Anti-Defamation League
10 Ideas for Teaching Black History Month
Celebrate Black History Month with the help of 10 ideas that delve deep into the history, major events, contributions, famous African Americans, and sheds light on how scholars today can take a proactive stance on current civil rights...
American Institute of Physics
When Computers Wore Skirts: Katherine Johnson, Christine Darden, and the “West Computers”
Did you know that people, known as computers, performed the complex calculations that are now done by electronic computers? Three of these human computers, Katherine Johnson, Christine Darden, and Melba Roy Mouton are featured in a...
US House of Representatives
Objects in Time
Artifacts can be used to study people and events of the past. That's the takeaway from the fifth lesson plan in a unit study of African Americans who served in Congress. Groups select an artifact associated with a Black Congress Member...
PBS
Jackie Robinson's Complicated — and Important — Legacy
Americans tend to lock their heroes in history, holding these icons to a particular event or time. Jackie Robinson is such a hero, remembered by most for becoming the first African American to play in the Major Leagues. Young historians...
Curated OER
Africans and African Americans
Students complete small group tasks related to racism as it applies to African Americans, African immigrants, and white immigrants. Through discussion of their findings, students explain of challenges in society that African immigrants...
Library of Congress
To Kill A Mockingbird: A Historical Perspective
Students study the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. Through studying primary source materials from American Memory and other online resources, students of all backgrounds study the relationships between blacks and whites.
Curated OER
Women's Achievements
Third graders read the passage in their textbook about Mary McLeod Bethune and discuss why education was important to her, and why she beleived that education allowed African American children to reach their potential. They then discuss...
Curated OER
Racism, Discrimination, and the Law
Seventh graders examine the various racism and discrimination faced by various ethnic groups in the United States. In groups, they research the legal system and describe the purpose of the United States Constitution. They review cases...
Curated OER
Matthew Henson: Heroic Explore Who Conquered Racism
Students explore the concept of racism. In this character building instructional activity, students read a biography about a hero Matthew Henson. Students discover the challenges he, and others, faced during a time of...
Library of Virginia
Antebellum Freedom
From indentured servitude to involuntary race-based servitude, slavery has taken many forms in American history. Class members examine three manumission petitions that reveal how the rights of African Americans and African American...
Curated OER
African Americans in World War I - Lesson Two
Students explore the decision to allow African Americans enlist in the military. In teams of three to four, students debate allowing Muslim Americans to enlist in the war. Students not participating in the debate serve as legislatures....
Smithsonian Institution
Native Resistance: Native Resistance Then and Now
Native Americans lost so much—and gained so little in return. Scholars explore Native Americans' resistance to the United States government. The lesson uses primary sources to explore the different forms of protest and gives a voice to...
Curated OER
American Colonization Society
Students read and discuss a narrative on why African Americans supported emigration to the United States. In groups, they research the motivations of the ACS and hold a debate on whether the ACS promoted segregation or if they worked to...
Curated OER
Breaking the Color Barrier: Jackie Robinson's Combat Against Racism
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...
Curated OER
From Remus to Rap: A History in Theory and Practice of the African-American Storytelling Tradition
Students examine the specific form and function of tall tales and toasts.
They discover the importance of performance in the telling of a story and the importance of rhythm in the telling of toasts. They create stories of their own, in...
Curated OER
The AME Church in U.S. History
Ninth graders explore the history of the African Methodist Church in the United States. In this African American history lesson, 9th graders discover why the church was founded and research its history and noteworthy members. Students...
Curated OER
Understanding Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Third graders explore civil rights by researching the late Dr. King. In this African American leader lesson plan, 3rd graders read the book Martin's Big Words which explore the foundation of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s principals and...
PBS
Ken Burns: Jackie Robinson Living in Jim Crow America
Your class members may know that Jackie Robinson was the first African American man to play Major League Baseball, but they may not be aware of his efforts to achieve social justice. A clip from Ken Burns: The Jackie Robinson Collection...
American Institute of Physics
Physicist Activist: Dr. Elmer Imes and the Civil Rights Case of Juliette Derricotte
Elmer Imes was not only a brilliant physicist but also a civil rights activist. After an introductory lecture, groups read two articles about a traffic accident that killed one Fisk University student and injured several others. The...
Anti-Defamation League
What are Reparations and Should We Enact Them?
Young social scientists investigate recent legislative proposals for reparations for African Americans. They examine the rationale behind the proposals by viewing videos and reading related articles. To close the lesson plan, scholars...
Curated OER
"Jazz is About Freedom": Billie Holiday's Anti-lynching Song Strange Fruit
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...
PBS
Baseball: The Tenth Inning - Bases Divided
Baseball is a relatively high-interest topic through which social studies classes can explore racial prejudice in the US. Video clips provide much of the background information that groups record on their handout and then share with the...
Curated OER
Jackie Steals Home
High schoolers 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...
Curated OER
A Divided Community
Students work in teams to research the history of African migration and immigration in the U.S. They present their research in a town hall discussion format and then write a paragraph about their experiences.