LESSON PLANS

See below for a full list of the lesson plans available in this section.

Episode Specific Lessons

Below are links to lesson plans that are directly related to a specific History Detective episode.

Cardboard History is based on the 2005 episode Jim Thorpe Ticket and uses the streaming video Collecting Sports Memorabilia. From baseball cards to Barbie dolls, a collector finds joy in investigating and treasure hunting.

Home Sweet Home is based on the 2003 episode “Oregon” which included the investigations Mark Twain Watch, Philip Sheridan House and Revolutionary War Poems. Use architecture as inspiration and means to learn about one's own town history.

Inventions is based on the 2005 episode Car Tape Deck and uses the streaming video Nazi Technology. Explore the future drawn from the past. Design, invent, demonstrate, and share!

Primary Sources is based on the 2005 episode Cherokee Bible. Determine credibility, ascertain originality, verify reliability, identify surrounding history, and utilize in your investigative research.

Non–episode Specific Lessons

Below are links to lesson plans that are not directly related to a specific History Detectives episode.

Field Trip can be used to investigate any topic. Follow this guide and encourage students to become an investigator, historian, archaeologist, architect, geographer, or environmentalist.

Written In Stone uses the streaming video History of Writing. Just visit your local cemetery to look, learn, and reveal the past!

Go to PBS Teachers for more than 3000+ lesson plans and activities.