Lesson Plan
Yale University

Yale New Haven Teachers Institute: Supreme Court Rules on School Desegregation

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This thoughtful unit explores the history of school desegregation legislation, including a discussion of the impact of the Plessy v. Ferguson and Brown v. Board of Education decisions. A six-week plan of lessons, along with other sample...
Interactive
Other

Hsi: First Days of School Desegregation

For Students 9th - 10th
An interactive site for students to learn about school desegregation. Photographs, oral histories and questions help guide the students to their conclusions.
Website
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of American History: Separate Is Not Equal: Brown v. Board of Education

For Students 9th - 10th
From the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History, this exhibition on Brown v. Board of Education shows much of the struggle of the Civil Rights era, not only to achieve equality in educational opportunities but to...
Website
University of Groningen

American History: Outlines: Desegregation

For Students 9th - 10th
Overview of efforts to overthrow Plessy v Ferguson and desegregate public schools and other places during the Civil Rights Movement.
Primary
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Desegregation Mandate: Jefferson County, Al

For Students 9th - 10th
A 1967 federal court order resulted in this document, which mandated school desegregation in Birmingham.
Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs Teachers: Beyond Brown: Recognize & Combat Segregation in u.s. Schools

For Teachers 9th - 10th
A lesson plan on the continuing problem of school segregation that asks students to identify instances of school segregation today, to determine the reasons behind it, and to develop a plan for combating segregation in today's schools....
Primary
Thomson Reuters

Find Law: u.s. Supreme Court: Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1955)

For Students 9th - 10th
Transcript of the Supreme Court's opinion in the 1955 Brown II case decision, which placed increased emphasis on implementing the 1954 Brown decision to desegregate public schools, thus overturning the 1896 decision in Plessy vs....
Primary
Other

Supreme Court: Brown v. Board of Education, 347 u.s. 483

For Students 9th - 10th
Contains the text to the appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Kansas.
Handout
Other

Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka: Case Background

For Students 9th - 10th
Gives the background to the Supreme Court case of Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas.
Website
PBS

Pbs: American Experience: Eyes on the Prize: School Desegregation, 1957 1962

For Students 9th - 10th
As part of a much larger site from PBS' American Experience's series, Eyes on the Prize, look through this multifaceted site that traces the resistance to implementing school desegregation ordered by the Supreme Court and shows the...
Website
University of Michigan

University of Michigan Library: Digital Archive: Brown v. Board of Education

For Students 9th - 10th
A digital collection of materials outlining the famous Brown v. Board of Education case and the events that followed it. Covers Supreme Court cases and school desegregation issues and events.
Website
Other

Howard University: Brown v Board of Education at 50: Fulfilling the Promise

For Students 9th - 10th
Howard University had a direct role in the Brown v Board of Education and has continued its research in the 50 years since working to continue and improve the rulings of the case. This is a free resource providing a collection of court...
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Showdown in Little Rock

For Students 5th - 8th
Read about President Eisenhower's decision to send federal troops to Arkansas to enforce the desegregation of Central High School in Little Rock. See why that action was necessary, and how Central High School fit into the larger Civil...
Activity
Constitutional Rights Foundation

Constitutional Rights Foundation: Mendez v. Westminster: Paving the Way to School Desegregation

For Students 9th - 10th
Article and activity on early school desegregation case brought by the Mexican-American community of California. Students explore background information and evaluate the impact Mendez v. Westminster had on school desegregation, and then...
PPT
Google Cultural Institute

Google Cultural Institute: Desegregation at Little Rock Central High School

For Students 9th - 10th
When state and local authorities fail to uphold the Federal Court orders for integration at Central High School, President Dwight D. Eisenhower sent in federal troops to enforce those orders. Using an array of photos and primary source...
Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Hyde County School Boycott

For Students 9th - 10th
Narrative tells the story of a yearlong boycott to protest the closing of historically black schools in Hyde County, North Carolina.
Primary
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Documenting Brown: Brown v Board of Education, 1955

For Students 9th - 10th
The Supreme Court's opinion in Brown II reflects the struggle between federal and state governments on how and when school desegregation would occur.
Article
Other

Learning for Justice: Brown v. Board: An American Legacy

For Students 9th - 10th
An article celebrating the 50th anniversary of the famous Brown v. Board Supreme Court decision. Features background information, a timeline of integration of schools, interviews, and links to many other activities and resources covering...
Primary
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Documenting Brown: Civil Rights Act of 1964

For Students 9th - 10th
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 helped enforce the Brown ruling, a decade later.
Activity
Read Works

Read Works: School Colors

For Teachers 5th
[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text about desegregation and the experiences of the Little Rock Nine. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.
Unknown Type
Other

Watson.org: African American History: School Integration

For Students 9th - 10th
A history of the attempt to integrate schools in Little Rock, Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Boston.
Handout
Khan Academy

Khan Academy: Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka

For Students 9th - 10th
Discusses the famous Supreme Court decision that ended school segregation, Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954).
Website
Library of Congress

Loc: With an Even Hand, Brown vs. Board at Fifty

For Students 9th - 10th
A special exhibit at the Library of Congress to commemorate the Brown vs. Board of Education 50 year anniversary.
Primary
US National Archives

Our Documents: A National Initiative on American History, Civics, and Service

For Students 9th - 10th
Our Documents is home to one hundred milestone documents that influenced that course of American history and American democracy. Includes full-page scans of each document, transcriptions, background information on their significance, and...