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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Slave Trade

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students map and explore a possible slave trade route. In this slave trade mapping lesson, students calculate the distance and amount of time it would take for African slaves to arrive in America.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Learning the Blues

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students become familiar with the characteristic form and sound of the blues, then learn about the history and evolution of the blues in relationship to the African-American experience. Students examine the structure and language of...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Civil War Soldier's Experience

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students examine the social experiences of the soldiers on the battlefield. Using various viewpoints, they compare their daily life experiences and motives for fighting for the Confederate, Union and African-American soldiers. They...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Gullah People of the Sea Islands

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students examine the history and culture of the Gullah people. They study the geography, impact of industrialization and effects of tourism on the people of Gullah. They view films, use a large map of West Africa,. Students will listen...
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Activity
Weekly Story Book

Folk Tales and Fables

For Teachers 3rd - 6th Standards
Pages and pages of engaging activities, worksheets, and writing projects on teaching folktales and fables await you! You don't want to miss this incredible resource that not only includes a wide range of topics and graphic organizers,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Looking Closer: The Artwork of Shinique Smith

For Teachers 9th - 12th
A critical discussion regarding the nature of Shinique Smith's second-hand clothing art is the foundation for the lesson. Critical thinkers fully analyze the meaning behind her work, taking close consideration of where the clothing came...
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Lesson Plan
Penguin Books

Folklore and Fairytales: A Guide to Using Traditional Tales and Reimagined Classics

For Teachers K - 8th Standards
Every culture has its own stories to tell. An interesting educator's guide shares a large collection of fairytales and folktales, some from different cultures and some re-creations of classics. A summary and brief teaching ideas...
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Worksheet
K12 Reader

Proper Adjectives

For Students 3rd - 6th Standards
Introduce your class to proper adjectives while reinforcing proper nouns. For this quick exercise, learners find the proper noun in each sentence and find the matching proper adjective in the provided word bank.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Immigration Unit

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders develop an appreciate for the various cultures that are present in their local community. Through reading and research, they explain how various culture came to live in their area. At the conclusion of the unit, 3rd...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

International Women's Day 100th Anniversary Nobel Laureate Wangari Maathai: Shaking the Tree

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students explore the significance of International Women's Day. In this women's history lesson, students read excerpt of Wangari Maathai's acceptance speech for the Nobel Peace Prize and analyze the lyrics of "Shaking the Tree," by Peter...
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Blues Music

For Students 3rd - 7th
In this music history learning exercise, students will read 4 paragraphs about the history of Blues. Then students will answer six questions using complete sentences.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Boys of Baraka

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students view a video about the experience of boys from West Africa in the American school system. They discover how one's environment can affect them in the classroom. They write about the experience from different points of view.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Slavery in the Antebellum South

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students discuss Stephen Foster's depiction of slavery. Using the internet, they discover what the life of a slave was really like in the antebellum South. As a class, they discuss contemporary arguments for and against slavery.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

P.O.W.: Products of War

For Teachers 10th
Tenth graders are introduced to concepts of war through musical lyrics. They demonstrate and understanding of the role of segregation in US military policy and practice.
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Blues Music

For Students 5th - 12th
In this blues music worksheet, students read a brief description of this genre of music and then respond to 6 short answer questions regarding the information presented in this worksheet.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Million Man March

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Learners investigate the founding and applications of having The Million Man March while writing about the founder Louis Farrakhan. They communicate the intentions of the march that included the responsibility men are to take for the...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Self Reliance

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
Students thinking is stimulated and has them reflect on looking after themselves and to not always rely on others for your needs. A story is read to them or they read it and reflect on the it. They put on a play in a small group and...
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Handout
Other

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum: Charley Pride

For Students 9th - 10th
Provides the life story of African American country music superstar, Charley Pride, a 2000 inductee into the Country Music Hall of Fame. Click on the arrows to listen to him singing three songs.
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Website
PBS

Pbs: Sweet Old Song (The Music of Howard "Louie Bluie" Armstrong)

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn about and listen to jazz, blues, folk, and country musician Howard "Louie Bluie" Armstrong and his roots in America's musical past. "Sweet Old Song" tells the story of the music and art partnership between Armstrong and his...
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Website
PBS

Pbs: American Experience: Riding the Rails

For Students 9th - 10th
Stories of homeless teenagers during the Great Depression who crisscrossed the country by illegally riding on trains. Click on the sidebar for information about the film "Riding the Rails" available from PBS, including a transcript of...
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Lesson Plan
Yale University

Yale New Haven Teachers Institute: How to Blues

For Teachers 6th - 8th
This site has ten lessons to teach about the blues in which students learn the geography, historical events and performers associated with the blues. The unit has been recognized by the American Music Education Initiative as one of the...