iCivics
The Road to Civil Rights
Here is a fantastic resource on the civil rights movement! It includes reading materials and worksheets, and particularly highlights major legislation and the role of the judicial branch in the federal government in addressing the...
Middle Tennessee State University
Fights, Freedom, and Fraud: Voting Rights in the Reconstruction Era
As part of a study of post Civil War era, young historians investigate the changes in voting rights during the Reconstruction Era (1863-1876), the fraud involved in the Hayes-Tilden presidential election of 1876, and efforts by Pap...
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 students wearing...
University of California
The Civil War: Secession of the South
Was the Southern states' decision to secede from the Union protected by the United States Constitution? Eighth graders discuss the constitutionality of the South's justification for secession, particularly the secession of South...
Atlanta History Center
What if YOU Lived During Jim Crow?
Young historians envision what life was like for African Americans living in the Jim Crow South through hands-on, experiential activities.
Southern Nevada Regional Professional Development Program
A Mini lesson on Semicolons
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham Jail" serves as an exemplar for a mini-lesson on semicolons. Working alone or in small groups, class members first circle all the semicolons in the letter, and then consider how this...
Association for Library Service to Children
Summer Reading List Grades 6-8
What better activity is there for summer than reading? Provide your pupils with 25 book ideas for their summer reading pursuits. A variety of different genres are represented on this list, and each book is paired with publication...
Smithsonian Institution
Black Diamond
Score a home run with this packet of information on the very first player of the Negro League to be elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame — cultural groundbreaker and sports legend Satchel Paige. These worksheets include a...
Teach Engineering
Bridging the Gaps
The London Bridge should not have fallen down. And here's why. After a brief history of bridges and the three main types, class members are introduce to the concepts of tension and compression, the two main forces acting upon bridges.
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: Introduction to the Civil Rights Movement
Provides an overview and basic introduction to the civil rights movement of African Americans.
Black Past
Black Past: Civil Rights Congress (1946 1956)
This encyclopedia entry talks about the Civil Rights Congress, a group that gave legal defense for blacks, but was hampered by its support of the Communist Party during the Cold War.
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of American History: Students "Sit" for Civil Rights
Read the book, "Freedom on the Menu" about the Greensboro Sit-Ins and use the background information and follow up activities provided to enhance the story.
History Link
History Link: Chicano/latino Activism in Seattle, 1960s 1970s
An article about the Chicano Movement in Washington state, and Seattle in particular at the height of the Civil Rights movement. Read about the formation of the Brown Berets and their place in the movement.
Oklahoma Historical Society
Oklahoma State University: Encyclopedia: Roscoe Dunjee
Learn about the career and civil rights activism of Oklahoma journalist Rosco Dunjee.
Other
Civil Liberties: Lyng v. Northwest Indian Cemetery Protective Association
How does the constitution resolve a conflict between the government's property rights and the right of groups to engage in religious practices on lands they consider sacred? The Supreme Court answered that question in favor of the...
Illinois Institute of Technology
Oyez.org: Oyez Directory
The OYEZ Directory offers hyperlinks to Supreme Court cases. Choose the topic you'd like to search under, like "Attorneys," or "Civil rights," for example.
US Department of State
U.s. Department of State: Decades of Change: 1960 1980
Summary of the rise of cultural and ethnic pluralism that took place in America between 1960 -1980 causing major social change. Included were such movements as civil rights, women, Latino, Native-American, counterculture,...
PBS
Pbs: Negroes With Guns: Rob Williams & Black Power
Tells the story of civil rights activist Rob Williams and his belief that Black Americans needed to draw guns on violent racists.
Other
Key People in Labor History: Asa Philip Randolph (1889 1979)
Biographical essay on A. Philip Randolph, one of the organizers of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters. He was also very active in civil rights and the movement to end discrimination in the military and defense industries.
ibiblio
Ibiblio: Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee
Two months after the Greensboro sit-ins, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) was formed to coordinate the sit-ins and other forms of social activism against white oppression.
National Women’s History Museum
National Women's History Museum: Rosa Parks
Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat and set in motion one of the largest social movements in history, the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Harcourt: Biographies: Martin Luther King, Jr.
This biography of Martin Luther King Jr. includes a timeline and addresses the life of the civil rights leader from childhood to the legacy he left behind.
Other
Smith College: New Resources on 20th Century Women's Activism
Short biographies with links to historically significant documents of eight 20th century female activists.
Digital History
Digital History: Viva La Raza!
This Digital History site provides an informative overview of the Mexican American civil rights movement in America.