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Curated OER

"Jazz is About Freedom": Billie Holiday's Anti-lynching Song Strange Fruit

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Working in small teams, learners analyze a variety of primary source materials related to lynching (news articles, letters written to or written by prominent Americans, pamphlets, broadsides, etc.) in order to assess the effectiveness of...
Lesson Plan
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More Than Words: Racism, Identity And the Power of Words

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students explore how words can be powerful instruments of racism, and discuss ways to combat racism, prejudice and discrimination in their own lives.
Lesson Plan
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Kaffir Boy

For Teachers 10th - 11th
Students explore the concepts of intolerance and racism in the autobiography Kaffir Boy written by Mark Mathabane. The lesson reveals the story's depiction of the terrible toll of apartheid on the lives of individuals.
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Sixteenth Street: Civil Rights at the Crossroads

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers study the Civil Rights movement constructing definitions of discrimination, prejudice and racism. They use varied media to study the bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, write a newspaper and complete a mock...
Activity
Ed Change

Exploring Language: Definitions Activity

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students find definitions for prejudice, discrimination, racism, sexism, and homophobia. Definitions should come from two sources: the person's opinion and a scholarly source.
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Rights-Minded

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students expand their knowledge and understanding about the civil rights movement by investigating the lives of some of the people who contributed to it.
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Jackie Steals Home

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students read articles relating to Jackie Robinson's breaking of the racial barrier in professional baseball. This leads to a deeper exploration of racism in the United States. They use a variety of worksheets imbedded in this plan to...
Lesson Plan
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Turning Historical Descriptions into Causal Claims

For Teachers 11th
Eleventh graders study different political processes. In this American Government activity, 11th graders read narratives about different political processes. Students write a sentence in their own words describing the concepts. 
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Breaking the Color Barrier: Jackie Robinson's Combat Against Racism

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students explore Jackie Robinson's career. In this 20th century American history lesson, students complete the provided analysis questions based on the provided primary documents about Jackie Robinson. Students discuss Jackie' Robinson's...
Lesson Plan
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Esperanza Rising

For Teachers 6th - 7th
Young scholars explore foreign cultures by reading a story in class. For this Hispanic history lesson, students read the story Radio Man by Arthur Dorros and identify the times discrimination is used in the story. Young scholars discuss...
Lesson Plan
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Diversity

For Teachers 11th
Eleventh graders research the meaning of diversity and human rights in various countries.  In this Social Studies lesson, 11th graders reflect on the aspects that can negatively affect First Nations people, then select a country...
Lesson Plan
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What Does Racism Mean in Europe Today?

For Teachers 6th - 11th
Students consider race relations in modern-day Europe. For this current events lesson, students visit selected websites to understand the impact of Nazi symbolism, the Holocaust denial, and the stories of Holocaust survivors.
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Word Art with King's Words

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Learners investigate equality and racism by creating a word art project.  In this civil rights lesson, students discover the life of Martin Luther King Jr. and create a word art project using the Internet site Wordle Web. ...
Lesson Plan
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Farewell to Manzanar: Racism and Point of View

For Teachers 8th - 11th
Young scholars create a presentation on the computer of the reactions and memories of people who were around during the attacks at Pearl Harbor. In this Pearl Harbor lesson plan, students interview people who were there, discuss the...
Lesson Plan
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Science Fiction

For Teachers 12th - Higher Ed
Students complete compare and contrast activities for two stories about racism and tolerance in the science fiction genre. For this literary analysis lesson, students read a Ray Bradbury short story and Walter Mosley poem, watch a...
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International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students investigate the pass laws that resulted in the Sharpeville Massacre. In this racism lesson, students find information about the massacre and attempt to find similarities to their own lives. They determine how similar incidents...
Lesson Plan
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Right There in Black and White? Identity, Assimilation and the Résumé

For Teachers 9th
Ninth graders examine prejudice in today's world.  In this current events lesson plan, 9th graders describe their top three personality identifiers.  Students read articles on racism. 
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Students Speak Out: A Discussion Activity

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students read a collection of student essays addressing racism and racial disparities and discuss them. In this racism lesson plan, students discuss the essays and talk about their impact.
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Levittown, White Picket Paradise?

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Learners study the origins and happenings of Levittown, Pennsylvania. In this Pennsylvania history lesson plan, students use primary and secondary sources to research the beginnings of Levittown, PA. As a culminating activity, learners...
Lesson Plan
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Lesson on Ethnic Discrimination

For Teachers 9th - 11th
Students study ethnic discrimination. In this discrimination lesson plan, students define ethnicity and ethnic discrimination in the global community as well as steps against it. Students examine their own ethnic backgrounds...
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Defenders of Justice

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students research abolitionists, civil rights advocates, and their allies to learn about racism and justice. In this racism and justice lesson, students define justice and sing a song about activism. Students review the biographies...
Lesson Plan
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Courage of the Heart

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students research discrimination and how people fought against for the common good. In this discrimination lesson plan, students watch a movie about Alfred Blalock and Vivien Thomas. Students generate a list of words about...
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Defining Respect

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students examine what respect is and isn't. In this character education lesson, 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 chart....
Lesson Plan
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Building Bridges: Living in a Diverse Society

For Teachers Pre-K - 3rd
Students participate in various activities that help them build esteem, and explore racism. In this multicultural lesson plan, Students increase their awareness of, and appreciation for, cultural differences and similarities. This...