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Unit Plan
1
1
A&E Television

Documenting Democracy: Lesson Plans on the United States Constitution

For Teachers 3rd - 12th
Balance and compromise. Class members come to understand the importance of these concepts as they investigate the concerns of the various stakeholders and how the format of the Constitution addressed these concerns.
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Lesson Plan
Albert Shanker Institute

Who Was Bayard Rustin?

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Who was Bayard Rustin? Pupils analyze a series of primary source documents to learn about this important figure in the civil rights movement. The lesson contains a short film to watch along with guiding questions and other resources...
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Lesson Plan
Albert Shanker Institute

The March on Washington Logistics Then and Now

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
I have a dream ... that all pupils will be able to organize a march of their own after learning about how Bayard Rustin organized the 1963 March on Washington for civil rights. Young reformers work collaboratively examining informational...
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Lesson Plan
Albert Shanker Institute

Strategizing for Freedom

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Booker T. Washington, W.E.B. DuBois, Marcus Garvey, and A. Philip Randolph developed different views on how to advance civil rights for African Americans. Class members research these famous figures and their strategies before developing...
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Unit Plan
1
1
Miama-Dade County Public Schools

African Americans and the Civil War

For Teachers K - 12th Standards
The American Civil War is the theme of this packet of materials prepared for Black History Month. Class members learn about the roles that African Americans played during the Civil War and examine the African-American experience after...
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Lesson Plan
2
2
Common Sense Media

My Online Code

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Approach ethical online behavior with a series of activities geared toward teaching pupils about digital citizenship. After a brief discussion about ethics, small groups inspect a fictional social networking profile with ethics in mind....
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Lesson Plan
1
1
Albert Shanker Institute

Making the Case for Equality: A Comparison

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Martin Luther King Jr's " I Have a Dream" speech and Atticus Finch's closing argument during the trial of Tom Robinson both address the societal need to overcome racism. After examining the rhetorical devices and figurative language used...
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Interactive
1
1
Read Works

The What and Who of Elections

For Students 4th Standards
As citizens living in the United States, it is our civil duty to vote. But how does the voting process work? After reading a five-paragraph passage on the basics of elections and voting, young constituents respond to 10 questions based...
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Lesson Plan
1
1
Memorial Hall Museum

Dedham Deed

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Class members examine primary source documents that expose the contrasting views of land ownership between the Pocumtuck and English settlers.
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Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

Electoral College: Does My Vote Count?

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
How can a candidate get the most votes, yet still lose the race for the presidency? This is has happened more than once in American history, including in the elections of 2000 and 2016. Using an activity for creating group notes, young...
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Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

Government Power: Do the Actions of Government Effect Me?

For Teachers 11th - 12th Standards
What does the government have to do with getting a driver's license? Including the calorie count for a meal on a restaurant menu? By discussing these kinds of questions and researching how concepts behind federal, state, and local...
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Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

Bill of Rights: Do I Have a Right?

For Teachers 8th Standards
Aliens have taken over the United States! Citizens can only keep two rights laid out in the first 10 amendments of the Constitution and must figure out which ones are best. Young scholars research the importance of each amendment and key...
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Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

Identity Theft: Don't Let This Happen to Your Grandma!

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
Class members consider how people steal online identities as they discover the essential elements of identity theft and consumer fraud. Pupils demonstrate learning by creating a poster or video about how to avoid identity theft. 
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Lesson Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

African-American Communities in the North Before the Civil War

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Middle schoolers may be surprised to learn that before the American Civil War there were more slaves living in New York than there were in Kentucky! Young historians examine maps and census data to gather statistics about...
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Lesson Plan
1
1
K20 LEARN

Analyzing The "I Have A Dream" Speech

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
The famous words of Martin Luther King still resonate with scholars today. An enlightening lesson helps pupils examine the "I Have a Dream" speech in more depth and learn what impact it had on the civil rights movement. Young historians...
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Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

Plantation Life And Slavery: Antebellum Era

For Teachers 8th - 10th Standards
Learners evaluate primary sources from the antebellum era to determine the accuracy of textbooks. They examine narratives from enslaved people, then compare them to their own text. Extension activities include the opportunity to write a...
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Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

Government and Your Right To Vote: Voting Rights In America

For Teachers 11th - 12th Standards
Gaining voting rights was difficult over the course of decades, but the debate over who should actually be allowed to cast a ballot remains. Scholars explore the history of the struggle, including the fifteenth and nineteenth amendments,...
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Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

Blue or Gray? Perspectives on the Civil War

For Teachers 8th Standards
Using primary and secondary sources, such as letters and diaries from soldiers and civilians, learners consider why people fought in the American Civil War. A role-playing Historical Mingle activity, as well as discussion questions and...
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Handout
Center for Civic Education

Ronald Reagan and Executive Power

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Article II of the United States Constitution grants Presidents executive powers in areas of international conflict, domestic and foreign policy. Using examples drawn from Ronald Reagan's presidency, class members are asked to consider...
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Lesson Plan
National First Ladies' Library

Trouble in Little Rock: The Desegregation of Central High School

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle schoolers study one aspect of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States; the battle over desegregating the public schools. They study the desegregation of Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas by producing a newspaper,...
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Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

Plessy v. Ferguson: An Individual's Response to Oppression

For Teachers 11th
After generating research questions rated to segregation, groups are given a primary source document (Jim Crow Laws, Black Codes, Plessy v. Ferguson, etc.) and craft a presentation that details the key elements of their assigned...
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Lesson Plan
John F. Kennedy Center

Musical Harlem: How Is Jazz Music Reflective of the Harlem Renaissance?

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
Bring jazz music and the Harlem Renaissance to light with a lesson that challenges scholars to research and create. Pupils delve deep into information materials to identify jazz terminology, compare types of jazz and jazz musicians,...
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Activity
WE Charity

Exploring the Four Leadership Styles

For Teachers 8th - 12th Standards
What is your leadership style? Tweens and teens independently complete a Four Leadership Styles worksheet. Once completed, they use a leadership code to identify their prominent leadership style. Class members gather by style, brainstorm...
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Unit Plan
Holly Middle School

Leadership 101

For Teachers 7th
A four-week leadership class is designed to help scholars develop the skills they need to become effective leaders. Pupils study the habits of highly effective people and apply these concepts to leadership. They investigate paradigm...