Winter Break is Almost Here!

There's only 1 more day of school for most teachers before winter break begins! This year has gone by so fast already here. Today we're reading the History of Santa Claus in America in my US History classes before getting ready to wrap up with a Victorian-themed party tomorrow for the few students that will be in class.

I sincerely hope you had a great school year so far and have a relaxing and warm winter vacation!!

Interactive Notebook Pages for the Great Depression & World War II

This new download features 15 Interactive Notebook pages to use in your history class to cover the Great Depression and World War II! The Interactive Notebook pages include graphic organizers, creative foldables, timelines, and more!

   

These are incredible resources for getting students engaged and active in their learning and allowing them to be creative with their notes.

Topics covered include:

★ The Stock Market Crash
★ The Dust Bowl
★ Relief, Reform, Recovery & the New Deal
★ Alphabet Soup Agencies
★ Fireside chats
★ The rise of dictators
★ Appeasement
★ Battles of World War II
★ Island Hopping in the Pacific
★ Internment camps for Japanese Americans
★ The Geneva Convention
★ Vocabulary activities and more!

These resources are sure to help your students enjoy learning about the Great Depression and World War II and have a better understanding of important concepts, events, and people. Each page is designed to engage students and get them thinking critically while also forming a personal connection to the material. The download is also filled with pictures of completed pages so you and your students can easily see how each page should be cut, pasted, folded, or completed.

        

 

You can download all of these pages and samples by clicking here.

Other sets of interactive notebook pages for can be found here:  Interactive Notebook pages for US History.

Thanks for looking!

Christmas Gifts for High School Teachers

Is there a history teacher in your life that you're just stumped for what to get him or her for Christmas? Why not give them the best gift of all - time! I'm sure you know how much your loved one spends planning, grading papers, working with students, etc. Especially if they're a newer teacher - the days can feel endless!

However, there are a ton of great resources you can purchase to ease their suffering and them to enjoy more free time!

Here's a few Christmas gift ideas for Social Studies and History Teachers!

 

Unit Bundles! Want to save your loved one some stress about what to plan for when they come back from Christmas break? Why not have it all planned out for them! These sets of Complete Unit Bundles are available for every unit in American or World History! Just slyly ask what your loved one will be covering after break and you can download it instantly! Click here to see all the available choices.

  

These are the absolute ultimate gifts for the social studies teacher! It's a FULL YEAR of American or World History completely planned out! Every day, every lesson, everything they need to teach the subject is done. PowerPoints, readings, worksheets, projects, tests, quizzes, review materials - it's all here! Imagine being able to say to your loved one - "Here you go, your whole year of planning is right here done for you on this flash drive!"

The American History Curriculum can be found here. The Complete World History Curriculum can be downloaded here.

Stock Market Simulation Project Lesson Plan

This fun and informative stock market project has students research companies they want to invest in for a simulation of how the stock market and investing work!

It's great for an economics class or when you cover the stock market crash of 1929 and the Great Depression in US History. I use it in the middle of the year and then we periodically check each of their portfolios as the year goes on to see how each student's investments are doing.

Included in the download are:

• A detailed directions page that includes info on the stock market crash and how investing in the market works to help get students started with investing. 

• A printable list of 40 well-known companies and stock symbols that students might like to invest in (Chipotle, Nike, Twitter, Facebook, etc) 

• A handy spreadsheet that students can type in which does all the calculating for them! Students just input the stock symbol, share price, and number of shares and the spreadsheet automatically calculates the investment amount for them! 

A teacher page is also included with tips and directions on how to best implement the project.

You can download this lesson plan and resources for your classroom here!

American History Interactive Notebook Pages

These two new downloads feature Interactive Notebook pages for US History from the early colonies through the American Revolution and the Constitution and Early America. Both sets of Interactive Notebook pages include graphic organizers, creative foldables, timelines, and more!

These are incredible resources for getting students engaged and active in their learning and allowing them to be creative with their notes. In addition to all the printable sheets, your download includes sample pictures of student samples for ease of use and to show students.

Topics covered in the first set include:

• Jamestown and Plymouth Colonies
• Characteristics of the New England, Southern, and Middle Colonies
• The Sugar Act, Stamp Act, Townsend Acts, & Intolerable Acts
• The Proclamation of 1763
• Patriots and Loyalists
• The ideas of John Locke, Thomas Paine, & Benjamin Franklin
• George Washington, King George III, Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry
• The Declaration of Independence
• Major events of the Revolutionary War
• Vocabulary activities and more!

 

Topics covered in the Constitution through Early America download include:

• Articles of the Constitution
• George Washington's 1st Cabinet
• Comparing Federalists and Democratic-Republicans
• The Whiskey Rebellion
• The XYZ Affair
• The Alien & Sedition Acts
• The Monroe Doctrine
• Marbury v. Madison and other early Supreme Court cases
• The Louisiana Purchase
• The Lewis & Clark Expedition
• The War of 1812
• Andrew Jackson and the "Common Man", the Indian Removal Act,  and his battles again the National Bank and Nullification
• The Battle of the Alamo
• Manifest Destiny
• Vocabulary activities and more!

These Interactive Notebook resources are sure to help your students enjoy learning early American History and have a better understanding of important concepts, events, and people!

Thanks for looking!

Beautiful and Engaging Tokugawa Japan PowerPoint Lesson

This amazing PowerPoint on Tokugawa Japan covers everything students need to know about this period of Japan's history! It begins with the Warring States period with info on shoguns, samurai, daimyo, Oda Nobunaga and more.

The PowerPoint then moves on to cover the rise of the Tokugawa Shogunate, its effect on Japan, and Japanese culture during the period. The last few slides describe the arrival of Europeans to Japan, Matthew Perry's visit to Tokyo, the eventual fall of the Tokugawa Shogunate, and the Meiji Restoration.

I believe this is definitely one of the most engaging, visually-stunning PowerPoints I have created and always keeps my students focused and into the lesson!

You can download this PowerPoint for your classes today by clicking here!

Thanks for looking!

New Back to School Snapchat Summer Story Project!

This fun project combines the app almost all of your students are obsessed with - Snapchat - with a great Back to School activity to help you get to know your students and them to get to know each other!

  

Students create Snapchat Stories on an included template that show what they did during the summer! There are 4 scenes to show a variety of things they did that are set up just like the real Snapchat with a picture and caption. They can then share these with the class or hang them up in your room as decoration.

Included is a student example, rubric for grading, directions page, and 1 page of printable iPhone templates - everything you need for this fun, engaging back-to-school project! I guarantee your students will love this assignment as it's a fun twist on back to school with the hottest app out there.

Thanks for looking!

You can download this project by clicking here now!

Constitutional Convention Pop-Up Figures "Rise of Democracy" Lesson

This wonderfully creative lesson has students creating pop up figures of 6 Founding Fathers to learn about those who helped create America's Constitution at the Constitutional Convention.

Included is the PowerPoint is a printable sheet with 6 Founding Fathers to cut out: James Madison, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, Roger Sherman, and George Mason. Students then place these onto an included printable graphic organizer that follows along with a 10 slide PowerPoint presentation.

The PowerPoint comes covers the essential information students need to know about each figure's contributions to America's Constitution as well as the key concepts and Compromise's that hep create the American government.

This lesson is amazing for your visual and kinesthetic learners as they are creating a fantastic visual representation of Founding Fathers literally rising up out of their notebooks.

You can find a similar best-selling resource here with the Rise of Dictators Pop Up Figures Lesson Plan!

Thanks for looking!

New Age of Discovery Explorers Magic Portrait PowerPoint

This amazing, magical lesson includes a PowerPoint of leading explorers of the Age of Discovery, including Da Gama, Columbus, Magellan, Cartier, Zheng He, and more - all brought to life through amazing "Harry Potter" style magical portraits.

Each slide includes essential information about each explorer, as well as the magic portraits in which the faces blink, smile, laugh, and look around the room.

Your students will be AMAZED at these visuals and will not take their eyes off of your screen!

Also included is an exit ticket based on what students learned from the PowerPoint as well as a directions page on how to easily get your lesson to play perfectly.

This is a truly amazing, dynamic activity that will engage your visual learners and have your students gasping when they see Hernan Cortes smile and wink at them! I promise they will be howling with delight!

If you like this lesson and are looking for more, click here for more cool Magic Portrait lessons.

Thanks for looking!

Teach Your Students About the Civil War in 3D!!

This amazing, fun lesson on the American Civil War features a dynamic, visually engaging PowerPoint with 29 slides of true 3D images that will captivate your students!

Each slide pairs 3D images with easy-to-follow notes on everything students need to know about the Civil War based on state and Common Core Standards.

All of the following are covered in the presentation through notes an fantastic 3D images:

Resources of the Union and Confederacy
Soldier's Experiences
Fort Sumter
Bull Run
Hampton Roads and the Monitor Vs. Merrimack
Shiloh
Antietam
The Emancipation Proclamation
Gettysburg
The Gettysburg Address
Sherman's March
Appomattox Court House
Lincoln's Assassination
Effects of the Civil War
And more!

I pass out 3D glasses to students as they enter the room and their excitement is so contagious. Engagement for this lesson is always through the roof. This is a guaranteed amazing lesson your students will remember years later!

You can also purchase a class set of 3D glasses by clicking here!

Thanks for looking!

Year-End Teacher Evaluation Survey for Students & Reflective Teachers

This download is a 2 page end-of-course survey for students to complete about the class to help you the teacher better understand how the year when and reflect on what to change for the next year.

The first page includes 12 statements about your class that students rate from "Strongly Disagree" to "Strongly Agree". Each of these statements is something that surely apply to any social studies class. Some examples are:

"The grading system was fair"
"In class assignments were useful and helped me to learn the material.
"The amount of homework was fair."

There are also 4 editable spaces for you or your students to add your additional class characteristics to rate.

On the 2nd page are 6 open-ended response questions in which students are asked to explain what they liked, disliked, and more about the class.

This is a great tool for effective reflective teaching practices. Each year I give my students this survey to complete anonymously for invaluable feedback about what helped them learn most throughout the year. Every year I gain a new insight about an aspect of my teaching that makes me a better teacher.

You can download this resource and use it for your class by clicking here!

Thanks for looking!

Brand New PowerPoint on the Maya, Aztec, Inca, and other Mesoamerican Civilizations!

This is a fantastic, thorough, and visually-engaging 34-slide PowerPoint on the Maya, Aztec, Inca, and other Meso-american civilizations.

Each pre-Columbian civilization is covered in detail, including where they were located, when they flourished, their contributions, and more.  Each slide includes fantastic visuals that will engage your students and keep them focused on your lesson.

In addition to slides on the Mayans, Aztecs, and Inca, additional sides cover the Olmecs, Zapotecs, and Toltecs! This presentation is incredibly thorough and covered all the essential information your students need to know about these civilizations!

This will definitely be a memorable PowerPoint presentation that will capture your students attention and help them understand the differences between these different civilizations.

You can download this great resource by clicking here!

Thanks for looking!

Be sure to check out my store for tons more great history and social studies teaching resources!

New Declaration of Independence WebQuest and QR Code Activity

This newly posted resource a fantastic WebQuest activity in which students can either use a QR Code Reader or the internet to reach an online exhibit from the Library of Congress on Thomas Jefferson and the Declaration of Independence!

After reaching the website exhibition, students use a 3-page worksheet to analyze primary sources on the influences and key ideas of the Declaration's rough draft and final document.

This is an awesome resource to use in a computer lab, with iPads, laptops, or as a homework assignment students complete on their own. Students connect with the technology integration and are always more engaged in the activity! An answer key is even included for your convenience.

You can download this for your classroom today by clicking here!

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter from Students of History! Hope you have a wonderful, relaxing Sunday with family and loved ones!

This Fabergé egg is nicknamed "Peter, the Great" and was made for the last Czar of Russia, Nicholas II. He presented the egg to his wife, the Czarina Alexandra Fyodorovna for Easter in 1903.

Cherry Blossom Peak Bloom Sale

The National Park Service declared the Washington DC's cherry blossoms at peak bloom this morning! In honor of this beautiful sign of spring, every teaching resource in the Students of History store will be 10% off all weekend long!

Happy Spring!

Inventions of the Industrial Revolution Infomercial Group Project

This new fantastic cooperative learning project on major inventions and inventors of the Industrial Revolution will have your students engaged, having fun, and learning!

Included is a directions page on how to present a 1 minute infomercial to the class along with 7 one-page readings on different inventions of the industrial period. In groups students read about their assigned inventor/invention and plan their "infomercial".

As each group presents, other students fill out the included graphic organizer on the 7 inventions and inventors. An answer key for this is included along with a rubric for the infomercial presentation.

My students love this project and always come up with some hilarious pitches for these inventions that they remember the rest of the year! When I used it earlier this year, the students got so into it, we ended up needing a second class period to present all the "infomercials" because the students went into such great detail! It was an amazing couple of class periods!

You can download this lesson for your classes by clicking here!

Thanks for looking!

New Half Price Deal of the Day

At 344 total products as of this week, I realized I'm just 21 products from one for every day of the year and hopefully will reach 365 soon!

This gave me the idea to create a new product category - the Deal of the Day! Every day a different teaching resource will be 50% off!

Check back to this link every day for a new PowerPoint, Common Core-aligned reading, cooperative learning project, or other engaging resource for teaching history and social studies. Each one will be 50% off regular price for 24 hours and every product in my store will be featured for a day over the next year!

Thank you to you all and have a great weekend!

New Sale - 28% OFF Everything in the Students of History Store

Time for another huge sale over at the Students of History TpT page! To celebrate 3 million teachers signed up for TpT, we're joining in on a huge sale and making every product in the store 28% off!

Every product will be 20% off in the store, plus use the promo code TPT3 for an addional 10% off resulting in a 28% discount! That means you can save up to $70 off my largest products! An amazing deal for the Complete World and US History Curricula!

The sale runs just 2 days - Feb 27 & 28th!

Thank you for taking a look!

New Black History Month Teaching Resource!

This fantastic resource for Black History Month includes 13 biographies of famous African-Americans and 3 different project ideas for implementation in your classroom!

Each 1-page biography is easy to read for students and includes the major details of each person's life along with pictures and quotes. The biographies include figures from the Harlem Renaissance, Civil Rights Movement and include:

• Martin Luther King, Jr.
• Stokely Carmichael
• Malcolm X
• Thurgood Marshall
• Jackie Robinson
• Rosa Parks
• Billie Holiday
• James Weldon Johnson
• Claude McKay
• Duke Ellington
• Paul Robeson
• Zora Neale Hurston
• Louis Armstrong

These can be read individually by students or in groups and then turned into one of 3 different projects of varying complexity.

The first, simplest project is to create a mask of their person using a template and be prepared to talk with other students and answer questions as if they were the people they read about.

The 2nd project has students creating a "biography box" using an included cut out box template and directions for decorating the box with details from the biography.

The 3rd project has students creating a poster which they will present based on their person's life and accomplishments featuring visuals and details of what they learned from the reading. A rubric for this project is included.

Finally, there is a 1 page reading comprehension worksheet that asks students higher-level reflection questions about what they read in the biography!

No matter what type of class you have surely one of the 3 projects will suit them well! You can also use the biographies throughout the year for  units on the Harlem Renaissance or Civil Rights Movement.

You can download this amazing resource for your classes by clicking here now!

Thanks for looking!

Last Chance to Buy a Complete History Curriculum!

BIG NEWS!!

TpT recently advised that Dropbox bundles are not allowed on the site. That means my 2 "Buy My Store" bundles need to come down within the week! These two resources are both over 2gb full of amazing teaching materials, all organized by unit and day throughout an entire year!

If you ever considered purchasing either the World or US History Complete Course Bundles - now is your last chance!!!

The Complete American History Resource Bundle features close to 250 total teaching resources in 16 total folders and includes PowerPoints, Common Core readings, lesson plans, assessments, cooperative learning activities, and so much more!

The Complete World History Resource Bundle includes over 200 teaching resources from early river valley civilizations through 9/11 and modern history. It is organized into 13 folders full of PowerPoints, Common Core readings, worksheets, cooperative learning activities, and more!

Both will also include every new teaching resource added to my store in the future FOR FREE! These are amazing deals including hundreds of teaching resources and very soon will no longer available for purchase!

If you ever considered purchasing either or are looking for a ton of resources to help you teach history, now is the time to grab these before they're gone forever!

Thanks!

Martin Luther King, Jr. Complete Service Learning Project Packet

Many of the most amazing experiences my students have had are the result of service learning. Several years ago, I along with many other teachers began to use the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to inspire my social students students' service learning projects. This download is the result of years of having students reflect on Dr. King's legacy and their own service learning experiences.

Included is a page explaining why Martin Luther King, Jr's legacy is tied to service learning along with project ideas to help students get started planning their own personal project. These projects can be completed individually or as small groups.

The next 4 pages explain the next steps in the project: (1)  identifying a need in your community; (2) planning; (3) implementing their plan; and (4) reflecting on their experience. Each page includes an introduction explaining that part of the project and several questions to help students focus on why it is important. Each also ties in Dr. King as well so that students continue to use him as their guide through the project.

Lastly, the download includes a service learning hourly log sheet and student evaluation rubric that a supervisor can complete.

      

Best of all, this PDF includes editable form fields so you can type in how many hours you want students to complete as well as allowing students and their supervisor to type in certain information.

This can definitely make for a wonderful experience for any teacher that wants to implement service learning into your classroom.

You can download this amazing resource today by clicking here!

Thanks for looking!