Just how racist were some people in the North during the American Civil War? Using excerpts of the Conscription Act, as well as graphic images of lynchings, young historians consider why white people in New York City rioted and killed...

Using personas ranging from freed African Americans to wealthy plantation owners, young historians consider various points of view around the events in the days leading up to the Civil War including major milestones such as the Dred...

Young scholars research the Columbia River Basin Ethnic History Archive (CRBEHA) and use a variety of primary sources to explore the history of blacks in the region.

Students explore the means of transportation available in the 19th century and its role as both facilitator and enabler of the westward expansion. They create a project board illustrating their findings.

To gain insight into the American institution of slavery and how African Americans were viewed during this time, groups examine run-away slave ads and slave auction broadsides. Teams use the provided worksheet to record their impressions...

In this Black history month worksheet, students draw a picture relating to Black history month. Students then write information about the month.

What is freedom? The United States grappled with the question at the end of the Civil War after four million enslaved people were freed. Using circulars and images from the Reconstruction period, individuals examine how successful the...

Students 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...

Students examine the early migration of Native Americans, African Americans, and the British Colonists. They conduct Internet research, complete a timeline, label maps, compare/contrast the three groups' experiences, and write an essay.

Students discover the significance of similarities and contrasts of three separate cultures of the United States through music. They take out maps and trace the expedition of the Spanish along the coasts of Mexico and North and South...

Students examine the role music played in African American history and research events of the Civil Rights movement.

What was the most beneficial policy for nineteenth-century African Americans: to stay in the United States and work for freedom, or to immigrate to a new place and build a society elsewhere? Your young historians will construct an...

Twelfth graders examine the impact of African American culture on the United States by inspecting Faith Ringgold's story quilts. Working in groups, they create a collective story quilt about current cultural issues. They research their...

Discuss the work of Matthew Henson, an African American who traveled to the North Pole with Robert Peary. After reading the story "Matthew Henson" by Maryann N. Weidt, learners answer questions by drawing inferences and conclusions,...

Explore this story involving prejudice and racism to enhance learners' comprehension skills. The story The Jacket by Andrew Clements involves an African American boy who is falsely accused of stealing someone's jacket. This teacher's...

Students explore African American holiday of Kwanzaa, orally share ideas about whom they want to invite to classroom Kwanzaa celebration, create and print invitation to Kwanzaa using Publisher or Print Shop, and share completed...

The transition between rebellion to reunification was not smooth after the Civil War. Young historians compare primary and secondary source documents in a study of the Reconstruction era in Virginia, noting the rights that were not...

1964: A victory for the civil rights movement! Scholars read a section of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and discuss what affirmative actions means to them. The resource is a jigsaw activity, with each group focusing on one section of the...

Even though American slaves were officially emancipated in 1865, the effects of slavery perpetuated throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. Middle and high schoolers learn about the ways that discrimination and the Jim Crow laws...

What factors go into a decision to enter a war? Use a collection of primary source documents and images to prompt a discussion about the American Revolution and the reasons for entering a war against Britain.

After investigating the Black Lives Matter movement, class members do a close read of Roger Reeves' "Black Laws." They write down words and phrases that rhyme, consider the kinds of rhymes used and their function in the poem. Scholars...

Young geographers follow Dr. Martin Luther King's journey during the civil rights movement by identifying major events on a map of the eastern United States, such as his birth in Atlanta, Georgia and his famous...

It may be hard to see through the fog of war, but primary sources describing what happened at the Battle of Saltville during the Civil War shed some light on what happened there. Using primary sources, including descriptions from...

Explore key moments in American history with the click of a mouse! Learners read 50 questions from different eras in early America, and watch the rest of the presentation to find more questions to answer.