Anti-Defamation League
Identity and Diversity in My Generation
Gen Z, those born between 1997 and 2012, according to research, is the "most racially and ethnically diverse generation in U.S. history." Gen Z high schoolers are challenged to consider how they identify themselves. They select a photo...
C3 Teachers
Economics of Slavery: How Did Cotton Sow the Seeds of Panic?
An inquiry-based lesson challenges high schoolers to research and identify the economic forces and inventions that impacted the cotton industry. Researchers consider how the use of slavery impacted the economic growth of the United States.
Anti-Defamation League
The Gender Allowance Gap
Does the pay gap begin with allowance? That is the big question scholars answer in a lesson examining how gender affects how much money an individual earns. Class members conduct a survey to identify how the allowance is paid, take their...
Anti-Defamation League
What "Draw-A-Scientist" Reveals about Gender Stereotypes
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...
C3 Teachers
African American Voices and Reconstruction: What Does It Take To Secure Equality?
High schoolers research the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments, as well as other primary source documents, to determine Reconstruction's impact on the North and South. The 34-page inquiry-based lesson includes a staging question and...
Anti-Defamation League
Lonnie Chavis of 'This Is Us' Writes about Racism
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...
Anti-Defamation League
Sneakers and Prejudice: Letters to Challenge Bias
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,...
Anti-Defamation League
Job Roles without Gender Boundaries
A lesson plan examines gender stereotypes and how they relate to career choices. Small groups look closely at job titles, identify gender bias, and brainstorm ways to add inclusivity. Individuals reflect on their interests and future...
C3 Teachers
African Americans and the Civil War: How Did African Americans Experience the Civil War?
To understand African Americans' involvement in the United States Civil War, high schoolers gather evidence from primary source images, census reports, and documents. As a summative performance task, individuals craft an argument,...
C3 Teachers
Anna - One Woman’s Quest for Freedom: What Did Freedom Mean for Anna?
The 2018 film Anna, One Woman's Quest for Freedom in Early Washington, D.C., offers high schoolers an opportunity to examine the sacrifices one woman endured to gain her freedom from slavery.
Anti-Defamation League
We Were Strangers Too: Learning About Refugees Through Art
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...
Anti-Defamation League
Social Justice Poetry
Learners gain insight into how songs and poems express feelings of injustice. They also learn about literary devices and types of poems and make a personal connection when they write their own free verse poems about injustice.
Core Knowledge Foundation
The Civil War
A student reader shares information about the history of slavery, the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln, women's contributions to the war, the Emancipation Proclamation, and reconstruction.
University of Minnesota
Ways of Knowing: Apples as Models
Use apples as a way of thinking about models. Young scientists consider how the word apple, a two-dimensional drawing, a three-dimensional image, a photograph, and plastic apples all model real apples in preparation for developing models...
Core Knowledge Foundation
Early Presidents and Social Reformers
An ebook by Core Knowledge features information about early United Stated presidents such as George Washington and Thomas Jefferson and social reformers such as Sojourner Truth and Frederick Douglas.
C3 Teachers
Reparations: Why Are Reparations Controversial?
To understand why the topic of reparations is controversial, young scholars gather background information by reading articles, watching videos, and examining cases where reparations were made. Learners consider the lasting repercussions...
C3 Teachers
Black Genius: How Did Black Genius Help Build American Democracy?
"How did the slavery system undermine the United States' democratic principles?" This question launches a study of how the Preamble to the Declaration of Independence, Article I, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution, and Article IV,...
Learning for Justice
The Color of Law: Creating Racially Segregated Communities
It is pointed, powerful, and painful! The first of three lessons about laws and practices that support inequality looks at how government policies created and reinforced segregated communities. Young social scientists read excerpts from...
Learning for Justice
The Color of Law: Winners and Losers in the Job Market
The second lesson in "The Color of Law" shows how government policies supported economic inequality. Scholars read additional excerpts and respond to text-dependent questions from "The Color of Law" text, examine primary source documents...
Learning for Justice
The Color of Law: Developing the White Middle Class
The final lesson plan in the "Color of Law" series explores the government's discriminatory economic policies. Young scholars watch videos, read primary source materials, and examine images to gather information. They discuss how what...
PBS
Amid Rising Economic Inequality, Does America Need a Third Reconstruction?
Young political scientists investigate the Poor People's Campaign protest held in Washington, D.C., on June 18, 2022. They research how the event was reported in various news outlets and consider their stance on whether "poverty is...
PBS
Explore Art and Movement Inspired by Jacob Lawrence’s Migration Series
Panel 58 from Jacob Lawrence's "Migration Series" of paintings provides middle schoolers with an opportunity to sharpen their observation and analytical skills. After engaging in a warm-up activity that introduces the concepts of...
PBS
Write a New Year Poem Inspired by Amanda Gorman’s "New Day’s Lyric"
Here's a new take on a new year. After watching and discussing the video of Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman performing her "New Day's Lyric," young poets craft poems that reflect their feelings about the past year and their resolutions...
PBS
History of Juneteenth and Why It’s Now a National Holiday
June 19 is now a United States federal holiday. Young historians examine the background of the first Juneteenth celebrations and why on June 15, 2021, Congress finally approved "Juneteenth National Independence Day" as a federal holiday.