Secondary/High School

--Sandra W. Moss, M.D.
Book review of "An American Plague" by Jim Murphy. Also in this issue: Handouts and teaching ideas, such as handout/graph "On the Trail of an Epidemic: Yellow Fever in New Orleans, 1845-1860" and "Connect-the-Dots: Making Meaning from Historical Evidence" by Chris Edwards, which discusses smallpox and the Columbian Exchange.   --> read more »

--Robert J. Stevens and Jared A. Fogel
Students compare and analyze two Great Depression-era photographs and a color poster by Ben Shahn and read his biography (all are handouts).

This URL downloads all 16 pages of Middle Level Learning as a pdf of about 0.8 MB:
* http://members.ncss.org/mll/35/MLL35.pdf

--Vanessa Rodriguez
Students debate Douglass versus . . . Douglass! Before 1851, he argued that the U.S. Constitution abetted slavery. But then he proclaimed, "Let the North now make that instrument [i.e., the Constitution] bend to the cause of freedom and justice." Handouts provide eight passages from the Constitution and Douglass's statements about them.   --> read more »

--Alan J. Singer
Students compare primary sources (included as handouts) to validate historical information. The ad is from the "New York Gazette," April 1, 1754, published in the slave-holding colony of New York.

This URL downloads all 16 pages of Middle Level Learning as a pdf of about 1.2 MB:
* http://members.ncss.org/mll/28/MLL28.pdf

--Melissa J. Marks
Students link clauses in the Preamble of the U.S. Constitution with current events as reported in the news media. Does "promoting general welfare" include health care?

This URL downloads all 16 pages of Middle Level Learning as a pdf of about 0.6 MB:
* http://members.ncss.org/mll/26/MLL26.pdf

--Eugene Walton   --> read more »

--Dan Schuchat
A radio drama project helps students learn about the 1920s and 30s as well as the important role that technology plays in our lives. Handouts include "Early Radio in the U.S." and "Bandwidth Problems ca. 1912: The Need for Federal Regulation."

This URL downloads all 16 pages of Middle Level Learning as a pdf of about 1.0 MB:
* http://members.ncss.org/mll/23/MLL23.pdf

--Steven S. Lapham and Drew Saunders
A wise man observes, learns, and grows. Also includes a related classroom activity about Ben's interesting personality: "Will the Senate Confirm 'Karl B. Fennin'?" by William E. Amburn.

This URL downloads all 16 pages of Middle Level Learning as a pdf of about 1.0 MB:
* http://members.ncss.org/mll/22/MLL22.pdf

--Rebecca C. Maher
North Carolina eighth grade students work on a project involving history, music, art, and interviews with elderly citizens. Includes handouts with primary sources and the story of Train Schedules, Standardization, and "The Day of Two Noons."

This URL downloads all 16 pages of Middle Level Learning as a pdf of about 0.8 MB:
* http://members.ncss.org/mll/21/mll21.pdf

--Tom Costa and Brooks Doyle
Interpret short primary source documents to reveal some details about slave life and the moral dilemmas of antebellum U.S. Also includes "Abolitionists Among the Founding Generation" by Kevin T. Brady.

This URL downloads all 16 pages of Middle Level Learning as a pdf of about 0.67 MB:
* http://members.ncss.org/mll/20/mll20.pdf