Lesson Plans
Civil Rights and Civic Action
Students deepen their understanding and personal integration of the concept of commitment to civic service by examining the historic contribution of young people in shaping positive changes in America using primary sources from the Library of Congress. Students explore the civic service accomplishments of young people to help bring about social change and identify the potential of young people in creating positive change through civic service. Students then identify characteristics of civic activists as well as current problems or causes about which they are passionate and draft an action plan to affect change.
Speaking Out: Four Freedoms Then and Now
Students analyze a part of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s “Four Freedoms” speech and use primary sources from the Library of Congress to gain historical context. Next, students explore sources from the Library to draw conclusions about the impact of the speech on American culture at the time. Students then write their own “Four Freedoms” speech, outlining four freedoms they believe Americans should keep front-of-mind today.
Espionage, Sedition, Censorship, and Speaking Up
Students analyze a political cartoon created by William Allen Rogers during World War I to give context to press censorship during that war. Next, students explore additional sources from the Library of Congress to analyze how censorship worked both before and after the passage of the Espionage and Sedition Acts of 1917-18. Finally, students compose their own “email to the editor” of a local newspaper or online news source, expressing their own views about the importance of freedom of the press and their informed opinion of press censorship in wartime.
Race, the 14th Amendment, and Equal Protection
Students engages in inquiry and analysis using primary sources, role play, and discussions of racial discrimination. Students then use evidence-based claims to examine the 14th Amendment and university admissions procedures.
Voting: Rights and Responsibilities
In this three-part lesson students use primary sources to explore voting rights in the United States. In Part I, students analyze two sets of documents to gain a deeper understanding of how suffrage has been both expanded and suppressed, developing claims about how voting rights impact equality. In Part II, students further analyze one of the documents from Day One before taking on the role of a congressional committee charged with amending (or not) the Voting Rights Act to require compulsory voting. In Part III, students write their answer to the Essential Question, informed by class discussion and primary source analysis.
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