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!