The History of Slave Patrols, Black Codes, and Vagrancy Laws
This mini-lesson provides a brief overview of the history of policing in the early United States and then examines how laws, and biased enforcement of those laws, were used to control the lives of Black Americans in the South following the Civil War.
Verifying Breaking News
Students evaluate the differences among news accounts about Ferguson, develop strategies for verifying news and information, and understand the challenges facing journalists as they cover complex, fast-moving events.
Creating a Society That Ensures Safety for All
This mini-lesson invites students to synthesize their learning about the causes of racial injustice in policing and reflect on the implications these causes have on the individual and collective choices we make today.
Exploring Contemporary Experiences of Policing and Racial Injustice
In this mini-lesson, students use their head, heart, and conscience to engage with six sources that reflect a range of experiences with policing.
Preparing for a Conversation about Policing and Racial Injustice
This mini-lesson prepares students to engage in conversations about policing and racial injustice by inviting them to co-create class norms and reflect on the emotions and experiences they and their classmates bring.
Why Is the Coronavirus Disproportionately Impacting Black Americans?
Help students explore the underlying causes of racial inequity in coronavirus outcomes with the activities in this mini-lesson.
Voting Rights in the United States
In this mini-lesson, students learn about the history of voting rights in the United States and consider how current voting laws in different states impact voters today.
The Struggle over Women’s Rights
Students learn about the debate within the women’s rights movement over the passage of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth amendments.
Equality for All
Students explore some of the limitations of Reconstruction's transformation on US democracy and learn about groups who demanded that the promise of equality be made a reality.
Maycomb's Ways: Setting as Moral Universe
Students explore how race, class, and gender create the moral universe that the characters inhabit in To Kill a Mockingbird.
Scout as Narrator: The Impact of Point of View
Students consider how Harper Lee’s decision to tell To Kill a Mockingbird through the eyes of young Scout impacts readers' understanding of the novel.