University of Chicago
Exercise in Conflict Resolution
How do major religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, differ in how they view the role of individual freedoms within society, the definition of morality, and the importance of politically satisfying the greater...
University of North Carolina
Political Science
The right to vote and freedom of expression are democratic principles that fall under the study of political science. A handout describes writing assignments that are common in political science college classes and gives tips and...
Curated OER
Colonial Rules
How did Colonists react to British rule prior to the American Revolution? Give your high schoolers a taste of oppression with this role-play activity, then let them come up with a revolution of their own. This excercise is intended to...
National Endowment for the Humanities
How "Grand" and "Allied" Was the Grand Alliance?
Learn more about the Grand Alliance with a scaffolded lesson plan that includes four activities. Class members use primary sources to complete a map exercise, understand the goals and objectives of each individual nation, and participate...
US Citizenship and Immigration Services
Thanksgiving 2—The Pilgrim Story and My Immigrant Story
The tradition of the First Thanksgiving is really a story of immigration. Connect the feelings and customs of the early Pilgrims to the experiences of the immigrants in your class with an introduction to the 13 colonies, the Mayflower,...
Center for History and New Media
Slavery and Free Negroes, 1800 to 1860
What was life like for enslaved and free black people before the American Civil War? Explore the building tension between states and the freedom of individuals with a thorough social studies lesson. Learners of all ages explore...
Annenberg Foundation
The Progressives
The Progressive Era brought about a word that often leads to turmoil—change! Learners research the late 1800s in American history to uncover societal issues gripping the nation back in the day. The 15th lesson of a 22-part series...
Curated OER
A Civic Duty to Protest
Students examine the concept of religious freedom by evaluating Hong Kong's security laws. In pairs students investigate the levels of religous freedom allowed in various countries around the world and present this information to the class.
Curated OER
It's A Free Country, Isn't It?
Learners examine immigration into the United States. They identify the rights and responsbilities of being a citizen of this country. They create a new verse to be included in the National Anthem.
Curated OER
Launching Your Ship with Citizenship Lesson 4: Hoisting the Flag
Young scholars discuss the U.S. electoral process and brainstorm solutions to increase voter turnout in their community. In this democratic citizenship lesson, students identify keywords in speech and video related to freedom of speech...
Curated OER
Sacred Blade at Heart of School Dispute
Fifth graders read the Sacred Blade at Heart of School Dispute, a religious freedom story. In groups students create a mediation session to demonstrate the conflict in the story.
Curated OER
All Men Are Created Equal
Learners engage in a lesson to investigate the concept of all men being equal. The concept has a historical context during the time of the American Revolution. They use primary and secondary sources in order to discover the concept of...
Curated OER
Fighting for Democracy, Fighting for Me
Ninth graders investigate specific individuals involved in Operation Iraqi Freedom and working backward to stories from World War II. In this US History lesson, 9th graders read documents that depict the conflicts faced by...
Curated OER
Governance - Grade 8
Eighth graders participate in talking circles. For this self-governance lesson, 8th graders examine human rights from the perspective of Native Americans. Students discuss the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms as well as...
Curated OER
Treaties Grade 11
Eleventh graders examine the First Nations Treaty. In this Canadian history lesson, 11th graders participate in talking circles that require them to compare "Human Rights," with the First Nations Treaty.
Curated OER
Laws of Civil Rights
Students investigate the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In this segregation lesson, students explore the rights that were guaranteed by the legislation as well as attempts by southerners to stop African Americans from voting. Students...
Curated OER
Marching For Freedom
Students appreciate the sacrifices that people from across the country made to ensure that all citizens could exercise their constitutional right to vote. They access excellent websites and documents imbedded in this plan to guide their...
Curated OER
1st Grade - Act. 09: Freedom Quilt
First graders create sections of classroom quilt that be tied together.
Curated OER
Documents and Symbols and American Freedom
Students complete a unit of lessons on the documents, symbols, and famous people involved in the founding of the U.S. government. They create a personal bill of rights, write a found poem, design a flag, conduct research, and role-play...
Curated OER
Let Freedom Sing: A patriotic Program for Grades 1-6
Students understand information and stories contained in patriotic songs. For this patriotic music lesson, students participate in grade appropriate lessons to understand the music and lyrics of patriotic songs. Students perform the...
Curated OER
Voyage to Freedom - What Does It Mean?
Fifth graders investigate the Underground Railroad by creating a quilt. In this U.S. History instructional activity, 5th graders discuss the history of slavery through a class "word splash" and by reading an Underground Railroad...
Curated OER
The Road to California - A Journey to Freedom
Students complete a Web quest about Biddy Mason's journey Westward to California as a slave and her ultimate rise to one of the wealthiest and generous woman of the Westward Movement. They present an exhibit of their research.
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...
Curated OER
Freedom Summer
Students brainstorm and discuss what the concept of "fairness" is and how to identify examples of "fairness." They pull from historical fiction and the Civil Rights Movement to explain how individual are affected by, cope with, and...