americans. Finally, they will contemplate Mary's choice to continue living among the Native Americans or to return her original culture.

The Moravians: What Does It Take to Build a Religious Community?
Grade Level: Elementary School
Discipline: Arts and Humanities; Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; History
Historical Period: Colonization and Settlement - 1601-1760; New Nation - 1761-1800

The Moravian Communities were unique in colonial America. Unlike the non-religious communities which usually began as economic centers with mills and waterways, this religious community focused on a setting in which to sustain their beliefs and further the mission work. Their highly organized town plan provided a degree of equality for both the women and men by establishing living arrangements according to age, gender and marital status. Bethlehem is one example of Moravian organization for community living known as the "choir" structure in a larger plan called "The General Economy." Students will analyze the differences between this religious community and other non-religious communities as they study town plan documents and excerpts from the Bethlehem Diary.

Pennsylvania's Iron Furnaces: Forging the Industrialization of the Nation
Grade Level: High School
Discipline: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; History; Mathematics
Historical Period: Colonization and Settlement - 1601-1760; New Nation - 1761-1800; Expansion and Reform - 1801-1855; Civil War and Reconstruction - 1856-1876; Development of the Industrial Pennsylvania - 1877-1900

In this upper-level lesson students will identify key concepts of the industrial revolution and use those concepts to analyze the industrial advancement of Pennsylvania's iron industry. By completing a case study of iron furnaces from two different time periods and analyzing images of the iron industry, students will be able to identify the industrialization process at work.

Persistent Paths: Trails, Tracks, and Turnpikes Across the Alleghenies
Grade Level: High School
Discipline: Geography; History
Historical Period: Worlds Meeting-Beginnings to 1600; Colonization and Settlement - 1601-1760; New Nation - 1761-1800; Expansion and Reform - 1801-1855; Civil War and Reconstruction - 1856-1876; Development of the Industrial Pennsylvania - 1877-1900; The Emergence of Modern Pennsylvania - 1901-1928; The Great Depression and World War II - 1929-1945; Post-WWII Pennsylvania - 1946-1974; Contemporary Pennsylvania - 1975 to Present

Students will discover that Native American paths were the blueprints for modern transportation routes throughout Pennsylvania, and in particular, in crossing the Allegheny Mountains. They will analyze a series of maps to determine geographic barriers associated with crossing the mountains and will establish how Native Americans and later travelers overcame these barriers. Journal entries from a traveler will be read and analyzed to provide a first hand account of what it was like to travel across the Allegheny Mountains in the early 1800s. A historical overview of transportation will be provided and students will discover how geographic features provided the foundation for Native American paths, as well as modern transportation routes.

Rebels or Resisters?
Grade Level: Middle School
Discipline: Arts and Humanities; Civics and Government; Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; History
Historical Period: New Nation - 1761-1800

In this middle level lesson, students will participate in a Mock Trial Simulation in which they will role play key "rebels" and government supporters who were involved in the Whiskey Rebellion. Students will analyze political cartoons of the time, as well as the perspectives presented by both sides during the trial to determine if the Whiskey "Rebels" were guilty of rebelling and violating government laws or if their actions as tax resisters were justifiable.

Saving the Philadelphia Lazaretto: One of the Oldest Immigration and Quarantine Stations (1801-1895)
Grade Level: Middle School
Discipline: Arts and Humanities; Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; Geography; History
Historical Period: New Nation - 1761-1800

In this middle school lesson students will read and analyze a collection of primary sources describing various aspects of the Lazaretto. Acting as historians, sociologists, curators, and archeologists, students will collaboratively prepare and share a "Discovery Trunk" consisting of student-created artifacts that visually and conceptually portray the Lazaretto's significance and legacy.

A Shot in the Backwoods of Pennsylvania Sets the World Afire
Grade Level: High School
Discipline: History
Historical Period: Colonization and Settlement - 1601-1760; New Nation - 1761-1800

Students will learn the background of the French and Indian War in Western Pennsylvania. Through the examination of the travels of George Washington to the Western Pennsylvania area in the years 1753-1754, students will uncover the events that led up to the outbreak of war in North America. Furthermore, students will use primary documents to comprehend actions that Washington undertook in critical situations (Jumonville Affair), and to understand how different viewpoints on an event can have an impact far beyond the immediate occurrence of the act. Students will be able to discuss and understand the events surrounding Washington's trip to Ft. LeBoeuf and the conflicting claims of ownership between France and England to the Ohio Country, as well as the Jumonville Affair.

The Three Faces of William Penn
Grade Level: Middle School
Discipline: Arts and Humanities; Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; History
Historical Period: Colonization and Settlement - 1601-1760; New Nation - 1761-1800; Contemporary Pennsylvania - 1975 to Present

In this middle-level lesson, students will analyze three different artists" renditions of William Penn's treaty with the Native Americans. Afterward, they will compare and contrast the three artists" use of color, symbolism, and images and discuss how time and history can influence individuals" perceptions of events.

Two Men Named Ben: Historic Roots of Education in Pennsylvania
Grade Level: High School
Discipline: Civics and Government; Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; History
Historical Period: Colonization and Settlement - 1601-1760; New Nation - 1761-1800; Contemporary Pennsylvania - 1975 to Present

In this lesson high school students are challenged to think about the roots of their education and how historical events can shape educational policies both in past and present. Students look at the original writings of two early influential educators in our nation, both hailing from Pennsylvania–Benjamin Franklin and Dr. Benjamin Rush. They compare these men's thoughts about education (what to teach, whom to teach, discipline, diet, role of religion, etc.), discuss the historical events which may have influenced those thoughts, and complete an assignment which shows an understanding not only of these men's thoughts, but also incorporates their own thoughts about the educational topic.

Vanished Occupations: Life on an Iron Plantation
Grade Level: Elementary School
Discipline: Arts and Humanities; Economics; Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; Geography; History
Historical Period: Colonization and Settlement - 1601-1760; New Nation - 1761-1800; Expansion and Reform - 1801-1855

In this elementary lesson students will explore the work and play of the men who lived on an iron plantation. They will learn about the duties of an ironmaster, founder, collier, teamster, and miner and imagine some of their social life on a plantation.

We the People
Grade Level: Elementary School
Discipline: Civics and Government; Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening; History
Historical Period: New Nation - 1761-1800

Since the writing of the Constitution in 1787 there have been many written changes to the rules of our country, called the Amendments. How do the first ten Amendments, the Bill of Rights, directly connect to the key themes of the Preamble to the Constitution? This elementary level lesson will explore this question as well as have students relate the importance of these amendments to their lives today.

Writing American Diaries
Grade Level: Elementary School
Discipline: History
Historical Period: New Nation - 1761-1800

This lesson will introduce the concept of historical perspective. By reading the diary of Sally Wister, a Patriot girl living in the Philadelphia area during the Revolutionary War, students will learn about the life of colonists who were Revolutionaries. In this lesson, students will learn to incorporate different points of view that encompassed the American experience during the Revolutionary War. Journal writing techniques will be stressed throughout the lesson.

Back to Top