Lesson Plan
2
2
Smithsonian Institution

Resistance to School Desegregation: The Boston Busing Crisis

For Teachers 8th - 11th Standards
Despite how it sounds, Boston's busing crisis wasn't a transportation problem. Academics address the problems faced by African Americans following school desegregation and the struggle to receive equal educational opportunities. Scholars...
Interactive
DocsTeach

School Desegregation Court Cases: Mendez v. Westminster and Brown v. Board

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Separate is not equal! Young historians analyze the petition from the U.S. Supreme Court case Mendez v. Westminster filed in 1945 and examine background material about the case. They then compare it to the more famous Brown v. Board of...
Lesson Plan
2
2
Smithsonian Institution

Separate is Not Equal: Fight for Desegregation

For Teachers 8th - 11th Standards
Separate is not equal! An eye-opening lesson delves into the past to understand the fight for desegregation and how it impacted African American communities. Academics complete two one-hour lessons using documents, photographs, and...
Lesson Plan
2
2
Smithsonian Institution

Re-Segregation of American Schools: Re-Segregation

For Teachers 8th - 11th Standards
Examine the re-segregation of public schools in a thought-provoking resource. Young scholars read articles and primary sources, complete worksheets, and watch a video to explore the idea that desegregation made schools more segregated....
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson Plan on School Integration in Boston And Nantucket

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students use primary sources and timelines to begin a study of school integration; students watch "Nantucket Rock of Changes," and compare the case of Eunice Ross with the story of the Little Rock Nine.
Unit Plan
1
1
Facing History and Ourselves

Civil Rights Historical Investigations

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
The murder of Emmett Till, the Selma to Montgomery march, and the desegregation of Boston schools are the focus of three units that ask class members to investigate why these events were so key in the struggle for civil rights....
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

New Kent School and the George W. Watkins School:

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students research the U.S. Supreme Court case that forced the integration of public schools and meet the individuals who experienced segregation, fought to dismantle the institution, and integrated the public school system of New Kent...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Anti-Defamation League

Sixty Years Later

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Has any progress been made in desegregating schools since 1954's Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education? To find out, class members examine charts and graphs representing U.S. schools' racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic...
Lesson Plan
Center for History Education

Contextualizing a Historical Photograph: Busing and the Anti-busing Movement in Boston

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
The anti-busing movement in Boston is the focus of a instructional activity that asks young historians to examine primary source documents to identify the causes and consequences of busing pupils from one area of the city to another in...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

60 Years Later: The Legacy of Brown v. Board of Education

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Although the 1954 U.S. Supreme Court decision Brown v. Board of Education declared segregated schools unconstitutional, huge inequalities still exist in U.S. public schools. Learners analyze and discuss data presented in two...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Anti-Defamation League

Bringing It Home

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
The "Bringing It Home" lesson asks scholars to investigate segregation and diversity in their school. They research, collect, and analyze local demographics. After reflecting on their personal experiences with cliques and social...
Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

The Bank Of Justice: Civil Rights In The US

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
To launch a study of racial segregation and integration, young historians first watch a news video about a prom in Georgia that was first integrated in 2013. They then compare the goals in Lincoln's Gettysburg Address to King's "I Have a...
Unit Plan
1
1
Facing History and Ourselves

BPS Civil Rights

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Include moments of heroism in a social studies module that includes three units. Focusing on the murder of Emmett Till, the movement of nonviolent resistance, and segregating schools in Boston, the units explore key events of the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Past Half Century: Achieving Equality

For Teachers 4th - 12th
Young scholars analyze reactions to the Brown vs. Education decision of 1954. In this segregation instructional activity, student look at the actions that were taken in the education world as a result of the Brown decision. They watch a...
Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

Oklahoma and Segregation

For Teachers 9th - 11th Standards
It was not just the states of the Deep South that practiced segregation. Young historians investigate the history of segregation and desegregation in Oklahoma. They begin by reading, annotating, and analyzing an article about the impacts...
Lesson Plan
3
3
Scholastic

Ruby Bridges: A Simple Act of Courage, Grades 3-5

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
Through character trait graphic organizers, a vocabulary sorting activity, class discussion, and a civil rights movement slide show, your young historians will be introduced to the amazing story of Ruby Bridges and her experiences as the...
Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Launching the Text: Building Background Knowledge of the Jim Crow South

For Teachers 8th Standards
Pictures and photographs help build background knowledge about a topic. Scholars participate in a gallery walk to learn more about the Jim Crow era of US history and the desegregation of schools following Brown v. Board of Education....
Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Studying Author’s Craft: Carlotta’s Journey

For Teachers 8th Standards
The longest journey begins with a single step. Scholars analyze the details of Carlotta Walls LaNier's journey through the desegregation of schools in the United States. They continue reading the author's memoir, A Mighty Long Way and...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Scholastic

Ruby Bridges: A Simple Act of Courage, Grades K-2

For Teachers K - 2nd Standards
A civil rights movement lesson designed specifically with the Common Core State Standards in mind, young learners are introduced to the story of Ruby Bridges as the first African American child to attend an all-white elementary...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Teaching Tolerance

Using Photographs to Teach Social Justice | Exposing Racism

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Photographs capture a moment in time. And some of the best pictures demand that viewers not only ask questions about why the photo packs such an emotional wallop, but also about what happened before and after it was taken. A photograph...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Anti-Defamation League

Building Alliances

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Bystander or up-stander? The final lesson in the "Looking Back Reaching Forward" unit asks participants to consider how they can become involved in encouraging change in their school and community. 
Lesson Plan
1
1
Anti-Defamation League

The Problem We Still Live With?

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Norman Rockwell's painting "The Problem We Still Live With" launches a unit study of racism in the United States and segregation in U.S. schools. In the first lesson, scholars discuss the painting, review key elements of the Supreme...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Anti-Defamation League

The Road to Brown

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
As part of the study of segregation in U.S. schools, scholars research and create a timeline of events that led to the historic Supreme Court case, Brown V. Board of Education. Groups research a topic or event that led to the decision,...
Lesson Plan
Center for History Education

Brown v. the Board of Education: Success or Failure?

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Desegregation does not mean equality. An eye-opening lesson focuses on the impact of the Brown v. Board of Education decision to end school segregation. Scholars review a series of political cartoons to understand how the public viewed...