Students will investigate what it means to be an American in 2026 by analyzing foundational U.S. documents, examining the struggles of diverse groups, and interviewing a family member or friend over age 30. They will develop open-ended questions, practice empathetic listening, and use interview and historical evidence to create a clear claim in a short oral-history documentary. Through milestone reflections, peer critique, teacher feedback, and revision, students will strengthen historical thinking, collaboration, communication, empathy, and confidence. Students will present their documentaries at the Our American Stories Expo and share a final reflection on how their understanding of American identity and their own growth changed.

Students will analyze and compare foundational U.S. documents and literature to identify themes, purposes, rhetoric, rights, responsibilities, and contested ideals of American identity. Students will collaboratively design open-ended questions, interview a family member or friend over 30, and practice empathetic listening, note-taking, and evidence gathering. Students will create and revise a short documentary that presents a clear claim about being American in 2026, synthesizing oral-history evidence with historical sources and struggles of diverse groups. Through milestone reflections, peer and teacher critique, and the Our American Stories Expo, students will assess their growth in historical thinking, accuracy, empathy, communication, and confidence.

Students will create an American identity gallery-walk response, annotated evidence notes from foundational U.S. documents, open-ended interview questions, and brief written or recorded milestone reflections. They will interview a family member or friend over 30 and produce interview notes or a recording that captures the person’s experiences and definition of being American in 2026. Students will develop a claim-driven script and storyboard connecting the oral history to U.S. ideals and historically marginalized groups, then revise them through small-group critique and teacher feedback on a draft documentary. Final products will include a short oral-history documentary and an oral or written reflection on growth in historical thinking, listening, empathy, and confidence, shared at the Our American Stories Expo.

Begin with a “What Makes an American?” gallery walk featuring photographs, quotations, brief artifacts, and excerpts from the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and Bill of Rights alongside examples of different groups’ struggles for rights and belonging. Students record patterns, tensions, surprises, and questions, then discuss how the sources define American identity differently. Introduce the questions, “What does it mean to be an American in 2026?” and “How can an oral history interview and short documentary help explain it?” Students write or record an initial reflection and identify a family member or friend over 30 whose experiences could add perspective to the inquiry.

Host an “Our American Stories Expo” where students set up viewing stations for their short documentaries. Classmates, teachers, and the adults interviewed rotate through the stations, viewing each film and leaving brief feedback about a compelling historical connection or new perspective on American identity. Students introduce their work, answer questions, and share how the interview changed their thinking. Conclude with a class celebration that highlights recurring themes, differing viewpoints, and the essential question: What does it mean to be an American in 2026?