Curated OER
Treaties - Grade 10
Tenth graders examine the First Nations Treaty. In this Canadian history lesson, 10th graders participate in talking circles that require them to analyze "The Royal Proclamation."
Curated OER
Undercover in the Secret State
Young scholars examine the current conditions in North Korea. They view and analyze a CNN documentary, research a dissident, answer and discuss questions about the documentary on conditions in North Korea, and identify the technology...
Curated OER
Jury Duty: Honor or Burden
Students come up with a synopsis of whether they feel jury duty is necessary or not and how people rate their experience. They research state jury duty websites and express their ideas. They can propose changes that they feel may...
Curated OER
Freedom of Religion
Students use this lesson to focus on the freedom of religion. In groups, they discuss how the separation of church and state applies to the public schools across the country. They compare and contrast the establishment and free exercise...
Curated OER
No Choice!
Young scholars explore the concept of democratic freedom. In this service learning lesson, students investigate the freedom the Pilgrims sought as they moved from England and write a journal from their point of view.
Curated OER
Where are the Famous Women in History?
Students investigate sexism in history by identifying important women from the U.S. In this women's equality activity, students discuss why they remember more men in the history of the U.S. than women. Students compare women's and...
Curated OER
Case Study: Manzanar
Eleventh graders investigate Japanese-American internment. In this World War II lesson plan, 11th graders conduct research from the Manzanar National Historic Sites and then write essays based on their findings.
Curated OER
Effective Citizenship
Students explore effective citizenship. They describe the skills, attitudes, and actions of a good citizen. In groups, students brainstorm ideas for effective citizenship. Each group shares their ideas for what they consider to be a...
Curated OER
The Way You Dream: Gandhi and King's Visions of Nonviolence
Students read Gandhi and Dr. King's messages about nonviolence and discuss their visions about loving one's enemies. In this nonviolence lesson, students read Gandhi's "Ahimsa, or the Way of Nonviolence" and Dr. Martin Luther King's...
Student Handouts
Letter from Birmingham Jail
Analyze an abridged version of Martin Luther King Jr's "Letter from Birmingham Jail." Class members read the excerpt and respond to four provided questions, which focus on the content provided. Consider taking the time to read the entire...
Curated OER
Analyzing Persuasion
A reading of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech launches a study of rhetorical devices such as hyperbole, allusion, metaphor, simile, personification, connotative language and parallel structure. Class members then...
Curated OER
Divided We Fall
Students investigate the consequences of eliminating one or more of the amendments to the Bill of Rights.
Curated OER
The Segregated Pencil Sharpeners
Students explore racism through pencil sharpeners. In this civil rights lesson, students utilize a pencil sharpener with one of two colored pencils and explain how some people were not allowed to use certain items because of the color...
Penguin Books
A Teacher's Guide to the Signet Classics Edition of Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Whether new to teaching The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn or an experienced pro, you’ll find useful resources in this teacher’s guide. The 40-page packet includes background information, historical context, an annotated list of...
Learning to Give
Asian Folktales
A great way to learn to understand people and their environment is to study their folktales. Stories from China, Vietnam, India, Iran, Persia, and Palestine offer an opportunity for readers to investigate the cultures of Asia. A list of...
Curated OER
Turbulent Times of the Sixties
Students explore 1960's America. In this American history lesson, students read about and research 1960's political and entertainment figures, social activism, the Civil Rights Movement, and environmentalism as they complete writing and...
Aspen Institute
The Voice That Challenged a Nation
Included here are step-by-step instructions for conducting a close reading of The Voice That Challenged a Nation by Russell Freedman. After an individual and class reading, class members read carefully through the text excerpt,...
Curated OER
Art: Mural Project
Students create murals. In this visual arts lesson, students study the process of creating murals and then design civil rights murals or their own.
Curated OER
Social Studies: Segregation, Jim Crow Laws, Plessy vs. Ferguson
Students examine the concept of segregation. In this civil rights lesson, students discuss the separate but equal theory as well as the Plessy vs. Ferguson decision. Students also research women of the Civil Rights Movement and Jim Crow...
Curated OER
Analyzing the economic, political, social, and cultural transformation of the United States since World War II
Eleventh graders examine political issues in the United States between 1936 and 2000. For this American history lesson, 11th graders study the economy, education, government, civil rights, and sports of this time period. Students compare...
Curated OER
Freedom's Children
Learners role play a story from from Freedom's Children: Young Civil Rights Activists Tell Their Own Stories. In this segregation activity, students work in a literary circle to create a role play to present to the class. Each student in...
Fairfax Public Schools
Walter Dean Myers
If you are reading works by Walter Dean Myers in your class, this resource might be worth a look. Included here are activities and discussion questions for Malcolm X: By Any Means Necessary, Somewhere in the Darkness, Scorpions, Fallen...
K12 Reader
Song of Freedom: Go Down, Moses
African American spirituals served as more than songs of religious praise during the years of slavery. "Go Down, Moses" is featured on a activity that asks readers to respond to a series of short-answer prompts about the spiritual.
Curated OER
Discrimination in the Workplace
Students discuss the instances of discrimination against Arabs since September 11. Using the Civil Rights Act text, they discover how the United States addresses instances of discrimination in the workplace. They complete a worksheet...