• Bandwagon
• Repetition
• Transfer
• Testimonial
• Exigency
• Glittering Generality
• Card-Stacking
• Innuendo
• Snob Appeal
• Just Plain Folks

This is useful instruction in most Social Studies and we use it with current events and a review of political speeches like the State of the Union address.

Be sure to read our Teaching Guide for the Concept Attainment Strategy first as it provides the methodology and process behind this lesson’s format.

• Subject Areas: Social Sciences, History, Humanities, Government
• Materials Required: Advertisements (easily found on YouTube) are the suggested main data set, but historical posters would work, too.  Optional – whiteboard or display for posting prompts, copies of provided handout
• Time Needed: Typically an entire class period

While doing research about these individuals, students will learn about filtering, sorting, and other spreadsheet commands.

• Subject Areas: Any really, but ideal for History and Social Studies.
• Materials Required: Virtual classroom or other screen sharing tool, or a large screen display with a computer, plus either printed or digital copies of the provided handouts.
• Time Needed: Typically two to three class periods.

We’ve included everything you’ll need in a single zip archive.

These project ideas allow for various learning styles your students have to be utilized. Additionally, the projects themselves provide good review materials for the entire class.

• Subject Areas: History, Social Sciences
• Materials Required: Printed handouts, other materials may be provided by the students themselves.
• Time Needed: At least two full class periods, plus homework, or more in-class work days as desired.

• Monarchs/Oligarchies
• Military Juntas
• Democratic Republics
• Democracies
• Constitutional Monarchies
• Anarchies

This is useful instruction in most Government, Civics and History classes and can be very helpful in some Language Arts classes. This lesson plan has been used successfully with both middle school and high school students.

Be sure to read our Teaching Guide for the Concept Attainment Strategy first as it provides the methodology and process behind this lesson’s format.

• Subject Areas: Social Sciences, History, Humanities, Government
• Materials Required: Optional – whiteboard or display for posting prompts, copies of provided handout
• Time Needed: Typically an entire class period

• Terrorism and Guerrilla Warfare,
• Civil Disobedience,
• Martial Law,
• Revolution,
• Civil War,
• Wars of Independence, and
• Coup D’é Tats.

This is very useful instruction in most History classes and especially in Government classes.  This lesson plan has been used successfully with both middle school and high school students.

Be sure to read our free  Teaching Guide for the Concept Attainment Strategy first as it provides this lesson’s methodology and format.

• Subject Areas: Social Sciences, History, Humanities, Government
• Materials Required: Optional – whiteboard or display for posting prompts
• Time Needed: Typically an entire class period.

The teaching team that developed this unit had a Science partner with background in advertising.   He suggested that they do a project involving parents that would get families to talk about all of our lessons and what was being taught at school.    This murder mystery party, and the lessons associated with it, is the results of that effort.

The objectives of the unit are simple; provide students with a vehicle for learning about Roman history, modern criminology and forensics, while also improving their writing skills. As an added bonus, you get parent involvement, and hopefully some great Italian leftovers.

If you are worried that the evening won’t go as planned, just remember — it is supposed to be a mystery!   “Wow! What a mystery we have here! Isn’t this great?”  This party has been used over and over again with great success.

This culminating activity includes:

• Social Studies lessons for teaching about the Romans.  (This includes our Connecting Past to Present – The Fall of Rome lesson plan, our Caesar’s Dilemma, and also The Roman Times lesson plan!)
• Science lessons on fingerprinting and other resources.
• English/Language Arts lessons on using “show not tell” language.  Includes our Monster Drawing lesson.
• A complete guide to running a murder mystery party where parents are the suspects and characters involved in the mystery of who killed Caesar during an Italian themed potluck dinner.

There are handouts, complete instructions, scripts and invitations for the party, and more.

• Subject Areas: Social Sciences, Science, Humanities, Language Arts, Math
• Materials Required: All handouts and necessary lesson plans are included.  A shopping list of props and party items is included.
• Time Needed: This is an entire multidisciplinary unit and will require multiple class periods to complete.  The murder mystery is normally a two hour party.

You may wish to also download our free Teaching Guide for Open Ended Discussions.

• Subject Areas: Social Sciences, Sciences, Humanities, Government
• Materials Required: Optional – whiteboard or display for posting prompts
• Time Needed: Typically an entire class period

May be used in a World History, Humanities or Language Arts setting.

• Subject Area: World History, Humanities, Language Arts
• Materials Required: Whiteboard or display, sample newspapers, paper, tape, pens, and optionally colored pencils/pens.
• Time Needed: Typically a full week of class time is devoted to this.

This dilemma is intended for a high school or middle school history class and works well with English classes reading All’s Quiet on the Western Front, or perhaps A Farewell to Arms.Be sure to download our free Cognitive Moral Dilemma Teachers Guide, too, as it provides the methodology and lesson’s process, too.

• • Subject Areas: Social Sciences, Sciences, Humanities, Literature, English
  • Materials Required: Whiteboard or display
  • Time Needed: Can run an entire class period or less.

Be sure to download the free Cognitive Moral Dilemma Teacher’s Guide, too, which provides the methodology and lesson plan process.

• Subject Areas: Social Sciences, Sciences, Humanities, Philosophy
• Materials Required: Whiteboard or display
• Time Needed: Typically an entire class period