Curated OER
Keeping A Watchful Eye
Students explore the use of satellite surveillance systems to track criminals. They consider how the use of this technology in law enforcement might affect them and write opinions on whether or not such a system should be adopted by...
Curated OER
Justice or Injustice?
Learners participate in a human rights discussion and define the concepts of justice and injustice. They research the concept justice in order to create a Wisdom Wall identifying human rights issues. Students also participate in an Image...
Curated OER
Care of Prisoners During the Civil War
Students identify the needs of prisoners through the study of the Civil War. In this Civil War lesson, students are divided into two groups to represent the two armies. Students simulate a situation where students are captured prisoners...
Curated OER
Governance- Grade 9
Ninth graders participate in talking circles about how their classroom will function. For this self-governance lesson, 9th graders participate in talking circle activities to create rules that will govern their class. Students compare...
Curated OER
Should US Officials & Health Professionals be Investigated for War Crimes?
Young scholars explore ethical issues. In this human rights lesson, students read articles and documents related to torture used in government investigations and if medical ethical guidelines were adhered to. Young scholars respond to...
Curated OER
Tiananmen Square
Young scholars identify and explain the Tiananmen Square incident of June 1989.
Studentsl compare what it is to be an American Citizen (Democracy) vs.
Chinese Citizen (Communism). Young scholars identify and define various vocabulary...
Curated OER
Paul Robeson: 20th-Century Renaissance Man, Hero In Any Century
Students study the life and times of actor Paul Robeson. In this social activism lesson, students research primary and secondary documents to create multi-media presentations featuring Paul Robeson's life and political activism.
Facing History and Ourselves
The Range of Choices
Learners examine crimes against human rights. In this world history instructional activity, students watch a segment of a video about the Armenian Genocide. Learners reflect on the crimes of the Ottoman government in classroom...
Curated OER
Understanding the Declaration of Independence
Students identify and interpret the Declaration of Independence and the rights and privileges demanded in the document. They also identify how those rights and privileges have affected our history. Students then research about the...
Curated OER
Equality: Are Some More Equal than Others?
Students research a person who has been active in supporting human rights around the world. They simulate an international conference and write a newsletter focused on human rights in a specific country.
Curated OER
Ruby Bridges & School Integration
Students explore school integration issues. For this Civil Rights Movement lesson, students read Through My Eyes by Ruby Bridges and school integration and then write reflections about difficult experiences.
Curated OER
The Bill of Rights
Students practice their reading comprehension skills by reading about the Bill of Rights. They answer questions after reading to test their comprehension.
Curated OER
Dred Scott and the Constitution
Students investigate the outcome of the Dred Scott case. In this human rights lesson plan, students read Justice Taney's decision about property rights and citizenship. Students write essays about the outcome of the case and President...
Curated OER
Social Movements of the 20th Century
Sixth graders study the social movements of the 20th century. In this social movements lesson, 6th graders discuss social unrest, review social and political movements of the 20th century, and discuss the main movements for unrest....
Curated OER
The Law: Your Rights and Responsibilities
Middle schoolers explore First Amendment rights and responsibilities.
Curated OER
Martin Luther King, Jr. Team Activity
Students sequence the events of Martin Luther King Jr.'s life, after first being read a biography. The facts are on strips of paper, which are later glued end to end.
Teaching Tolerance
Dismantling Racial Caste
It's time to end racism. The final installment of the series encourages scholars to consider what is needed to ended the racial caste system in the U.S. Young historians complete group discussion, written prompt, and a hands-on-activity...
Maryland Department of Education
Our Children Can Soar
Amazing efforts of African American leaders are celebrated in a lesson on civil participation. The engaging resource focuses on primary and secondary sources to analyze the impact of African American leaders such as Ella Fitzgerald....
Center for History and New Media
Growing Up in a Segregated Society, 1880s–1930s
What did segregation look like in the beginning of the 20th century? Middle and high schoolers view images of segregated areas, read passages by Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois, and come to conclusions about how the influence of...
Curated OER
Liberty for All: Voices from the Revolution
Did the Declaration of Independence really intend to grant liberty for all? Get your class thinking about historical perspective with documents relaying the experiences of women, white men, and African-Americans during the Revolutionary...
Skills Workshop
Rosa Louise Parks
One moment can define the rest of your life—and in the case of Rosa Parks and her famous decision in December 1955, it can define the trajectory of a nation. Elementary readers learn more about the life and message of Rosa Parks with an...
Teaching Tolerance
Parallels Between Mass Incarceration and Jim Crow
Is history repeating itself? A riveting lesson examines the parallels between mass incarceration in the U.S. and the Jim Crow Laws of the past. Academics review Jim Crow Laws and compare them to mass incarcerations of African Americans....
K12 Reader
Two Viewpoints of the Same Event: Lee Surrenders to Grant, 1865
How did Union General Ulysses S. Grant view the surrender of Confederate General Robert E. Lee in 1865, which effectively ended the United States Civil War? After reading an excerpt from Grant's autobiography, your young historians will...
Historical Thinking Matters
Scopes Trial: 3 Day Lesson
Was the Scopes trial more complicated than a simple debate between evolutionists and creationists? As part of a structured academic controversy (SAC) activity, pupils consider multiple perspectives of the Butler Act and engage in close...