Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

What "Draw-A-Scientist" Reveals about Gender Stereotypes

For Teachers 2nd - 5th Standards
What do you picture when you hear the word scientist? Challenge scholars to put pencil to paper, draw a scientist, and then reflect on the patterns they observe. Learners read an article about a female scientist and write a story about a...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

Identity, Hair and Seeing Myself

For Teachers K - 3rd Standards
Scholars read about and discuss how seven-year-old Morgan Bugg wrote a company to add avatar styles that reflect her. The company realized its error and added more inclusive styles to its avatars. Learners reflect on identity, what...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

Lonnie Chavis of 'This Is Us' Writes about Racism

For Teachers 4th - 8th Standards
Scholars read and discuss an essay by 12-year-old actor Lonnie Chaves about racism, paying close attention to how racism presents itself in interpersonal and institutional ways. Learners reflect on how they experience or witness racism...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

Sneakers and Prejudice: Letters to Challenge Bias

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
After learning that NBA player Stephen Curry's shoes only come in boys' sizes, Riley wrote a letter sharing her concern, highlighting the gender bias and inviting Curry to take action. Scholars view a news clip, review the letters,...
Unit Plan
C3 Teachers

Civil Rights: What Made Nonviolent Protest Effective during the Civil Rights Movement?

For Teachers 11th Standards
Sit-ins and boycotts, marches and speeches, songs and demonstrations were hallmarks of nonviolent protest of the civil rights movement. Young scholars research primary and secondary source documents to determine what made nonviolent...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

Challenging Gender Role Stereotypes

For Teachers K - 2nd Standards
Through thoughtful discussion and a read-aloud, scholars challenge gender role stereotypes. Pupils examine pictures and collaborate with their small groups to debunk stereotypes. They explain what gender role stereotypes they know of and...
Lesson Plan
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Anti-Defamation League

We Were Strangers Too: Learning About Refugees Through Art

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Did you know that "in the largest refugee crisis since World War II, more the 64 million people have been forced from their homes"? The Anti-Defamation League presents an activity that asks class members to examine a series of artworks...
Activity
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Anti-Defamation League

7 Ideas for Teaching Women's History Month

For Teachers K - 12th Standards
Celebrate Women's History Month with hands on-learning. The resource provides seven strategies to help educators teach Women's History Month, ranging from watching films to reading books written by women. Activities including writing...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

Indian/Native American Boarding Schools: Their History, Harm and Impact

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Encultureate, assimilate, or eliminate? The 2021 discovery of a mass grave of over 200 children on the site of a former Canadian Indian Boarding school led to the creation of the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative. High schoolers...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

Analyzing Primary Source Documents to Understand U.S. Expansionism and 19th Century U.S.-Indian Relations

For Teachers 11th - 12th Standards
Historical events can be viewed from multiple perspectives. This simple truth is brought home in a lesson that examines primary source documents related to the Lewis and Clark Expedition, the Doctrine of Discovery and Manifest Destiny,...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

Viewing History from Multiple Perspectives

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Celebration or protest song? The full text of Woody Guthrie's "This Land is Your Land" opens a study of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, the Louisiana Purchase, and Western Expansion from various perspectives. Middle schoolers examine...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

Should Washington's NFL Team Change Their Name?

For Teachers 8th - 12th Standards
"What's in a name?" Is it irrelevant, as Juliet suggests in Shakespeare's play, or is nomenclature deeply significant? Young scholars weigh in on the debate by examining the controversy over the NFL's Washington, D.C. Redskins. Groups...
Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

Writing Wrongs Mini Lesson: Peer Editing And Revising

For Teachers 8th - 11th Standards
High schoolers draft a paragraph about their stance on the issue of school uniforms and share their work with a peer for editing. After watching a  parody video about peer editing and revising, class members generate a "Top 10 list"...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

What Is Weight Bias?

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
After setting rules and expectations to create a safe place to share thoughts and feelings, scholars define the terms; stereotype, basis, and discrimination. Using a web brainstorm, learners list words associated with overweight and...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

Don't Let Hate Ruin the Fun: Youth and Online Games

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Gamers unite! Take action against bullying and hate speech in online video games! After reading data that reveals the extent to which various age groups experience hate and, or harassment while playing video games online, groups develop...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

Hair, Identity and Bias

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Middle schoolers weigh in on dress codes, specifically those that apply to hair and make-up, with a lesson that uses a 2017 case from a charter school in Massachusetts. Class members read about two girls suspended for violating the...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

Hair Discrimination and the CROWN Act

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
The CROWN Act (Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair) is the subject of the activity that asks groups to research the stories of five different women and share their insights in a jigsaw activity. Participants then craft...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

Teens, Tech, Connect: How Technology Impacts Teenagers' Friendships

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
To understand their time spent online, class members chart their use of technology during early morning hours, during school, after school, in the evenings, and on weekends. They then read several reports about how social media...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

Bias, Bullying and Bad Behavior in the NFL

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
A 2014 case of locker room behavior in the National Football League offers high schoolers an opportunity to get involved in the conversation of bullying and abuse. Class members read about the case and analyze quotes that reveal...
Lesson Plan
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Anti-Defamation League

Nothing Wrong with a Three-Legged Dog: Discussion Guide for Grades 3-5

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
Scholars study the book, Nothing Wrong with a Three-Legged Dog by Graham McNamee to encourage an antibullying trend in their school and community. Chapters and themes examine bias, coping skills, how to respond to bullying, and being a...
Lesson Plan
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Anti-Defamation League

Say Something: Discussion Guide for Grades 2-4

For Teachers 2nd - 4th Standards
Empower pupils to stop bullying when they see or experience it with a lesson that showcases the book, Say Something by Margaret Paula Moss. After reading the tale and thoughtfully discussing its characters, they share their own...
Lesson Plan
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Anti-Defamation League

The Name Jar: Discussion Guide for Grades Pre-K–1

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st Standards
A instructional activity spotlights the story, The Name Jar, by Yangsook Choi. After a read-aloud, the class retells the story using puppets or dress-up. They participate in a thoughtful discussion about the story, answer questions...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

Understanding and Analyzing “The U.S. of Us” by Richard Blanco

For Teachers 8th - 12th Standards
Current immigration issues and the rhetoric surrounding the controversies come into focus with a lesson that uses Richard Blanco's anthem, "The U.S. of Us," written after the August 2019 attack in El Paso, Texas, to open a discussion of...
Lesson Plan
Anti-Defamation League

“Walling Out the Unwanted”: Understanding the Barriers that Perpetuate Anti-Immigrant Bias

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
As part of a study of immigrant bias, high schoolers investigate the language used in blogs, readings, media reports, and current legislation whose language perpetuates xenophobia. They then consider ways they can get involved in...