Resource Library
Find compelling classroom resources, learn new teaching methods, meet standards, and make a difference in the lives of your students.
We are grateful to The Hammer Family Foundation for supporting the development of our on-demand learning and teaching resources.
![A group of high school students sit at desks in conversation.](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_480/public/2023-10/AdobeStock_254378868.jpg?itok=f6YAphey)
Introducing Our US History Curriculum Collection
Draw from this flexible curriculum collection as you plan any middle or high school US history course. Featuring units, C3-style inquiries, and case studies, the collection will help you explore themes of democracy and freedom with your students throughout the year.
Socratic Seminar
A Socratic Seminar invites students to facilitate a discussion in order to work together toward a shared understanding of a text.
![Two students sitting in a classroom with one student talking and gesturing](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Chicago_Classroom_2018_%20FH151349.jpg?h=c3635fa2&itok=DKqBQANg)
SPAR (Spontaneous Argumentation)
Use this debate-style activity to strengthen students’ ability to use evidence and examples to defend their positions.
![Two students sitting in a classroom with one student talking](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/NewEngland_Classroom_2017_FH256621.jpg?h=2992ba0a&itok=Dyb7d21_)
Think-Pair-Share
Think-Pair-Share activities facilitate thoughtful group discussions by having students first reflect individually and discuss their ideas with a partner.
![Two students talking in a classroom](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Chicago_Classroom_2018_%20FH151324.jpg?h=c3635fa2&itok=VDhPgu6s)
Two-Column Note-Taking
Use this teaching strategy to help students learn how to take notes by identifying "key ideas" in one column and their "responses" in another column.
![Two students writing in a classroom](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Chicago_Classroom_2019_FH2101676.jpg?h=c11c9c1d&itok=TlOy-GAQ)
Two-Minute Interview
Students interview classmates to gather evidence and ideas about a topic as they practice being active listeners.
![Students in two lines facing and talking to each other.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Memphis_Classroom_2015_FH221012.jpg?h=10d202d3&itok=7muXHc1M)
Café Conversations
Students practice perspective-taking by representing the point of view of an assigned personality in a small-group discussion.
![Five students sit around a table in discussion](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Chicago_Classroom_2019_%20FH2101461.jpg?h=0f4230fa&itok=UwjT0kqz)
Assigning Roles for Group Work
Make your students’ group work more effective by giving each member a specific role to fill.
![Four students at their desks, working in a group.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-07/Chicago_Classroom_2019_FH2101383.jpg?h=56d0ca2e&itok=spLBW7yj)
Studs Terkel Interview with Virginia Foster Durr
In an interview with Studs Terkel, Virginia Foster Durr, a prominent American civil rights activist, reflects on life during the Great Depression, particularly the way that people on government relief felt shame and guilt over their own suffering and poverty, rather than blaming the capitalist system.
![Mockingbird Graphic.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/WebRedesign_Wrapper-card_Mockingbird.jpeg?h=24afd704&itok=qskeXCqD)
Ben Railton on the Freeman and Walker Cases
Professor Ben Railton shares the stories of Elizabeth Freeman and Quock Walker, two enslaved people who successfully sued for their freedom in the early years of the American republic.
![Mum Bett, aka Elizabeth Freeman, aged 70. Painted by Susan Ridley Sedgwick, aged 23. Watercolor on ivory, painted circa 1812.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-07/1812_MumBett_FH294179.jpg?h=cfcb6255&itok=p5-2ckyF)