Library of Virginia
Antebellum Freedom
From indentured servitude to involuntary race-based servitude, slavery has taken many forms in American history. Class members examine three manumission petitions that reveal how the rights of African Americans and African American...
PBS
Hidden Messages in Spirituals
Slaves laboring in the cotton fields of the old South singing joyously may have convinced overseers that their workforce was happy and content, but in truth, these spirituals contained secret codes. After viewing a short video about...
National Park Service
Lesson 3: Resistance
During the time of slavery, resistance was a way of life for the men and women held in bondage. Using music as evidence of their fight against oppression, learners explore how enslaved people fought back. Writing prompts round out the...
Curated OER
What price Freedom! Civil War and Reconstruction
Fifth graders become familiar with the events of Reconstruction and the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments. In this reconstruction lesson, 5th graders work in pairs where each student creates a building with blocks and draws it. Their...
Curated OER
AFRICAN-AMERICAN HOMESTEADERS
Students analyze the factors that inhibited and fostered African American attempts to improve their lives during Reconstruction, the role of class, race, gender, and religion in western communities, and the challenges diverse people...
Curated OER
Apartheid and Segregation
Young scholars view a television program that depicts the history South African Apartheid and the United States' system of segregation. They discuss how laws were used to uphold these institutions and compare and contrast racism and...
Curated OER
Separate is Not Equal: Brown v. Board of Education
Learners analyze photographs that feature segregation. In this human rights lesson, students examine photographs of a segregated movie theater, a Ku Klux Klan gathering, a segregated business sign, and an illustration from "Harper's...
Curated OER
Health: Emotional Effects of Segregation
Students examine the emotional effects that African Americans experienced in the 1960's and make a connection between segregation and racism. In this segregation lesson students divide into groups, discuss the movie then complete and...
Curated OER
Discrimination and the Struggle for Equality: African Americans in Professional Baseball: A Reflection of the Civil Rights Movement
Students develop the ability to research individuals and summarize the basic information on that person's life. They design a logo and graphic setting for a particular set of cards and create a set of trading cards of Negro League...
Curated OER
African-American Folktales
Students are introduced to the characteristics of folktales and their purpose. As a class, they listen to a folktale, answer questions about the characters and share which part they enjoyed the best. In groups, they compare and...
Curated OER
Resistance to African American Education During and After the Civil War
Students research a web site of primary documents to determine the level of support among whites in for the education of African Americans during Reconstruction.
Curated OER
Social Studies: The Black West
Students assess the influence of African Americans in the western United States from the sixteenth century to the present. They examine the Black-Spanish heritage, slavery and freedom on the frontier, along with African American...
Curated OER
Rationalizing Race in US History
Students consider the classification of people. In this race studies lesson, students examine the concept of race as it relates to U.S. history and trends. Students research racial discrimination and prejudice in order to support their...
Curated OER
Sharing Compliments- King Day
Students research Martin Luther King Jr. In this African-American history lesson, students read the book A Picture Book of Martin Luther King, Jr. and discuss how he was a philanthropist. Students use kind words towards each other...
Curated OER
History Review: Colonial America
Explore key moments in American history with the click of a mouse! Learners read 50 questions from different eras in early America, and watch the rest of the presentation to find more questions to answer.
Curated OER
Criminal or Hero
Young scholars investigate slavery in America circa the American Revolution. They will examine point- of view and perspective as they research a variety of informational resources. While this is designed to be used with the PBS video...
Curated OER
African Folktales
Students read African folktales. In this literature lesson plan, students share prior knowledge about South Africa, Morocco, and Nigeria. Then students work in groups to read an assigned African folktale and answer response questions...
Curated OER
Children's Literature and African American Culture
Third graders examine various stories and poems and identify characteristics that make each individual unique. After analyzing the readings, they create their own personality poems to accompany self-portrait drawings. The poems and...
Curated OER
Who's Who In Black History
Fourth graders examine the life and achievements of promident African-Americans. As a class, they participate in acting out various scenes of a play which represents the Civil Rights era. They discuss how the world might be different...
Curated OER
The Story of Ruby Bridges
Ruby Bridges' walk into the William Franz Elementary broke racial barriers and propelled the Civil Rights Movement forward.
Curated OER
Sojourner Truth
Students research Sojourner Truth. In this African-American history lesson, students read the speech "Ain't I A Woman?" and brainstorm descriptive words that describe Sojourner Truth. Students discuss why her acts were considered...
Curated OER
Segregation: From Jim Crow to Linda Brown
Learners examine the African American social, economic, and political conditions between 1896 and 1953. In this segregation lesson, students analyze primary sources to develop an understanding of the plight of African Americans'...
Curated OER
A Divided Community
Students work in teams to research the history of African migration and immigration in the U.S. They present their research in a town hall discussion format and then write a paragraph about their experiences.
Curated OER
Utilizing Art, Literature and Film to Teach Black History
Fifth graders are introduced to different aspects of African-American history through literature, art, and films. As a class, they are read a story about the Underground Railroad, identify the main characters and put the events into...