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Listed below are links to assignment instructions, their skill type, and a short description of each. If you are absent on CYOA days, you can find the CYOA choices for that day under History Unit Guides and then print the instructions below as needed. |
 | Detective Skill Type Assignments with this symbol require students to investigate historical facts and present their findings clearly and logically. |  | Artist Skill Type Assignments with this symbol require students to use their artistic skills and creativity to present history to others in unique ways. |  | Empath Skill Type Assignments with this symbol require students to imagine themselves in historical situations and write about how they would have reacted. |  | Special Assignments These assignments rquire students to use all three of the above skills to create complex projects that appeal to many people. |
20-30 Minute (Half-Period) Assignments Name | Type | Description | Acrostic Poem |
| A word from the unit is written vertically and then each letter is used to start each line of a descriptive poem. Usable in any unit. | | Advertisement | | Create a print advertisement for an invention from the time period. | Annotated Illustration | | Draw a picture of a historical object and annotate it with captions. | Be The Thing | | Write a short explanation of life experiences as if you were a particular object from history (for example: Da Vinci's paintbrush). | Bio-poem | | Complete a poem with a pre-made layout about a specific person (or group) in history. Requires detailed information about the figure. | Bio Box | | Create a 3-dimensional cube where each of the six sides contain information and images about a historical figure. | Bumper Sticker | | Create a bumper sticker about a specific topic. Usable in any unit. Requires high creativity. | Bubbles | | Graphically organize information in a series of connected circles (or bubbles). | Cause and Effect Chain | | Describe two causes and two effects of a historical event. Requires any event with obvious causes and effects. | Countdown | | Write about 5 important people, places, or things... 4 review questions, 3 interesting facts you learned this unit, 2 topics you’d like to learn more about, and draw 1 picture. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1! | Day Planner |
| Write out the daily schedule for a person living in a historical civilization. | Gravestone | | Design the epitaph and gravestone for a famous figure. Requires some knowledge and/or research about the figure. | In N' Out | | Complete a graphic organizer highlighting the influences and contributions of a given society or person. | Picture Analysis | | Answer a series of thought-provoking questions about a single photograph or piece of art. | Picture Frame | | Create a graphic organizer in the shape of a picture frame about a historical figure. | Postcard |
| Make a postcard as if you were visiting an ancient civilization. | Report Card | | Give grades to a historical figure based on certain subjects assigned by your teacher. Highly recommended. | TXT MSG SumRE | | Write a summary of a historical event in the form of a text message. | Venn Diagram | | Complete a Venn Diagram to compare and contrast two historical figures, events or civilizations. | Wanted Poster | | Create a wanted (or hero) poster for a figure in history. | You Are There Letter | | Write a letter to a historical figure giving them advice on a problem they are facing. |
50-60 Minute (Full Period) Assignments
Name | Type | Description | Brain Chain |
| List 10 imporant people, events, concepts, etc. and then create conceptual links between them. This assignment is a simplified form of the Mind Map assignment and is a good way to introduce linking concepts. | Circle Summary |
| Complete a graphic organizer as a unit summary by writing and drawing about the Government, Economics, Technology, Society, and Geography of a culture. | Character Clash |
| Choose two people (or groups of people) we learned about this unit and complete a short poem for each. Basically, you’ll make two bio-poems. | Creative Line Art |
| Using a picture with random shapes and scribbles, create a scene depicting something we studied in the unit. Highly recommended. | Flash Cards | | Create flashcards for four key terms from a unit. | Illustrated
Map | | Draw a map and add captions or small pictures to bring the map to life. | Illustrated
Timeline | | Draw a timeline and add captions or small pictures to bring it to life. | Instant Message | | Create an instant message conversation between two historical figures about a historic event. | Introduction Speech | | Write and recite an introductory speech for a historical figure. May require some extra research about the figure. | Invitation |
| Create an invitation (the who, what, when, where, what to bring, etc.) to a historical event we studied during the unit. | Legal Brief |
| Write a legal defense for a historical figure. | MindGame | | Create 2 six-sided dice with important people, places, events, places, or concepts from the unit (instead of numbers). Then roll the dice and race your partner to come up with a list of intelligent connections. Play several rounds and keep track of your connections. | Recipe for a Civilization |
| Write a recipe with a list of ingredients it would take to create a given civilization or culture. This requires abstract or metaphorical thinking. If you don't know what "abstract" or "metaphorical" means, then do not attempt this assignment. | Song Rewrite | | Rewrite the lyrics to a song to make them about a historical period. | Trading Cards |
| Create 3 historical trading cards based on the important people, events, or objects we learned about this unit. | Wordle |
| Create artistic representations of the most important concepts in a unit. This assignment is based on the website www.wordle.net Check it out to get a better idea of how the assignment should look. | Worlds Collide |
| Draw pictures contrasting key points of two civilizations. One of the shorter full day assignments. | You Are There Diary | | Write a series of diary entries as if you were a certain historical figure going through an assigned event. |
2 Hour (Two Period) Assignments
Name | Type | Description | Comic Strip | | Create a 6-8 panel comicstrip that tells the story of something we learned about this unit. | Create a Crossword |
| Make your own crossword puzzle. Usable in any unit. | HiStory |
| Write a creative fictional story using key terms and figures from the unit. | HiStoryboard |
| Create a storyboard layout for a movie based on a historical event. | Movie Madness |
| Use art and writing to recreate a given unit as a movie. Design a movie poster and write a movie review. | Myspace | | Create a Myspace page for a historical figure. Highly Recommended. | One-pager |
| Design a one page magazine-style cover for a section of the textbook. | Paper Bag Puppet |
| Create a puppet of a historical figure along with a list of statements that person would or did say. | Picture Book | | Create a children's book about a given topic. | Play | | Write and perform a short play about a historical event. Completed in pairs or small groups. | Travel Brochure | | Create a six-panel foldout brochure that highlights the history, hot spots, and accommodations of a society we have studied. | Web Page |
| Create a web page about a specific topic from a unit. | What If |
| Create a textbook page showing how history would be different if an historical detail was changed. |
Special Assignments
Name | Type | Description | A-Z History Book |
| Working with a partner create a picture book for 24-26 key terms from a unit, each starting with a different letter of the Alphabet. You must have an "A" or teacher permission to attempt this. | Board Game |
| Create a board game about a period in history. This is much more difficult than you think, so students must have an "A" or teacher permission to attempt this. | Mind Map | | Create a large word cluster using terms from a given unit. They write sentences explaining why you made certain connections. The Brain Chain assignment is a simplified form of this one. | Model & Report |
| Write a report on and build a model of a technological achievement from history. You must have an "A" or teacher permission to attempt this. | Newscast | | Working with a group of 3 or 4 other students film a short newscast presentation on a historical event. You and your partners must have an "A" or teacher permission to attempt this. | Newspaper | | Working with a group of 3 or 4 other students create a newspaper with multiple articles and elements on a period in history. You must have an "A" or teacher permission to attempt this. | Slideshow Presentation |
| Create a PowerPoint presentation on a historical topic. |
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