Alabama Course of Study: US History from 1877 to the Present, Grade 11
Below you will find the 2004 version of the ALCOS
for Social Studies, grade 11. Beneath each standard
are links to web resources that may
be useful
to
you and your students.
Explain the transition of the United States from
an agrarian society to an industrial nation prior
to World War I.
Who Made America?
Includes profiles of inventors from the early days
of the U.S. up until the modern era, organized
by name, chronological timeline, and geographic
region.
Building
Big
Explore large structures and what it takes to build them with BUILDING BIG™,
a five-part PBS television series and Web site from WGBH Boston. The Website
provides brief historical and scientific information about skyscrapers, bridges,
domes, and tunnels as well as a teacher's guide for using the series and the
activities found online in the classroom.
The Iron Road
PBS website designed to accompany “The Iron Road,” a show devoted
to the growth of railroads. Includes online videos, summaries, and a teacher's
guide.
Best History Websites
This websites provides a list of websites on topics
related to life, politics, and economics during
the Gilded Age.
The Gilded Age Webquest
This website contains an excellent Webquest about
the Gilded Age which charges students to create
a documentary of the era.
Culture and Society of
the Gilded Age
In this lesson plan from the Kennedy Center,
students will learn about the culture of high
society during
the Gilded Age. They will explore the manners and
etiquette associated with the Gilded Age and then
create dialogues, monologues, or short plays relating
to the areas and various persons researched.
Arts
of the Gilded Age
In this lesson plan from the Kennedy Center, students
will research the various fine and performing art
forms that were popular during the Gilded Age.
Gilded
Age Era Lesson Plans
Teaching Future Historians collection of lesson
plans which use primary documents to teach students
about politics and life during the Gilded Age.
Digital History
Digital History page for the Gilded Age, which
includes a lesson plan and links to learning
tools, primary sources, and online resources
for teachers.
New York City Films
This collection contains forty-five films of
New York, dating from 1898 to 1906, from the
Paper
Print Collection of the Library of Congress.
Of these, twenty-five were made by the American
Mutoscope
and Biograph Company, while the remaining twenty
are Edison Company productions.
History of the American West: 1860-1920
American Memory collection of photographs of the
American West, along with background information
on famous photographers and three presentations
of selected photographs with narrative captions
("Native American Women," "LC
McLure and Denver, the Beautiful City," and "The
10th Mountain Division")
Describe social and political origins, accomplishments,
and limitations of Progressivism.
Theodore Roosevelt on Film
Library of Congress American Memory collection featuring Teddy Roosevelt. It
includes a timeline, essays, photos, and documents discussing his being the
first president to have had his life and career documented on film.
Thomas Nast Cartoons
HarpWeek's Gallery of Thomas Nast cartoons, some
of which comment on Progressives, as well as
Reconstruction.
Digital History Documents
A collection of primary sources on the Progressive
Era including documents on the Muckrakers, Women's
Suffrage, Conservation, Prohibition, and Cities.
Timeline
A useful timeline of the major events of the Progressive
Era, from 1879 to 1917.
Progressive Era Resources
Digital History's page for the Progressive Era,
offering background information, recommended
documents and resources, and links to lesson
plans and fact sheets.
Triangle Factory Fire
Online exhibit detailing the Triangle Factory Fire,
with primary source documents, photographs, and
political cartoons.
Eleanor Roosevelt
Archive of Eleanor Roosevelt’s personal papers
from the Progressive Era with lesson plans and
further resources for classroom use.
Progressivism
Gilder Lehrman Institute for American History
online learning module on the Progressive Era
with links to primary documents.
Explain the impact of American imperialism, including
the geographic changes due to the Open Door Policy
and the Roosevelt Corollary, on the foreign policy
of the United States between Reconstruction and World
War I.
Immigrating to America Lesson Plan
Students will learn about what it was like for
new immigrants to come through Ellis Island—a
symbolic heart of American immigration—at
the turn of the century. Through first-hand accounts,
students will discover where the immigrants were
from, the reasons they fled their homelands,
and why they came to America. By performing dramatizations
and taking an interactive tour of Ellis Island,
students will relive the immigrant experience.
Ellis
Island
History Channel website on Ellis Island, including
background information, a timeline, and videos.
Scholastic.com
Immigration Page
Scholastic website with links to lessons and documents
on immigration, including personal stories of immigrants
and a virtual tour of Ellis Island.
Whose Land is
This?
PBS Online Webisode with interactive quizzes, games,
and lesson ideas. This particular webisode deals
with Immigration, but others that can be found
on the main menu deal with other aspects of American
history. Teaching guides are available for each
webisode.
The White Man's Burden
Free online text of Rudyard Kipling’s poem
on Imperialism, “The White Man’s Burden,” from
the History Matters website.
World Map, 1914
This website provides color-coded world map of
the colonial holdings of Belgium, Denmark, France,
German, Great Britain, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands,
Portugal, Russia, Spain, and the United States
in 1914.
America Becomes A World Power
A Gilder Lehrman Institute for American History
online learning module on American Imperialism
and the Spanish-American War.
Describe the causes and impact of the intervention
by the United States in World War I.
Photos of the Great War
Online gallery of photographs from WWI which includes images from the trenches
and the war at sea, as well as images of heads of state, politicians, military
leaders, troops, and the weapons of war.
WWI Photographs
Photos from WWI, including the battlefield and
the home front.
WWI Lesson Plans
A list of lesson plans dealing with WWI and the
materials found in the Truman
Library collection.
World War I
History Channel website with links to actual letters
written home from World
War I soldiers.
The Great War
Comprehensive PBS website for the program, “The
Great War and the Shaping
of the 20th Century,” which includes background information, summaries,
and educational resources. Appropriate for student exploration or as a helpful
guide to teachers planning lessons.
Describe the impact of social changes and
the influence of key figures in the United States
from World War
I through the 1920's, including Prohibition,
the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment, the Scopes
Trial,
immigration, the Red Scare, Susan B. Anthony,
Margaret Sanger, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, the Harlem
Renaissance,
the Great Migration, W.C. Handy, the Jazz Age,
and Zelda Fitzgerald.
The Roaring Twenties,
The Jazz Age
Website dedicated to 1920s fashions for men, women, and children. Includes
scanned pictures from contemporary magazines.
Women's Suffrage
Teaching module outlining the history of the movement
for Women's suffrage from Alexis de Tocqueville's
writings in 1840 through the passage of the
19th Amendment in 1920.
How To Dance the Charleston
A List of resources from the Homestead Museum
includes 1920's Materials at the bottom of the
page, with links to PDF versions of classroom
activities
such as "How to Dance the Charleston" or "Shopping by Mail
in the 1920's."
The
American Variety Stage: Vaudeville and Popular
Entertainment, 1870-1920
A multimedia anthology from the Library of Congress that showcases popular
entertainment forms, especially vaudeville, from 1870 to 1920. The materials
include memorabilia documenting the career of Harry Houdini, English- and Yiddish-language
play scripts, souvenir playbills and programs, theater posters, motion pictures,
and sound recordings. Many items include the bawdy humor and ethnic stereotypes
typical of the period.
Flapper Music
A website featuring popular music from the 1920's. Requires RealAudio player.
Baseball
and Jackie Robinson
American Memory Collection compilation of photographs with a timeline of the
history of baseball in America.
Negro
League Baseball
Official website of the Negro Leagues, with historical information,
Harlem: An African
American Community, 1900-1940
Online exhibition portfolio from the New York Public Library's Schomburg Center
for Research in Black Culture, which includes a timeline, linked resources,
an online version of the exhibit, and teaching resources.
The Roaring Twenties
Article from the PBS website from Ken Burns' documentary Jazz,
which focuses on jazz in the 1920s. Includes audio clips and photographs.
Culture Shock
Article from the website for the PBS program Culture Shock which summarizes
the segment on jazz, "the devil's music."
Early
Jazz
Brief description of jazz in the 1920's, from PBS's Culture Shock.
Twenties Magazine Project
Creative interdisciplinary lesson plan in which students design a magazine
for 1920s America.
Jazz Talk Discovery Channel lesson plan in which students
will analyze work songs, spirituals, blues, and
gospel songs in order to develop an appreciation
for the origins of jazz music. Grades 6-12.
Hitler's Mutual Admiration Society -
A 2003 discussion of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s
praise for Hitler’s oratorical skills in
the context of similar remarks made by other western
leaders in the 1930's impressed by the economic
turn-around in Germany.
America
and Europe Between the Wars
A workshop website from the Center for Teaching American History with links
to interwar period websites and activities.
Norton
Anthology: The Interwar Period
The Norton Anthology of American Literature introduction to the interwar period
in the United States, including historical background information and brief
discussion of literary movements.
Red Scare - Images
and Information on the first Red Scare, which followed
WWI.
Classic
Film Pages Links to websites dedicated to classic films
of the 20's and 30's
Describe social and economic conditions
from the 1920s through the Great Depression, factors
leading
to a deepening crisis, and successes and failures
associated with the programs and policies of the
New Deal.
The
Collapse of the Old Order, 1929-1949
A Houghton-Mifflin textbook site with links to maps of government types during
the 1930's, photographs, and suggested classroom activities.
The
Great Depression
A website devoted to information on the Great Depression and its international
effects.
The Great
Depression and World War II
National Archives' "Teaching With Documents" Lesson plans which use
primary source documents to teach students about the Great Depression and WWII.
Picturing
the Century
National Archives collection of photographs from the Great Depression and the
New Deal.
Hoover
Dam
PBS website dedicated to the construction of the Hoover Dam
Lesson
Ideas for the Great Depression
Article for teachers from Michigan's state website which gives lesson ideas
for teaching about the Great Depression in the context of Michigan history.
Many ideas could be modified to reflect life in your own state.
From
the Great War to the Depression
Lesson plan for using the Discovery Channel program From the Great War
to the Depression in the classroom. Grades 6-8.
Dust Bowl Days NEH lesson plan on the Dust Bowl and the government's
response to the Great Depression. Grades 3-5.
The New Deal
Network
The New Deal Network from the Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute, with
lesson plans and resources for use in the classroom.
Surviving the Dust Bowl
Interactive website from PBS based on the program “Surviving the Dust
Bowl,” with interviews, photographs, and videos available online.
The Great Depression: What
Would It Be Like Today?
In this lesson, students calculate the percentage decline in factors affecting
the quality of life such as wages and unemployment, from before the Depression
to the beginning of the New Deal. Students then calculate what the same percentage
decline for these factors would mean for their lives if it happened today.
Adaptable for grades 6-12.
Riding
the Rails
Information and lesson plans for the film “Riding the Rails,” which
discusses the plight of many teenagers during the Great Depression who lived
on the railways, hopping freight trains across the country.
America's Great Depression
Helpful source of information about the depression from an amateur historian,
with book and video lists, a timeline, and links to online collections of
photographs.
The Depression News
Michigan's History, Arts, and Libraries' gallery of information on the
Great Depression.
Great Depression Cooking
With Clara
Website of 94 year old woman who keeps a blog, a YouTube channel, and has
recently published a cookbook of frugal recipes and cooking techniques
from the Great
Depression era which she learned from her mother.
New
Deal Periodic Table
Online interactive Periodic Table of New Deal programs from the FDR Library
and Museum. Also provides a printable table for classroom use.
Dear Mrs. Roosevelt
Letters to FDR and Eleanor from young people about the Great Depression and
lesson plans for using the letters.
Explain the entry by the United States into World
War II and major military campaigns in the European
and Pacific Theaters.
Wartime
Posters
Discovery Channel lesson plan on propaganda
posters during World War II
Battle of the Bulge
PBS’s “American Experience” website
on the Battle of the Bulge. Includes a teacher's
guide, photo gallery, and interviews with survivors.
D-Day
PBS’s “American Experience” website on Normandy and D-Day
which includes a teacher's guide and other resources (maps, timeline, letters).
The Perilous Fight
PBS teacher’s guide to “The Perilous Fight: America’s World
War II in Color,” which includes lesson plans, viewing guides, and activities.
The
Decision to Drop the Bomb
Activity which has students take on and discuss four perspectives on the decision
to drop the atomic bomb. The webquest provides links for researching each perspective.
WWII Map Collection.
Collection of WWII military situation maps from the LOC American Memory Collection
Battle
of the Bulge
Interactive essay on Battle of the Bulge from the American Memory Collection
WWI & WWII Links
Links to web resources and lesson plans on WWI and WWII from Kennesaw State
University
World War II
Remembered
Scholastic.com WWII page, which offers activities, lesson plans, and resources
for teaching about WWII.
Library
of Congress-WWII
LOC Learning Page for teachers, with an overview and documents from WWII..
World War II in
Posters
Collection of WWII posters from the Truman Library website, with links to analysis
activities for most.
A Guide to World War
II Materials
A guide to all of the Library of Congress' online collections and exhibits
dealing with WWII, which includes links and brief descriptions.
July 1942: United We Stand
Website for the Smithsonian Museum of American History's collection of magazine
covers from WWII.
Battle for
Bataan
Website from New Mexico State University recounting the Battle for Bataan in
the Phillipines through timelines, artifacts, maps and online videos.
On
the Homefront
Photo Gallery and lesson activities from the Library of Congress detailing
life on the home front during WWII.
Women
and World War II
Lesson plan from TeacherVision for grades 8-12, in which students will learn
how WWII impacted the advancement of women in U.S. society.
Holocaust
WebQuest
WebQuest for grade 12, in which students investigate the Holocaust from different
perspectives.
The Diary of Anne
Frank
Middle School WebQuest covering Anne Frank, antisemitism in Nazi Germany,
and the Holocaust. (Intended for students who are studying the book.)
Holocaust
Links
Holocaust resources and links from Trumball County, Ohio's Educational Service
Center.
America and the Holocaust
PBS’s “American Experience” website on America and the Holocaust,
with timelines, maps, and other teaching resources.
Japanese Internment
Webquest
Webquest in which students form an international tribunal that charges the
US government for human rights violations following the internment of Japanese-American
citizens during WWII.
Ansell
Adams' Photographs of Manzanar
Library of Congress collection of Ansell Adam’s photographs of the Japanese-American internment
camp at Manzanar. Includes photo gallery, essay, and timeline.
Japanese Internment
Online article on the history of Japanese-American internment from history.com.
Includes a few historical photographs.
Children of the Camps
Website for the documentary, "Children of the Camps," with a history
of the internment camps, a timeline, and links to primary source documents.
Go For Broke.org
Website of the Japanese-American WWII veterans, dedicated to their history.
Includes oral histories and resources for teaching about Japanese-Americans'
involvement in WWII and Executive order 9066.
Online
Scavenger Hunt
Questions and links to sources of information for completing an online scavenger
hunt about Japanese Internment Camps.
War Relocation Camps
in Arizona
Website devoted to the history of relocation campsin
Arizona, from 1942-1946. Includes many photos and articles on life in
the camps.
Describe the international role of the United States
from 1945 through 1960 relative to the Truman Doctrine,
Marshall Plan, Berlin Blockade, and NATO.
Cold War WebQuest
WebQuest in which students act as advisors to various
presidents as they make decisions concerning the
atomic bomb, the power struggle in Iran, the Cuban
Missile Crisis, the Vietnam conflict, and dealings with the Soviet Union.
On
the Brink of War
An 11th grade WebQuest in which students search
for examples of how the Cold War affected American
culture.
Education Planet: 1950's to
present
Education Planet’s subject page for history
lesson plans from 1950 to the present day, including
many on the Cold War.
Origins of the Cold War
Digital History's Origins of the Cold War page,
with discussions of primary sources and statistics
from the Cold War
Eisenhower: The Cold War
Lesson plan for grades 9-12 in which students research
and simulate a press conference.
Soviet Archives
Exhibit
Cold War documents from the Library of Congress'
online Soviet Archives Exhibit.
The Red Scare
Wikipedia article which gives a quick overview
of the two major US Red Scares.
Academic Freedom
and the Cold War
Provides high school lesson ideas using primary
source documents and photographs to study academic
freedom at Rutgers University in NJ to understand
the Cold
War period.
National Security
Lesson plan on the Red Scare for grades 9-12 from
discovery.com. Students will investigate the
Rosenberg case and compare it to other more recent
cases of
espionage.
McCarthyism
Information, videos and lesson plans about McCarthyism
in the 1950's.
Red Scare
Images and Information
on the first Red Scare, which followed WWI.
Eisenhower
Archives
Primary documents dealing with McCarthyism
from the Eisenhower Archives
School Board Member
Research-Webquest
Links and Webquest using Red Scare, McCarthyism,
and Arthur Miller's The Crucible to investigate
the outcomes of hysteria.
The Crucible Webquest
Webquest that uses themes from The Crucible
to look at the Red Scare and McCarthyism
from various perspectives of those involved.
McCarthyism
and Hollywood
Lesson plan in which students evaluate the
impact and significance of Senator McCarthy's
House Committee on Un-American Activities
investigation of Hollywood.
Describe major domestic events and issues
of the Kennedy and Johnson Administrations.
New Frontier Speech
Text of JFK's speech accepting the Democratic Party
Nomination for President in 1960 which he describes
the "new frontier" in America.
Great Society Speech
Text of Lyndon B. Johnson's speech in which he
outlines his view of "the Great Society" and
his plans for the U.S.
Great Society Programs
List of programs and legislation that fell under
the scope of the Great Society.
Lyndon B. Johnson: The 36th President
Lesson plan in which students examine, analyze, and
evaluate the major legislation passed during the
Johnson administration as part of the Great Society.
The Apollo Program (1963-1972)
List of the Apollo missions with links to information
about each one, including photos, summaries,
etc.
Describe major foreign events and issues
of the Kennedy Presidency, including the construction
of
the Berlin Wall, the Bay of Pigs invasion, and
the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Cuban Missile Crisis
US Department of State for Youth Website's page
on the Cuban Missile Crisis. Includes a summary,
teaching activities, lesson plans, and relevant
documents and multimedia.
Opposing
Views of Vietnam
Lesson plan from Discovery Education for grades 9-12 that investigates the
views of the Nixon administration's "Vietnamization" policy and the
views of anti-war groups.
Trace events of the modern Civil Rights
Movement from post-World War II to 1970 that resulted
in social and economic changes, including the Montgomery
bus boycott, the desegregation of Little Rock Central
High School, the march on Washington, and the Freedom
Rides.
Birmingham
Civil Rights Institute
Website for BCRI, with extensive resources page, searchable archive, photo
gallery, and online exhibits on the history of the Civil Rights Movement.
Dr. Carter
G. Woodson
Brief biography of Woodson from the Dr. Carter G. Woodson African American
Museum
Civil Rights
Movement Veterans
Great site on the Civil Rights Movement, with histories, timelines, photos,
and personal stories.
The
Rise and Fall of Jim Crow
Online guide to the PBS film “The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow,” with
videos and interactive activities.
Timeline
Timeline of the Civil Rights Movement from CNN
Martin
Luther King
Archive of news and photographs of MLK and the Civil Rights Movement compiled
by the Seattle Times, with biographical information, study guides, and teaching
resources.
Eyes
on the Prize
Historical video clips from the Civil Rights Movement provided by the PBS
documentary "Eyes on the Prize" website.
Describe the Women's Movement, the Hispanic
Movement, and the Native American Movement during
the 1950s and 1960s.
The Women's Movement
Timeline and links to resources about the feminist
movement of the 1960's and 70's, including the
NOW and the ERA.
Timeline-Hispanic Movement
Timeline of important people and events in the
history of the Hispanic Movement from Washington
state's department of education.
Brief History of AIM
Summary if the American Indian Movement's history,
by the organization of the same name.
The Tumultuous Sixties
Links to summaries of major movements and social
issues of the 1960's from Digital History. Includes
feminism, the Civil Rights Movement, the American
Indian Movement, and the Hispanic Movement.
The 1960's: A Time of Contrast, Change, and Controversy
This lesson explores the 1960s and the contrasts,
changes, and controversies that occurred during
the period. The teacher will present an overview
of the cultural and social aspects of the period.
Students will choose a person, event, or area involved
in the decade. Each student will research his/her
topic and present the research in a brochure, flyer,
newsletter, or PowerPoint presentation using the
appropriate technology.
Trace significant foreign policies and
issues of presidential administrations from Richard
Nixon to the present.
Digital History
Timeline
Timeline of important events in American history; scroll down for dates from
1970's.
Decade Timeline
Timeline of the 1970's, with photos of important figures.
Revisiting
Watergate
Washington Post website that covers the history of the Watergate scandal
in news articles and photos.
American Cultural History
Overview of American culture in the 1970's, with links to online resources.
1980's
Primary Sources
Digital History links to documents from the 1980's which deal with news events
such as the Challenger explosion and the attempted assassination of Ronald
Reagan.
1980's Timeline
Timeline with links to more information about important events of the 1980's.
Project
Topics
Suggested project topics for the 1980's, with links to more information about
each one.
Ronald
Reagan Presidential Library
Website for Reagan's Presidential library, with online exhibits and documents
detailing important events during his presidency.
Impeachment
of Bill Clinton
University of Missouri-Kansas Law School's "Famous Trials" page
for Clinton's Impeachment trial. Includes documents, articles, images,
and a chronology.
Teaching9-11.org
A great source for information and lesson plans for grades K-12
Dealing With
Tragedy in the Classroom
Lesson plan for grades 1-5 that seeks to help students deal with tragedy,
in this case, September 11th. While students today are not dealing with shock
in the immediate wake of the attack, this lesson could be modified for use
in other tragic circumstances (more recently WV mining disaster, earthquakes,
tornados, or the continuing war in Afghanistan, etc.)
Scholastic
Teacher's Guide - We have put together a
collection of Katrina links, including some handy
resources that encourage kids to help with the
relief effort.
CNN Report
Hurricane Katrina page on CNN.com, with photographs, articles, personal stories,
etc.
