PBS
The Supreme Court: Civil Rights and Civil Liberties
While World War II changed the international order, it also led to a fundamental shift in the concept of civil rights within the United States. Using a video and discussion questions, class members consider the effects the war had to the...
Curated OER
American Civil Rights Movement, Photo Essay
Young scholars view photographs from the Civil Rights Movement and write an essay from the point of view of someone in the photograph. They artistically represent various aspects of the Movement.
Curated OER
USA: the KKK and Civil Rights Movement
Students view film footage of the Ku Klux Klan in the U.S. in the early 1920s and examine how the actions of the KKK have been viewed by different strands of the civil rights movement. They watch the film and answer discussion...
Facing History and Ourselves
Tactics of Nonviolence
Students analyze the direct action tactics of nonviolence. As a class, they distinguish between a strategy and a tactic and identify tactics used during the civil rights movement. They relate these tactics and how they might be used to...
Curated OER
Expanding the Story of the Montgomery Bus Boycott
Introduce the class to the Civil Rights Movement by taking a critical look at the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955. They will pay close attention to the role women played in organizing the boycott and bringing national attention to the...
National Woman's History Museum
Fannie Lou Hamer and Social Activism
Not all heroes wear capes. An impactful lesson plan 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...
Center for History Education
Continuity or Change? African Americans in World War II
While World War II was a pivotal moment in history, historians debate its importance to the civil rights movement. Class members consider the implications of segregation and the war using a series of documents and a jigsaw activity....
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,...
DocsTeach
African American Soldiers and Civil Rights During WWI
Young scholars analyze primary source documents and images to determine how African American soldiers were denied their civil rights during World War I.
Digital Public Library of America
The Watsons Go To Birmingham—1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis
A primary source set of photographs, videos, newspaper articles, and FBI reports provides insight into race relations during the 1960s, the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church bombing, and the murder of Emmitt Till. Designed to be used to...
Center for Civic Education
Citizenship Schools and Civic Education During the Civil Rights Movement and in the Present
Your young historians will discover the importance that citizenship education has played in the social progress of the United States as they learn about early efforts to discourage African Americans from voting in the 1960s.
Newseum
Civil Rights: The Five Freedoms
After a close reading of the First Amendment and the five freedoms it guarantees, class members examine the civil rights timeline to see how civil rights groups applied these freedoms to create change. Using the issue the class chose in...
Curated OER
Unsung Heroes of the Civil Rights Movement
Students analyze historic rulings that played roles in the Civil Rights Movement. In this civil right lesson plan, students research Internet and print sources regarding Plessy v. Ferguson, Sipuel v. Board of Regents of the University of...
Curated OER
The Civil Rights Movement
Students explore the events of the Civil Rights Movement. In this research skills lesson, students research the important figures, events, and ideas of the American Civil Rights Movement as they visit suggested websites that feature...
Tolerance
A Time for Justice
The Academy Award-winning documentary A Time for Justice launches a unit that examines America's civil rights movement. Class members examine key events and participants in the movement and consider how the civil rights movement...
Anti-Defamation League
Martin Luther King, Jr. and Civil Rights
How far have we come and how far do we still need to go to achieve equality and full civil rights in the United States? Include a packet of materials collected in your observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
PBS
From Selma to Montgomery: An Introduction to the 1965 Marches
The 1965 Civil Rights marches from Selma to Montgomery and the resulting Voting Rights Act of 1965 are the focus of a social studies lesson. The resource uses film clips to inform viewers not only about the discrimination that gave rise...
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...
Newseum
Civil Rights: Identifying Community Issues
As part of the social, economic, and legal/political civil rights study, class members brainstorm a list of current civil rights issues that affect their community. Individuals or pairs select one issue to research further. The class...
Center for History Education
Contextualizing a Historical Photograph: Busing and the Anti-busing Movement in Boston
The anti-busing movement in Boston is the focus of a instructional activity that asks young historians to examine primary source documents to identify the causes and consequences of busing pupils from one area of the city to another in...
DocsTeach
The Long Struggle for LGBTQ+ Civil Rights
Academics analyze 10 primary documents and photos to create a timeline of the LQBTQ+ movement. The activity includes an online worksheet. Scholars also participate in a group discussion to understand the long struggle the LGBTQ+...
Curated OER
Beyond the Playing Field -Jackie Robinson, Civil Rights Advocate
Students examine and discuss documents pertaining to issues of the civil rights movement.
iCivics
DBQuest: The Nashville Sit-In Movement
What was it like to be a part of the sit-ins during the Civil Rights Movement? Learners consider the question and whether the protests were effective using an online documents-based investigation. The program allows for virtual...
Curated OER
A Comparative Study of the Civil Rights Movement & the Grassroots Hip Hop Movement
Learners identify, research, and discuss similarities between the Civil Rights Movement and the grassroots hip hop movement in America.