Curated OER
Concept Formation Lesson Plan: Understanding "Protest"
After analyzing both examples and non-examples of a variety of protests conducted by ethnic groups in Seattle and the state of Washington during the twentieth century, your class members will work to identify the key ideas and...
K12 Reader
MLK: Complete the Speech
Take a close look at a few paragraphs of Martin Luther King, Jr.s' famous speech, "I Have a Dream." Class members fill in the missing words using the bank of words provided and then respond to a question about the speech and modern day...
K12 Reader
I Have a Dream… Personal Narrative: Writing About Your Dream for the World.
How do your pupils want to change the world? Find out with this writing prompt, inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s well-known speech. The resource provides the prompt and lines for writing.
K12 Reader
Civil Rights Biography: Rosa Parks
Add to your instruction on the civil rights movement with this biography of Rosa Parks. Class members read the one-page summary of her life, which focuses mainly on the part she played in the bus boycott. After reading, pupils respond to...
K12 Reader
Civil Rights Biography: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Introduce your class to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his many accomplishments through a one-page biography. Class members read the text and respond to three questions included at the end.
North Carolina Consortium for Middle East Studies
Journey of Reconciliation, 1947
After examining the Jim Crow laws and reading primary source materials about the 1947 Journey of Reconciliation, class members create historical markers that honor riders and their journey.
Mrs. Hodges' Social Studies Classes
I Have Rights?!
Do young people have rights in the United States? Your pupils will not only learn the answer to this important question, but will also build vocabulary through cloze activities and gain a thorough introduction to the Bill of Rights.
Scholastic
Ruby Bridges: A Simple Act of Courage, Grades K-2
A civil rights movement instructional activity designed specifically with the Common Core State Standards in mind, young learners are introduced to the story of Ruby Bridges as the first African American child to attend an all-white...
Library Sparks
When Marian Sang: Reader's Theater
Put on an eight-actor show based on Pan Munoz Ryan's When Marian Sang: The True Recital of Marian Anderson. The resource comes with a color-coded script that includes some images from the picture book.
Umoja Student Development Corporation
Martin Luther King, Jr.: What Did He Do? Why Does It Matter?
Young historians examine the work of Martin Luther King Jr. by reading and answering questions about the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the Albany Movement, the Birmingham and Chicago campaigns, and the Memphis Sanitation Worker's Strike....
K12 Reader
Civil Rights Biography: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Why do schools and government offices close one day every January to honor the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.? Young learners discover the achievements and lasting significance of this influential figure in American history...
Charlesbridge
Under the Freedom Tree: A Readers Theater
Susan VanHecke's Under the Freedom Tree is transformed into a 12-part readers theatre script appropriate for a performance by upper-elementary classes.
Atlanta History Center
Civil Disobedience and the Atlanta Student Movement
What tactics are used in civil disobedience? Learners study the conditions in Alabama that led to the establishment of the Atlanta Student Movement, as well as consider the nature and effectiveness of civil disobedience.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Using Historic Digital Newspapers for National History Day
Your learners will take a trip through history as they peruse through historic digitalized newspapers, reading real articles from such historical periods in the United States as the Temperance movement...
Speak Truth to Power
John Lewis: Non-Violent Activism
After comparing and contrasting non-violent and violent social movements, your young historians will take a closer look at the work and influence of John Lewis on the civil rights movement. They will then choose a current social...
Student Handouts
Constitutional Principles
Keep track of constitutional principles with a graphic organizer. Pupils define, describe the origins of, and note down the location of the following terms: checks and balances, federalism, individual rights, limited government, popular...
Student Handouts
Voting Rights Speech Before Congress
Is your class studying civil rights? Consider taking a look at President Lyndon B. Johnson's voting rights speech. This resource includes an abridged version and three related questions. Pupils consider Johnson's use of language and the...
University of Arkansas
Promises Denied
"Promises Denied," the second instructional activity in a unit that asks learners to consider the responsibilities individuals have to uphold human rights, looks at documents that illustrate the difficulty the US has had trying to live...
US National Archives
Documented Rights Educational Lesson Plan
How have groups struggled to have their unalienable rights recognized in the United States? Acting as a research team for the Human Rights Council of the United Nations, your young historians will break into groups to research...
iCivics
I Can’t Wear What?
Can schools ban t-shirts picturing musical groups or bands? Your young citizens will find out with this resource, which includes a summary of a United States Supreme Court case from the 1960s about a similar dispute over learners wearing...
Personal Genetics Education Project
Introduction to Personal Genetics
Adolescents have the opportunity to consider how they feel about the possibilities presented by the current availability of genetic sequencing. After some instruction, they participate in a four-corners activity in which you read a...
Facing History and Ourselves
Choosing to Participate Posters
"A poster exhibit to encourage dialogue, engagement, respect, and participation in our communities..." This is a set of attractive posters that reference influential historical figures, such as George Washington and Albert Einstein, and...
EngageNY
Building Background Knowledge: Why Do Workers Strike? (Chapter 11: "Los Aguacates/Avocados")
Make connections between Esperanza Rising and human rights with the activities outlined here. The instructional activity starts out with a brief quiz and review of the novel. After that, pupils circulate and share quote strips that you...
Curated OER
Ethos, Logos, and Pathos in Civil Rights Movement Speeches
Examine three speeches while teaching Aristotle's appeals. Over the course of three days, class members fill out a graphic organizer about ethos, pathos, and logos, complete an anticipatory guide, read speeches by Martin Luther King Jr.,...