Let's Cultivate Greatness

MAY 31, 2024

Teaching civics and government is different from teaching history—it really requires a different set of go-to lesson ideas and projects. Below are some of my favorite activities from my high school Civics classroom. Many of them should also work great if you teach middle school.

Civics 52

Civics Government Teaching Civic Engagement 52

Students of History

SEPTEMBER 28, 2021

If you're a US History teacher looking for PDF worksheets for your high school or middle school classroom, I have tons to share, including this 30+ page packet of free engaging assignments you can download and start using right away. We even have a set of worksheets devoted just to developing history skills.

History 52

History Primary Sources Lesson Plan American History 52

The Hechinger Report

SEPTEMBER 20, 2021

Related: If schools don’t overhaul discipline, ‘teachers will still be calling the police on our Black students’. Right now, some of us aren’t free to learn, explore and make mistakes in our schools. Instead, in our middle schools, we are seeing police handcuff our friends and slam them into cop cars.

Education 122

Education Government Middle School History 122

The Hechinger Report

NOVEMBER 10, 2021

At the Williston-Elko Middle School in rural South Carolina, where she has taught for seven years, more than three out of every four students are poor enough to qualify for free or reduced-priced lunch. Students need to read in order to learn other subjects, from science to history. Parents of young children are worried.

Elementary School 145

Elementary School Library Middle School Tutoring 145

The Hechinger Report

MAY 11, 2023

She credits a training program through the American Museum of Natural History in Manhattan for preparing her to do so. government, according to data from the American Alliance of Museums. Related: How the science of vaccination is taught (or not) in U.S. If you think that, try to find resources about it.

Museum 131

Museum Teaching Professional Development High School 131

The Hechinger Report

MAY 18, 2021

It was starting to feel like a normal seventh grade lunch at West Middle School. Isabella Rogers, 12, poses for a portrait at West Middle School on April 28 in Brockton, Massachusetts. This was the first week students were back at school in person, after a remote year due to COVID-19. BROCKTON, Mass. —

Middle School 107

Middle School Tutoring Public School Government 107

The Hechinger Report

FEBRUARY 5, 2020

Ever since enslaved blacks arrived on the shores of the English colony of Virginia in 1619 , white legislators at various levels of government have designed laws to explicitly control and suppress black people.

Charter School 145

Charter School Middle School High School Government 145

The Hechinger Report

APRIL 25, 2023

It was the first lesson in a school week that would take her kids through memoir writing, an introduction to division and research on Indigenous history, each activity carefully curated by Snyder. She would also lead an upcoming meeting on the school’s finances, including how to spend federal pandemic relief dollars.

Charter School 138

Charter School Government Sociology Social Studies 138

The Hechinger Report

NOVEMBER 18, 2018

million people that is less diverse than America, and that has a history very different from our own? As we traveled through Finland, we met with top government officials, education professors, classroom teachers and elementary-school students. 8) Shorten the school day. It doesn’t matter where you come from.”.

Education 112

Education Economics Civics Government 112

The Hechinger Report

DECEMBER 17, 2020

She drives over an hour each way to teach world history at LaGrange High School in Lake Charles. Every campus in the parish school district sustained damage; internet access has been spotty at best. Now a middle school technology teacher at S.P. Tiffany Guillory is a middle school technology teacher at S.P.

Charter School 140

Charter School Psychology Middle School High School 140

The Hechinger Report

NOVEMBER 2, 2020

A survey of over 20,000 students conducted May through June found that only 39 percent of students said they learned a lot every day while their school building was closed. Summer break gave school leaders time to reflect on the lessons of the spring and create more effective reopening plans for the fall. Perry is busy.

High School 144

High School Elementary School Charter School History 144

The Hechinger Report

JUNE 12, 2017

Josh Walton, principal, Walton Middle School, in sAlbemarle County, Virginia. Still in its early stages, this ambitious project relies on a little-known public resource — a slice of electromagnetic spectrum the federal government long ago set aside for schools — called the Educational Broadband Service (EBS).

Library 103

Library Middle School High School Government 103

ED Surge

MARCH 31, 2023

Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington and walked through an exhibit that highlights the history of the building as well as former President John F. In middle school, that number drops to 78 hours. How Did We Get Here? Recently, I attended a performance at the John F. Kennedy’s support for the arts in America.

Education 145

Education Humanities K-12 High School 145

The Hechinger Report

FEBRUARY 26, 2018

Student protesters from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida demand government action on firearms. Here’s something to think about when you hear people question whether student protests are appropriate: We seem to have forgotten as a nation why we created public schools. Photo: Mike Stocker/TNS via ZUMA Wire.

Civics 81

Civics Geography Public School Library 81

The Hechinger Report

AUGUST 6, 2020

She currently works a clerical job for a government agency and drives cabs intermittently, while trying to launch a holistic wellness business. Although her family has moved many times, Johnson has up until now managed to maintain some stability in school for Mikaela. Academically, Mikaela held her own in middle school.

Public School 145

Public School High School Middle School Charter School 145

The Hechinger Report

DECEMBER 20, 2016

High School seniors (left to right) Hayley Striegel, Olivia Poplawski, Cheri Zheng-Fredericks and Julie Pignataro look for ways to verify information they’ve encountered on social media. Can middle-school students spot “native advertising” (ads masquerading as articles) on a crowded news website? Northport, N.Y.,

K-12 102

K-12 Primary Sources Civics Social Studies 102

The Hechinger Report

DECEMBER 16, 2019

All students are exposed to music starting in elementary school; by middle school nearly half (44 percent) have picked up an instrument, according to district data. For example, 97 percent of Poe Middle School students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, according to the state, and 58 percent play an instrument.

K-12 103

K-12 Elementary School Middle School High School 103

The Hechinger Report

JUNE 6, 2022

The city itself has had a scrappy commitment to existence in its 123-year history, surviving the boom and bust of the timber industry that first gave it life and weathering the 21st century with a fairly steady population of about 2,500. Sometimes, schools even force children to choose.

Elementary School 145

Elementary School Public School High School Government 145

The Hechinger Report

DECEMBER 22, 2018

A Crew of seventh graders at King Middle School in Portland, Maine, plays a conflict-resolution game called “Is This Seat Taken?” Curtis Chapin, a Crew advisor and language arts teacher at King Middle School in Portland, Maine, reviews the “Crew Contract” signed by each member. Chris Berdik/The Hechinger Report.

Middle School 111

Middle School Library Elementary School Tradition 111

The Hechinger Report

AUGUST 11, 2016

Martin Middle School in Dillon dates to 1896 and was still in use when then-Senator Barack Obama visited in 2007 during his presidential campaign. Martin Middle School, part of which dated to 1896 and was still in use. The growth in the graduation rate at Dillon High School over four years. Photo: Alan Richard.

Middle School 76

Middle School High School Government Advocacy 76

The Hechinger Report

AUGUST 11, 2017

Moheeb Kaied, a seventh-grader this fall, shows a visitor how he checks his academic progress using a monitoring website that one of the teachers at the school developed. NEW YORK — Few middle schoolers are as clued in to their mathematical strengths and weakness as Moheeb Kaied. Government policy has also contributed to its adoption.

Middle School 110

Middle School High School Tradition History 110

Teaching American History

NOVEMBER 14, 2023

He did, and Livingston soon found herself sitting in an introductory college course in US history. The next semester, she took two more US history classes, then realized she’d found her major. The next school year, she was asked to teach not only the regular-level geography course but also AP Human Geography and World History.

Teaching 52

Teaching Geography Ancestry Primary Sources 52

The Hechinger Report

JUNE 11, 2018

These motivational posters in a New York City middle school are a small example of how growth-mindset theory has swept through schools. The federal government is funding a $3.5 But the history of education reform is marked by the always elusive search for a silver bullet, a solution that works for all kids.

Psychology 82

Psychology Government Middle School Research 82

The Hechinger Report

MAY 2, 2018

Mitch Askew, a history teacher at Flagstaff High School, marches with his two-year-old son. Editor’s note: This story is part of Map to the Middle Class , a Hechinger Report series exploring the middle-class jobs of the future and how to prepare young people for them. . Courtesy of the Askew family.

K-12 97

K-12 Public School History Tutoring 97

Students of History

JANUARY 10, 2023

If you are teaching high school, this likely means that you can broach most news-worthy topics. However, if you're a middle school teacher, there are going to be some things you'll want to steer clear of. This is easiest to do in a Civics or American Government classroom. 2) Provide context and background information.

Social Studies 52

Social Studies Civics Critical Thinking World History 52

The Hechinger Report

NOVEMBER 3, 2017

Rather than being challenged, he was allowed to use a teacher-made study guide while taking exams at his California high school. One time, a teacher gave his special education world history class all of the answers to their final exam. He said he never had to study or actually learn anything to get an A.

High School 111

High School Education Government Elementary School 111

Teaching Civics

MAY 18, 2024

60-Second Civics is a daily podcast that provides a quick and convenient way for listeners to learn about our nations government, the Constitution, and our history. Middle School) Why was the Constitution necessary? government works. Enough said. Listen to this podcast for the story of how the U.S.

Civics 40

Civics K-12 Government Middle School 40

Teaching Civics

SEPTEMBER 9, 2013

60-Second Civics is a daily podcast that provides a quick and convenient way for listeners to learn about our nation’s government, the Constitution, and our history. – Middle School) Why was the Constitution necessary? government works. Enough said. Listen to this podcast for the story of how the U.S.

Civics 40

Civics K-12 Government Middle School 40

The Hechinger Report

OCTOBER 9, 2022

Based on conversations with friends, “it’s not a school I’d really be interested in,” Gutierrez said last spring. A number of precollegiate government and university programs have been established to funnel more young people to higher education. A Latino alum on a mission.

High School 113

High School Middle School Government Education 113

The Hechinger Report

DECEMBER 5, 2018

This story about school segregation was produced by The Texas Tribune , a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that provides free news, data and events on Texas public policy, politics, government and statewide issues. Beard is black and had two kids go through Longview schools. It was reprinted with permission.

Private School 67

Private School Elementary School Government Charter School 67

The Hechinger Report

MARCH 17, 2021

LOWER ELWHA KLALLAM RESERVATION — Fourteen-year-old Roger Tinoco-Wheeler jumped at the chance to be back with friends twice a week at his Port Angeles middle school in January. Related: As coronavirus ravaged Indian Country, the federal government failed its schools. This story also appeared in The Seattle Times.

Tutoring 75

Tutoring American History Cultures Middle School 75

The Hechinger Report

JUNE 11, 2017

Social Studies teacher Michelle Adler talks to sophomores Maiya Schwartz, left and Emily Terranova about an assignment in an Honors Human Geography class at Gray-New Gloucester High School on Thursday, June 1, 2017. It’s the long arm of the state,” said Adler, who has taught social studies at Gray-New Gloucester High School for 40 years.

High School 69

High School Social Studies Leadership Tradition 69

The Hechinger Report

OCTOBER 2, 2016

law — what makes it a unique and hopeful case — it’s unclear anyone in government will be watching to make sure it achieves its goal. The district is awaiting the results of state achievement tests from the 2015-16 school year, the first full year of consolidation. One county, two districts worlds apart.

Private School 111

Private School Elementary School Public School High School 111

The Hechinger Report

AUGUST 22, 2016

million people live in places where state officials took over entire districts or individual schools in the past six years, according to News21 data collected from state government agencies. The only solution to save the Highland Park School District was to take control of the system entirely, state officials concluded.

Charter School 74

Charter School Public School Government High School 74

The Hechinger Report

NOVEMBER 16, 2017

Today, the school counts 11 teachers on staff who are certified to teach college classes. I always wanted to teach higher-level history and government,” said Ray Mertz, a social studies teacher who joined Meadowbrook in 2014. They expect to add five more next year. “I

High School 95

High School Social Studies Leadership Political Science 95

The Hechinger Report

SEPTEMBER 29, 2019

Williams was just 14 when Marcovitz told her she could be part of something historic at Sci Academy, the charter high school he was opening on the east end of town. But he spoke up in Romantic Literature, and he helped other students with their African American Religious History papers. Plus, she had little to lose. psychology class.

Charter School 111

Charter School Psychology High School Private School 111

ED Surge

NOVEMBER 1, 2024

“I think we all sometimes want to crave a benevolent dictatorship, like Singapore, where they're generally doing good stuff for the people, and it's all orderly, and no one's yelling at each other and there's a high degree of trust in the government,” Khan says. Still, the path was winding and not limited to school.

Civics 121

Civics Education Government K-12 121