Wisconsin Historical Society
Civil Disobedience
When is civil disobedience acceptable? Class members read examples of Jim Crow laws, an excerpt from Dr. Martin Luther King's "Letter from a Birmingham Jail," and a newspaper article and then consider the factors that make a law just or...
Stockton University Wordpress
Civil Disobedience: Is it ever ok to break the law?
As part of a study of civil disobedience, class members read excerpts from the writings of activists who were willing to break the law to protest unjust laws.
Curated OER
Gandhi’s 12 Vows: Training Warriors of Non-violence
Learners examine Gandhi’s ‘Walk n Talk’ strategy. In this lesson on civil disobedience, students evaluate Gandhi’s non-violent method of satyagraha as an effective mode of revolution.
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Tracing the Idea of Civil Disobedience through Thoreau, Gandhi, and King
Students analyze civil disobedience through history studying Thoreau, Gandhi, and Dr. King. For this civil disobedience lesson, students read and analyze excerpts from Thoreau, Gandhi, and Martin Luther King. Students demonstrate their...
Curated OER
20th Century Civil Disobedience
Students write from varying perspectives in the American South about the civil rights movements in the 1950s. For this civics lesson, students view video clips and take notes. Students discuss the film and listen to a lecture on...
Curriculum Project
Gandhi
Introduce class members to Gandhi's non-violent, non-cooperative ideas with Richard Attenborough's 1982 bio-epic. The film traces the experiences that gave shape to Gandhi's ideas and the actions that eventually lead to the end of...
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An Eye for an Eye
Pupils watch a view introducing them to modern Indian History. During the film, they answer discussion quesitons and discover the concept of non-violent civil disobedience. They share their responses with the class and write an essay to...
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Breaking the Unjust Law
Students consider the concept of civil disobedience. In this lesson on changing unjust laws, students use primary sources to understand how Gandhi and King changed the law. Students will then list laws that they feel are unjust and plan...
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Muhammad Ali and his Vietnam War Resistance: Defining Nonviolent Action through Gandhi and King
Pupils research Muhammad Ali's act of civil disobedience. In this civil disobedience lesson, students research Ali's defiance of the Vietnam War draft and compare his reasoning to Martin Luther King's thoughts on the war. Pupils debate...
Curated OER
Thoreau, Gandhi, and Martin Luther King, Jr.
Students explore the concept of non-violent resistance. In this political philosophies lesson, students study the political tactics of Mohandas Gandhi, Henry David Thoreau, and Martin Luther King, Jr. in order to discover how each of...
Curated OER
Criticism of Modernity: Gandhi's Association with the American Transcendentalists
Eleventh graders explore Gandhi's philosophy links to the works of American Transcendentalists Emerson and Thoreau. In this transcendentalism lesson, 11th graders discuss essential questions about civilization and modernity.
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Satyagraha, Its Origins and Applications
Tenth graders study the steps and methods taken by Gandhi. In this World History lesson, 10th graders create illustrations to represent these steps. Students write a persuasive essay on these measures taken by Gandhi.
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Is Modern Civilization Civilized?
Students examine the concept of civility. In this modern civilization lesson, students study Gandhi's teaching about the attributes of civilized societies and discuss how they can contribute to fostering civilization in their own community.
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The Art of Nonviolence: Martin Luther King, Jr., Gandhi, and Concepts of Nonviolence in Indian Art
Young scholars make connections between nonviolent ideals and art. In this visual arts lesson, students discuss the successes of the American Civil Rights Movement and discuss Gandhi's influence on the movement. Young scholars then...
Curated OER
Classroom Management Using Gandhian and Kingian Principles of Nonviolence
Tenth graders study the concept of civil disobedience. For this Current Events lesson, 10th graders participate in a survey that nominates students for hard work and exemplifies nonviolence.
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The Roots of Ahimsa
Students investigate the philosophy of nonviolence. In this Ghandi lesson, students discover that Gandhi inspired many civil rights leaders with the idea of ahimsa. Students complete venn diagrams, create timelines, and discuss reading...
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Give Peace A Chance: Nonviolence as a valid strategy for social change
Students analyze how people solve conflicts. In this conflict resolution instructional activity, students look at Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King's nonviolence movements. They see the reasoning behind nonviolence and how it works.
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Chiune Sugihara, Living by Gandhian Principles
Seventh graders read about Chiune Sugihara and analyze the moral situations he faced. In this morality lesson, 7th graders read chapters from A Special Fate, Chiune Sugihara: Hero of the Holocaust and analyze his moral decisions in the...
Curated OER
Ahimsa in Writers Workshop
Students investigate nonviolent lifestyles by researching the life of Gandhi. In this journalism activity, students define the word ahimsa and how important nonviolence is when solving conflicts. Students create a timeline of personal...
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Actively Organizing Passive Resistance
Students explore organizing to resist oppressive authority without the use of violence. In this philosophy lesson, students research Gandhi's approach to organizing people around a positive cause without the need to be aggressive or...
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The Distance Formula and Marching Nonviolently for Social Change
Learners explore the distance formula using real world data from nonviolent marches for social change. For this secondary mathematics lesson, students investigate the marches of Gandhi and King using maps overlaid with a coordinate...
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Non-violent Protest Through The Ages
Pupils are introduced to non-violent ways to solve disagreements with others. In groups, they analyze the ways Martin Luther King, Gandhi and Thoreau shared their views in non-violent ways. They complete a sketch of the life of each...
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America's Civil Rights Movement, Activity Six
Students explore non-violence and investigate the difference between passive and active voice.
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Dr. King’s Leadership in the Aftermath of the Bombing of Birmingham’s Sixteenth Street Baptist Church
Students explore the concept of nonviolent resistance. In this nonviolent resistance instructional activity, students consider how Dr. King led during the aftermath of the bombing of Birmingham's Sixteenth Street Baptist Church.