This article describes 10 recommendations for creativity, higher-order thinking, and meaningful learning activities that can be used to guide teachers in constructing an engaging AP course: (1) Be on the committee that decides how students will be selected for AP; (2) Maximize time and connections through blocks of time with an English colleague;…

Students have frequently expressed curiosity about the way past events involving the United States were viewed by other nations. For instance, students have often wondered how World War II is presented to students in Germany, or what students in Japan learn about the dropping of the atomic bombs. To help his students look at events from a global…

Describes the author's methods of teaching a high school course on the Vietnam War. The methods encourage student participation in discussions, role playing, and the questioning of guest speakers. Includes a list of written and audio visual materials used in the course. (GEA)

Senior high social studies students discuss how people who lived during the Great Depression viewed the future and then, coming back to the present, predict how 13 new industrial inventions of today may affect life a hundred years from now. (RM)

U.S. history is an ideal subject in which to inculcate skepticism and to teach critical thinking skills. High school students who read and analyze rival interpretations of history come to expect that there is more than one viewpoint to most historical topics. Sample lessons are presented. (RM)

Hersey humanizes the horror of Hiroshima by describing the experiences of five survivors. Twenty senior high students in a U.S. history course were divided into five teams, one for each survivor, and asked to write a case history of that individual, make an oral presentation, and draw the victim's picture. (RM)

Focusing upon Franklin D. Roosevelt and Adolf Hitler, these lessons for high school students in U.S. or world history courses deal with what charismatic leadership is, what circumstances and personality factors generate charismatic movements, and the role, results, and dangers of charismatic leadership. (RM)

A high school student discusses symptoms of Americans' lack of interest in pursuing their dreams. The American dream has been replaced for many by the need for financial security. The decline of the American dream is reflected in our political leadership and in the decline in importance of intellectual pursuits. (RM)

Describes a seven-week course on the Vietnam War. Tells how simulation exercises, guest speakers, primary sources, and period songs were used to heighten and maintain student interest. (GEA)

High school students can study the life of Franklin Delano Roosevelt using primary and secondary sources, including biographies, autobiographies, diaries, interviews, and memoirs. Afterwards, students should prepare their own evaluative essays on Roosevelt. This approach will help them to understand a highly complex president. (CS)

In this learning activity, secondary and college students analyze case studies regarding diplomatic privileges and immunities. They evaluate the testimony, criticize or support the outcome of each case, and recommend changes in international laws. The teacher then provides a status report on current diplomatic law. (RM)

Describes the use of a unit on immigration implemented at two high schools in Minneapolis, Minnesota, to help students from different backgrounds relate to one another. Explains the authentic assessment task in which students charted data about the immigration of their families and analyzed the data for trends. (CMK)

Explores the world of textbook preparation, focusing on the revision of "A History of the United States" by Daniel Boorstin and Brooks Kelley. Describes the process of revising each paragraph in a selected section of the book. Surveys the concerns of teachers regarding textbooks and the interests of the students who use them. (GEA)

Presents a high school lesson plan to teach students that democratic citizenship is not passive and to prepare them to take part in grassroots education and action. Presents a historical overview of campaign-finance debates and a series of activities that use this material to engage students in their own debates. (DSK)

Contends that during the Great Depression the federal government gave the visual arts unprecedented support. Presents a classroom lesson on a public controversy regarding a Works Progress Administration sponsored mural in an Idaho city. Includes teaching suggestions, recommended topics for student projects, and four primary sources. (CFR)