US History · Week 10 · Industrialization, Immigration, and Reform
Titans of Industry
Students weigh whether leaders like Carnegie and Rockefeller were captains of industry or robber barons and practice judging evidence rather than labels.
- Students will
- Students discuss how mergers produced trusts and weigh whether industrial leaders were captains of industry or robber barons by evaluating competition and evidence instead of labels.
- SEL skill
- Pause on a label like robber baron and check the evidence before deciding
- What it looks like
- Students practice using emotions to think by noticing when a label triggers a quick reaction and slowing down to check evidence.
- Content focus
- Titans of industry
- Format
- Structured discussion
Responsible decision-making
Responsible decision-making means making caring, constructive choices by thinking about ethics, safety, and consequences. More responsible decision-making activities
What you get
A teacher guide with what to say, step by step, plus student pages and a supports page for students with diverse learning needs, including those with IEPs. Print or Project it, or assign it in Google Forms and Google Docs for Google Classroom. Your first 10 activities are free.
Standards
- 11.2.5: CA History Social Science Content Standard, Grade 11: United States History and Geography: Continuity and Change in the Twentieth Century (standard 11.2, item 5)
- CA HSS Analysis Skill: HREP3 Evaluate major debates among historians about alternative interpretations of the past. (Historical Research, Evidence, and Point of View)
- C3 Framework (national): D2.Eco.4.9-12 Evaluate the extent to which competition among sellers and buyers exists in specific markets.
- Literacy in history: RH.11-12.8 Assess the extent to which the reasoning and evidence in a text support the author's claims.
Fits these textbook chapters
- History Alive! Pursuing American Ideals, Chapter 8: Changes in a Young Nation
- History Alive! Pursuing American Ideals, Chapter 13: The Age of Innovation and Industry
- History Alive! Pursuing American Ideals, Chapter 14: Labor's Response to Industrialism
- History Alive! Pursuing American Ideals, Chapter 18: Progressivism on the National Stage
- History Alive! Pursuing American Ideals, Chapter 27: The Politics of Normalcy
- History Alive! Pursuing American Ideals, Chapter 30: The Causes of the Great Depression
Textbook names are used only to help you find activities that fit what you teach. RoseThread Connect is not affiliated with these publishers.
More responsible decision-making activities for US History
- Freedom of Conscience Responsible decision-makingStudents examine the Establishment and Free Exercise clauses and the ongoing debate over church and state, weighing several perspectives before forming a view.
- Becoming a World Power Responsible decision-makingStudents map the Spanish American War and expansion in the Pacific, including Filipino and Native Hawaiian perspectives, and weigh the costs of a choice for everyone it affects.
- New Deal Debates Responsible decision-makingStudents weigh arguments for and against New Deal programs, including the Central Valley Project that reshaped California water, and practice evaluating a policy by its intended and unintended effects.
- The Atomic Decision Responsible decision-makingStudents weigh the arguments made for and against dropping atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and practice holding a difficult decision with care and humility.
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RoseThread Connect activities are drafted with the help of AI and shaped by educators. Students never have to share anything personal. Our five SEL skills are informed by CASEL's SEL Framework; RoseThread Learning is not affiliated with or endorsed by CASEL.