Curated OER
Keep on Pushing: Popular Music and the Civil Rights Movement
Students explore music that exemplified the Civil Rights Movement. In this music and history lesson, students research 1960's protest songs, Motown recorded music, and rap of the 1990's to consider the power of music and its reflection...
Curated OER
Chapter 23 – The Civil Rights Movement
In this U.S. history activity, students read assigned textbook pages on the Civil Rights Movement and respond to 48 short answer questions.
Curated OER
Civil Services
Students investigate important themes, figures, and events of the Civil Rights Movement. They create a class mural that demonstrates their understanding of the continuing impact of the movement on American society.
Washington University in St. Louis
Teaching Jazz as American Culture
Jazz and the City, Jazz and the Civil Rights Movement, Jazz and Gender, Jazz and Literature, Jazz and the Arts, Jazz and Film. Here's a packet of unit plans organized around themes that reflect American culture. Each unit examines how...
Defining US
Integration of Education and American Society
How did the struggle for Civil Rights during the 1950s transform American society and politics? Why are American schools integrated today? Class members explore these essential questions by examining a series of primary and secondary...
National Woman's History Museum
Fannie Lou Hamer and Social Activism
Not all heroes wear capes. An impactful lesson focuses on the life and activism of Fannie Lou Hamer during the civil rights movement. Scholars read her speeches and other material, participate in group discussion, and complete a jigsaw...
K20 LEARN
Analyzing The "I Have A Dream" Speech
The famous words of Martin Luther King still resonate with scholars today. An enlightening lesson helps pupils examine the "I Have a Dream" speech in more depth and learn what impact it had on the civil rights movement. Young historians...
DocsTeach
The Path of Justice: Selma and the Voting Rights Act
The civil rights movement: An ongoing battle for change. The activity focuses on President Johnson's speech in response to the massacre at the Selma March. Academics study the speech, complete a hands-on-activity, and discuss President...
Adult Fiction by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Ghost Boys: Educator Guide
The spirit of the Civil Rights Movement lives on in a more literal than figurative way in Ghost Boys. A focused lesson plan features Jewell Parker Rhodes' novel about ghosts of slain black teenagers, including the main character, Jerome,...
Curated OER
The Civil Rights Era (1865–1970)
In this online interactive history worksheet, students respond to 9 short answer and essay questions about the American Civil Rights Movement.
Curated OER
Social Studies: Civil Rights Gets Stronger
Students investigate segregation in the United States. For this American Civil Rights lesson, students read Oh Freedom and discuss the implications of segregation. Students then view images from the time period and take notes...
Curated OER
Breaking Barriers
Determine how African-Americans have broken barriers in this history lesson. Middle schoolers discuss the 15th Amendment and the American civil rights movement prior to analyzing Barack Obama's speech "A More Perfect Union," taking care...
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...
Curated OER
The Election of Barack Obama 44th President of the United States
High schoolers consider the historic implications of Barack Obama's election. In this election of 2008 lesson, students research Obama's accomplishments and determine how his election signifies the success of the American Civil Rights...
Curated OER
Separate is Not Equal: Brown vs. Board of Education
Brown vs. Board of Education was a landmark case, but what other cases were influenced by its decision? By researching 1 of 14 civil rights legislative events, scholars follow this court case through recent events. Keeping in mind 6...
Curated OER
We Are The Freedom Riders
Students consider the role of the Freedom Riders. In this American Civil Rights instructional activity, students watch videos, listen to lectures, and conduct research regarding the participants in the Freedom Ride protest. Several...
C-SPAN
Last Days of Martin Luther King, Jr.
On April 4, 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee. Four video clips reveal the events of that time, including the shift in the focus of the Civil Rights Movement, the aftermath of the assassination, and...
National Endowment for the Humanities
"Sí, se puede!": Chávez, Huerta, and the UFW
"Sí, se puede!" Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta believed organizing farm workers and changing their working conditions were possible. Scholars examine provisions of the Bracero Program, videos, and the United Farm Workers' (UFW) work....
Curated OER
Desegregation of Schools
Students explore ways African American students were discriminated against in the 1960's. In this United States History instructional activity, students read three famous poems on the Civil Rights Movement then write their own poem.
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.
DocsTeach
The 19th Amendment and the Road to Universal Suffrage
Your vote matters! An informative activity focuses on the Nineteenth Amendment and explains how it paved the way for universal voting rights. Young historians analyze several documents and a complete a worksheet, describing the impact of...
TCI
Dreams Progress
Has society progressed to the dream Martin Luther King Jr. expressed in his famous address during the civil rights movement? Learners work with a partner to analyze one excerpt from King's "I Have A Dream" speech and find a current...
Curated OER
President LBJ
Here's a quick look at the Johnson presidency. Each of his major acts are discussed with images and video web links. The Voting Rights Act, Tet Offensive, Civil Rights Act, and War on Poverty are defined.
Curated OER
Rights-Minded
Students expand their knowledge and understanding about the civil rights movement by investigating the lives of some of the people who contributed to it.