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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

African Americans in World War II: Staging a Double V Campaign in the Classroom

For Teachers 9th - 12th
The feelings and attitudes of African-Americans during World War II are examined by high schoolers. After watching various clips from "The War," they answer comprehension questions for each section. In groups, they create their own...
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PPT
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Alabama Learning Exchange

African American Civil Rights Movement

For Teachers 7th - 12th
An excellent resource defines the African-American Civil Rights Movement from the early 1900s through the legacy left in modern times. Every major date, event, and key player is described under clear overarching categories. The NAACP,...
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Activity
Digital Public Library of America

African American Soldiers in World War I

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Finding good primary source materials to support any study of history can be a challenge and time-consuming. A set of 11 primary source letters, images, and text excerpts provide young historians with an opportunity to sharpen their...
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Lesson Plan
American Institute of Physics

African Americans in Astronomy and Astrophysics

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
A two-part lesson focuses on the contributions to the fields of astronomy and astrophysics of two African Americans: Benjamin Banneker and Dr. George Carruthers. In part one, scholars learn about Benjamin Banneker by examining his...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

From Jim Crow to Linda Brown: A Retrospective of the African-American Experience from 1897 to 1953.

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students research the American Memory collection to explore the African-American experience from 1897 to 1953.
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Lesson Plan
American Institute of Physics

African American Inventors in History

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
A two-part lesson plan introduces young historians to the work of famous African American inventors. Groups first research and develop a presentation of an inventor that includes biographical information and information about one of...
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Lesson Plan
American Institute of Physics

Meet Four Pioneering African American Astronauts

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
An out-of-this-world resource introduces young scientists to four African American astronauts: Michael P. Anderson, Ronald E. McNair, Guion S. Bluford Jr., and Jeanette J. Epps. Groups read biographies of these individuals and prepare...
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Lesson Plan
American Institute of Physics

African Americans and Life in a Secret City

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Imagine the lure of being offered a job at a secret site, working on a secret project, and earning higher wages! Such was the approach used to recruit African Americans to Hanford, Washington, one of several sites used to develop...
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Lesson Plan
American Institute of Physics

African Americans and the Manhattan Project

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
A lesson plan about the Manhattan Project will explode young physicists' understanding of the racial attitudes in the United States during and after World war II. Groups select an African American scientist or technician that worked on...
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Lesson Plan
American Institute of Physics

The Physicist's War: Dr. Herman Branson and the Scientific Training of African Americans during World War II

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
The mobilization of soldiers for World War II resulted in a worker shortage in the defense industries, especially in the fields of physics and other sciences. The Engineering, Science, and Management War Training program (ESMWT) was...
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Lesson Plan
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US House of Representatives

Keeping the Faith: African Americans Return to Congress, 1929–1970

For Teachers 7th - 12th
New ReviewThe third instructional activity in a unit that traces the history of African Americans serving in the US Congress examines the period from 1929 through 1970. After reading a contextual essay that details the few African Americans...
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Lesson Plan
American Institute of Physics

African American Physicists in the 1960s

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Physicists Herman Branson and Tannie Stovall provide young scholars with two very different perceptions of the status of African American physicists in the 1960s. After reading and comparing the bios of these two men, class members read...
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Lesson Plan
Atlanta History Center

What if YOU Lived During Jim Crow?

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
Young historians envision what life was like for African Americans living in the Jim Crow South through hands-on, experiential activities. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

From Jim Crow To Linda Brown: A Retrospective of the African-American Experience from 1897 to 1953

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers examine African American issue between the years 1897 and 1953. In this African American history instructional activity, students research the social, economic, and political conditions of African Americans during the...
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Lesson Plan
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US House of Representatives

“‘The Negroes’ Temporary Farewell,” Jim Crow and the Exclusion of African Americans from Congress, 1887–1929

For Teachers 7th - 12th
New ReviewDespite some advances made during the Reconstruction Era following the Civil War, the period from 1887 through 1929, African Americans serving in Congress suffered severe setbacks due to Jim Crow Laws and voter suppression. Class members...
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Lesson Plan
Center for History Education

African Americans and the Democratic Party

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Why did African American voters switch from the Republican Party to the Democratic party during the Depression Era? That is the question young historians attempt to answer as they study primary source documents from the period. The focus...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Race and Voting in the Segregated South

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine the history of African American voting rights. In this voting rights instructional activity, students listen to a lecture on African American voting rights between the years 1890 and 1965. Students respond to discussion...
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Lesson Plan
PBS

African American History: Lunch Counter Closed

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Young historians investigate and evaluate the effectiveness of the strategies the Civil Rights Movement used to end segregation in the United States. After watching an video interview with Carl Matthews and Bill Stevens who participated...
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Lesson Plan
Center for History Education

Continuity or Change? African Americans in World War II

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
While World War II was a pivotal moment in history, historians debate its importance to the civil rights movement. Class members consider the implications of segregation and the war using a series of documents and a jigsaw activity....
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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....
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Lesson Plan
Marybeth Lobiecki

Beyond Baseball with Jackie Robinson

For Teachers 2nd - 8th
Jackie Robinson was more than a baseball star, he was a prominent activist. The thought-provoking resource focuses on the life and achievements of Jackie Robinson, from his baseball career to his civic participation. Academics listen and...
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Interactive
DocsTeach

Integration of the US Armed Forces

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Uncle Sam wants you to integrate the military! The activity uses images and documents to help scholars understand the integration of African Americans into the mainstream military. Academics analyze a series of military photos and...
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Interactive
DocsTeach

Analyzing a Letter from Jackie Robinson: "Fair Play and Justice"

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Jackie Robinson was more than a baseball legend; he was an activist, too. An interesting resource explores Robinson's time in the military using primary sources. Scholars examine the racially inspired event that led to a court martial...
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Lesson Plan
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US House of Representatives

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

For Teachers 7th - 12th
New ReviewGroups select a photograph from one of the four eras of African Americans in Congress and develop a five-minute presentation that provides background information about the image as well as its historical significance. The class compares...