Unit Plan
CommonLit

Common Lit: Book Pairings: "A Raisin in the Sun" by Lorraine Hansberry

For Students 9th - 10th
Selected (7) reading passages (grades 8-10) to pair with the drama "A Raisin in the Sun" by Lorraine Hansberry. When a struggling African-American family receives a large insurance check, a conflict erupts on how to spend the money....
Handout
Digital History

Digital History: Simple Justice

For Students 9th - 10th
Follow the civil rights quest for integrated schools from the beginning in 1849 through the 1954 Supreme Court decision in Brown v. the Topeka Board of Education and the struggle that ensued for decades following in the most reluctant...
Handout
Robin Chew

Lucid Cafe: Du Bois Overview and Links

For Students 9th - 10th
An overview of the life and career of W.E.B. DuBois. Provides information pertaining to his political interests and his involvement in the NAACP. Related links to other civil rights leaders and issues are presented.
Website
Digital History

Digital History: Freedom Now

For Students 9th - 10th
When four African American North Carolina Agricultural and Technical College students refused to leave the lunch-counter at the F.W. Woolworth store in Greensboro they started the first non-violent, "sit-in" movement. Although the...
Handout
Other

Maryland Historical Society: Collections Online

For Students 9th - 10th
An online database full of paintings, photographs, manuscripts, decorative arts pieces, and lithographs pertaining to history topics. Topics include American Civil War, African American History, Women's History, and immigration and...
Website
Other

Amistad Digital Resource: End of World War Two

For Students 9th - 10th
Narrative explores the role of African Americans after World War II ended and the state of the civil rights movement from the 1940s to the early 1050s.
Article
Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian Tween Tribune: The True Story of "Hidden Figures"

For Students 5th - 6th
"Hidden Figures" was a blockbuster movie and book about African-American women working for NASA beginning after WWII. These women not only made great strides for the space program but also advanced the civil rights movement. Learn more...
Handout
History Link

Bertha Pitts Campbell: An Oral History

For Students 9th - 10th
From the Washington State Oral History Project comes this captivating interview with Bertha Pitts Campbell, an African American woman and early Seattle civil rights worker. Campbell talks about the discrimination and segregation she...
Website
Library of Congress

Loc: The Negro in the Wars of the Nation

For Students 9th - 10th
African Americans have fought proudly for our country as far back as the Revolutionary War. Christian Fleetwood gives an account of the history of African-American soldiers in the Revolutionary War to the Civil War. He cites examples of...
Unit Plan
Annenberg Foundation

Annenberg Learner: American Passages: Social Realism: W. E. B. Du Bois

For Students 9th - 10th
W. E. B. DuBois is featured here for his writings which advocated human rights for all, but particularly for African Americans in the early twentieth century. Click "W. E. B. DuBois Activities" for related materials.
Website
Library of Congress

Loc: America's Story: Althea Gibson Won Again!

For Students 3rd - 8th
Althea Gibson made it possible for the Williams sisters to play at Wimbledon. As the first African-American to win that title, she was a pioneer. See photos and read more about her on this Library of Congress site.
Handout
Library of Congress

Loc: America's Story:jackie Robinson Throws Opening Pitch

For Students 3rd - 8th
Jackie Robinson was not only one of the all-time great baseball players, he was the first African American to play in the Major Leagues. The Library of Congress presents a site with information and photographs of this amazing man.
Unit Plan
Curated OER

National Park Service: Dr. King's Leadership and Character [Pdf]

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st
This lesson plans looks at the leadership and character of Dr. King, and encourages students to draw connections to their lives. More lesson plans from the national parks service on civil rights and Dr. King can be found here:...
Article
Other

People's World: The Chicago Freedom Movement: Summer of 1966

For Students 9th - 10th
An informative and inspiring article about the African American struggle for civil rights in Chicago, 1966. The authors offer a first-hand account of protests against unfair housing and discrimination and the subsequent changes made.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Others Demand Equality

For Students 5th - 8th
Many other groups learned how to push for their civil rights from African Americans' civil rights movement. Read about the Mexican Americans, Native Americans, and gays as they worked to achieve equal treatment under the law.
Handout
Alabama Humanities Foundation

Encyclopedia of Alabama: Ralph David Abernathy

For Students 9th - 10th
This brief biography of Ralph Abernathy highlights his contributions to the Civil Rights Movements.
Website
PBS

Pbs: American Masters: Paul Robeson

For Students 9th - 10th
PBS profiles the life of African American actor, athlete, singer, author, and political activist, Paul Robeson. Click on the timeline to see highlights of his often turbulent career.
Primary
National Humanities Center

National Humanities Center: Toolbox Library: Emancipation, 1864 1865

For Students 9th - 10th
Letters and narratives of slaves freed at the end of the Civil War. An interesting look at the confusion and eagerness which confronted these newly freed Americans.
Unit Plan
Curated OER

National Park Service: Names, Names, Names [Pdf]

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
A lesson plan for K-1 about important people in the Civil Rights movement. Requires Adobe Reader.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Black Power

For Students 5th - 8th
The black power movement moved away from the nonviolence advocated by Martin Luther King, Jr. and his associates. Read about the formation of the Black Panther Party, and find their party platform. Take the brief quiz about history of...
Handout
Library of Congress

Loc: America's Story: 14th Amendment to the Constitution

For Students 3rd - 8th
After the Civil War, the 14th amendment granted citizenship to all people born or naturalized in the United States. This included former slaves. Learn about the protections this amendment offers to citizens, including those who were once...
Handout
Alabama Humanities Foundation

Encyclopedia of Alabama: Selma to Montgomery March

For Students 9th - 10th
One of the most famous events in Civil Rights history, this report covers the Selma to Montgomery March for voting rights.
Lesson Plan
Alabama Learning Exchange

Alex: Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott

For Teachers 6th - 8th
This lesson introduces students to Rosa Parks and the beginning of the Montgomery Bus Boycott. After considering the impact of Ms. Parks' heroism, students will explore its relevance to the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement....
Lesson Plan
iCivics

I Civics: Breaking Barriers: Constance Baker Motley

For Students 9th - 10th
Meet a woman who broke all the barriers to become a champion for civil rights: Constance Baker Motley lawyer, state senator, and federal judge. [1:52]