Educator Resources

Showing 80 results for HAFE ...

Harpers Ferry National Historical Park

The Battle of Harpers Ferry, 1862: Harpers Ferry is the Key!

Type: Teacher Reference Materials
Grade Levels: Middle School: Sixth Grade through Eighth Grade

When war broke out in April 1861, Harpers Ferry was still producing weapons for the U.S. Government, but that spring, the Confederates dismantled both weapons’ factories and sent the machines south. Teachers will find three resources for use in the classroom: a drawing of a Civil War soldier, list of items soldiers carried or wore, and a map of Northern Virginia and part of Maryland.

Harpers Ferry National Historical Park

Rats in a Cage Readers' Theatre

Type: Student Activities
Grade Levels: Middle School: Sixth Grade through Eighth Grade

In Rats in a Cage! students will learn about the mid-September 1862 Battle/Siege of Harpers Ferry through a dramatic representation. Using the provided script, students will assume the roles of some of the most important Union and Confederate soldiers, and some civilians, during that event.

Harpers Ferry National Historical Park

Water Power: Field Trip

Type: Field Trips
Grade Levels: High School: Ninth Grade through Twelfth Grade

The physical and historical geography of the Harpers Ferry area demonstrates how landscapes shape human history and how human endeavors profoundly affect natural landscapes—a powerful reminder that the actions of today determine the opportunities of tomorrow.

Harpers Ferry National Historical Park

John Brown’s Raid: Readers' Theatre

Type: Student Activities
Grade Levels: High School: Ninth Grade through Twelfth Grade

In this Readers' Theatre, students will learn why John Brown chose Harpers Ferry as the objective for his October 1859 raid, an event that was to be the beginning of the end of slavery in the U.S. They will also discover what happened during and after the raid, and have the opportunity to debate the question: Would you have joined John Brown’s raiders?

Harpers Ferry National Historical Park

The Battle of Harpers Ferry 1862: Joining Up!

Type: Lesson Plan
Grade Levels: Middle School: Sixth Grade through Eighth Grade

Harpers Ferry National Historical Park

The Battle of Harpers Ferry 1862: Joining Up!

Type: Lesson Plan
Grade Levels: Upper Elementary: Third Grade through Fifth Grade

Harpers Ferry National Historical Park

Incident at Harpers Ferry: Slavery and John Brown

Type: Lesson Plan
Grade Levels: Middle School: Sixth Grade through Eighth Grade

In this lesson, students will share their thoughts on slavery, examine how our country dealt with this institution, consider how both pro-slavery elements and abolitionists looked at slavery and why, and learn a little about John Brown’s early life - in particular, his activities out in Kansas in the years 1855 – 1857. Students will then be able to answer the following essential question: What was slavery like in the antebellum United States?

Rocky Mountain National Park

Every Rock Has a Story

Type: Distance Learning
Grade Levels: Upper Elementary: Third Grade through Fifth Grade

Don't take these rocks for granite! Students will become geologists who learn how to describe and identify rocks by their family-sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic. Students will apply their knowledge to uncover the geologic story of Rocky Mountain National Park.

Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park

War Has Been Declared: Elementary Lesson Plan

Type: Lesson Plan
Grade Levels: Upper Elementary: Third Grade through Fifth Grade

Students create a timeline of events leading to the Civil War based on a series of articles from the National Park Service. Students will explore the issue of slavery as a major cause starting with the Missouri Compromise, The Dred Scott Decision, The Election of Lincoln, John Brown's Raid, and the numerous states secessions. Then, students become part of a regiment and complete hands-on activities as they discover the structure of an army.

Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park

War Has Been Declared: Middle School Lesson Plan

Type: Lesson Plan
Grade Levels: Middle School: Sixth Grade through Eighth Grade

Students analyze the primary document, the Emancipation Proclamation and how it affected the Civil War and southern states. They work in teams to creatively share learned information from NPS videos about one of the final pushes in the Civil War, the Atlanta Campaign through Georgia. They listen to and draw meaning from soldier and author, Ambrose Bierce.

Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park

Conflicting Values: John Brown and Adin Ballou

Type: Lesson Plan
Grade Levels: High School: Ninth Grade through Twelfth Grade

This lesson plan invites students to consider the conflicting views of leading abolitionists in the years leading to the Civil War. There is a special focus on Adin Ballou, a Practical Christian who advocated for non-resistance, and leaders who supported violent tactics.   

Chapter 4 Lesson Plan: The Watsons Go to Birmingham 1963

Type: Lesson Plan
Grade Levels: Middle School: Sixth Grade through Eighth Grade

NPS Employee talking to a group of children in Harpers Ferry National Historical Park. She wears the 1962 women's uniform with badge and pill box hat. She is not wearing the uniform coat. NPS History Collection photo by M. Woodbridge Williams.

John Fitzgerald Kennedy National Historic Site

"The Measure of a Man's Success in Life is Not the Money He's Made. It's the Kind of Family He Has Raised.": Separating the Myth from Reality in the Life and Times of Joseph Patrick Kennedy Sr.

Type: Lesson Plan
Grade Levels: High School: Ninth Grade through Twelfth Grade

This lesson plan allows high school students to identify who Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. was and his role in United States history. Students will examine Kennedy family photographs, letters from Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. to his family, and quotes from Joseph P. Kennedy Sr., to form their understanding of his influence. Students will evaluate the ways in which historians form complex understandings of controversial historical figures.

Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park

A Nation Divided: Elementary School Lesson Plan

Type: Lesson Plan
Grade Levels: Upper Elementary: Third Grade through Fifth Grade

How did our young nation become so angry at each other? Students explore the word "infuriated" and how these emotions led to the Civil War. Students read and analyze excerpts from Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin. They work together to read and analyze an NPS article explaining a timeline of John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry, Virginia. They share perspectives on why these two events led to a Civil War and explore alternate methods to violence.

Booker T Washington National Monument

Clash of the Titans

Type: Lesson Plan
Grade Levels: Middle School: Sixth Grade through Eighth Grade

Students will examine philosophies of Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois and gain insight into what motivated these men to act, in what they felt was the best interest of African Americans of the period. Activities included will enable students to investigate, research, & participate in meaningful learning experiences. They will build a strong foundation in communication skills, research techniques, computer skills, writing, and thinking in terms of multiple points of view.

Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace National Historic Site

Theodore’s Childhood Influences

Type: Lesson Plan
Grade Levels: Middle School: Sixth Grade through Eighth Grade

This lesson has students examine how childhood has a lasting impact throughout life.

Charles Young Buffalo Soldiers National Monument

The Sound of Buffalo Soldiers! A Musical Bridge to Communities

Type: Guest Speakers
Grade Levels: Adult Education

How has music influenced your connection to a community? Throughout the history of the United States military, music has been part of the sound experience of soldiers. For the Buffalo Soldiers, music also served as a tool to build a connection to the communities they served.

Petroglyph National Monument