Curated OER
Rationalizing Race in US History
Students consider the classification of people. In this race studies lesson plan, 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...
Anti-Defamation League
Understanding and Analyzing “The U.S. of Us” by Richard Blanco
Current immigration issues and the rhetoric surrounding the controversies come into focus with a lesson that uses Richard Blanco's anthem, "The U.S. of Us," written after the August 2019 attack in El Paso, Texas, to open a discussion of...
Facing History and Ourselves
Standing Up to Hatred on Cable Street
The final lessons in this section of the Standing Up for Democracy unit ask class members to consider ways they can help create a "more humane, fair, and compassionate environment" in their communities. For context, learners study how...
Curated OER
Defining Respect
Students examine what respect is and isn't. In this character education lesson plan, students create a t-chart of what respect looks like and doesn't look like. The teacher adds the words bias, prejudice, stereotype and racism to the...
Anti-Defamation League
Sexism and the Presidential Election
Young historians investigate how sexism impacted the 2020 United States presidential election. They examine media coverage of the six women candidates, engage in a four-corners debate reacting to statements about gender and the...
Curated OER
A Never-Before-Seen Creature
Students construct a never-before-seen creature in part of an analysis of societal injustices and discrimination. In this societal issues lesson, students create a creature called a Man-Droid as a study about the differences among...
Curated OER
INFUSING EQUITY BY GENDER INTO THE CLASSROOM:A Handbook of Classroom Practices
Students examine how gender bias, stereotyping, and discrimination impacts their lives. Students examine behaviors they believe are acceptable for males and females and will compose an essay based on their findings.
Curated OER
Investigating Respect
Students examine prejudice and stereotyping. In this prejudice and stereotyping lesson, students define the words and give examples. They look at pictures of five different people before working in groups to discover their own prejudices...
Curated OER
Focus on the Media
Students critically examine news articles and editorials for attitudes of discrimination and prejudice. Students then complete checklist in which they analyze news reports for context, content, point of view, language, graphics, and...
Curated OER
Confronting the -Isms
Students keep "Mindwatch" diaries to chart their own prejudices and stereotypes. In this social justice lesson, students monitor their own reactions to people who are different from themselves. Students identify and discuss patterns of...
Curated OER
Diversity - Grade 9
Ninth graders consider the diversity of the First Nations cultures in Canada. In this cultural diversity lesson, 9th graders research the cultural groups of the First Nations and share their findings with their classmates.
Curated OER
I Belong, But Why Don't You?
Learners explore discrimination. For this character development lesson, students identify groups and organizations to which they belong and the requirements that go with each group. Learners discuss inclusion and exclusion and generate...
Anti-Defamation League
Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr., Hate Crimes Prevention Act
You, too, can prevent hate crimes! Middle and high schoolers read short biographies of Mathew Shepard and James Byrd, the two men for whom the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act (HCPA) is named. After learning...
Facing History and Ourselves
Blending In and Standing Out
An excerpt from Sarfraz Manzoor's memoir about how his experiences as a Pakistani growing up in England shaped the way he though about his identify provides a stimulus for a discussion of how experiences can shape our concept of identity...
Curated OER
Human Rights
Young scholars explore the importance of laws and the need to speak up against wrong doing and how to bring change in society and in the law. They discuss the needs and concerns of others. Students explore the concept of bias and...
Curated OER
On the Air
Young scholars explore the issue of race in television since the 1950's, focusing specifically on African-American entertainers. After researching important issues, events, and television personalities of specific decades, students...
Curated OER
Using Picture Books to Teach the Holocaust
Students compare a photo of a child's room during the Holocaust to their room. In this WWII lesson, students read picture books and evaluate the roles of characters in the book. Students create either a poster about the roles, a movie...
Curated OER
Everything You Know Is Wrong 1: Us and Them
Pupils explore rational, irrational, analytical and non-analytical methods of reasoning. They participate in numerous exercises and hands-on activities to understand assumptions and how most people think. Students establish the...
Curated OER
Is Racism Dead?
Pupils investigate events surrounding the integration of Little Rock (Arkansas) Central High School and explore racial harmony in their own school. Included: A survey to determine whether racism is dead at your school.
Facing History and Ourselves
Defining Our Obligations to Others
Introduce young learners to the concept of a Universe of Obligation, a term coined by sociologist Helen Fein, with a instructional activity that asks learners to consider the extent to which they feel a responsibility for others. Class...
Center for History Education
Blockbusting: Social and Economic Change through Real Estate
"Redlining," "Blockbusting," and "White Flight" may not be terms familiar to young historians. Here's a lesson that introduces middle schoolers to these terms and the actions associated with them. Class members examine a series of...
Alaska Department of Education
Gender Equity Activities
A male nurse? A female welder? Unequal pay? The "Glass Ceiling?" A 22-page Gender Equity Activity Book asks participants to examine the effects of gender role stereotyping on career choices. Class members also update job titles...
Anti-Defamation League
“They Don’t Know Me”: Exposing the Myths and Establishing the Facts about Immigration
Middle schoolers engage in a activity that teaches them to distinguish myths from facts about United States immigration. Class members take an immigration quiz, watch a "What Would You do" video, and discuss how they could be an ally to...
Anti-Defamation League
Addressing Hate Online: Countering Cyberhate with Counterspeech
Cyberbullying is the focus of much discussion. Here's a lesson that offers suggestions for addressing cyberhate. After groups examine different examples of cyberhate, the class adds their suggestions to a list of ideas for how to counter...