Units February 21, 2022
What is the lasting legacy of slavery in the U.S.?
State:
Grades:
Lesson Summary:
Students examine the legacy of slavery in the U.S. through a multi-week analysis of primary sources and news stories and then apply their analyses to the creation of pitches for podcast episodes responding to the question, "How can I define or redefine the impact of slavery in the U.S.?”
Downloads:
Unit resources
This unit was created by U.S. History educators in Washington, DC, as part of the 2021 cohort of The 1619 Project Education Network. It is designed for facilitation across approximately 5 to 6 weeks, or 20 to 25 class periods.
Objectives and Outcomes
- Critique and revise popular misconceptions and lies regarding the history of slavery in America.
- Analyze the role of slavery in shaping
- Analyze the ways that contributions by African Americans have shaped America’s identity, institutions, and policies
- Investigate the legacy of slavery in America and its impact on the country and their lives today
Unit Overview
In alignment with The 1619 Project from The New York Times Magazine, the goal of this unit is for students to examine the legacy of slavery in the U.S. in an honest and critical manner. Beyond studying the horrific and brutal enslavement of Africans in America in a historic manner that is detached from today’s world, and their own lives, this unit will guide students in tracing these past events to contemporary injustices against Black Americans and achievements by Black Americans. Students will then work in small groups to apply their research and analyses from the unit to the development of a podcast episode exploring the following question: “How can I define or redefine the impact of slavery in America?”
Given the depth and complexity of this task, it is important for teachers to explain to students that this unit plan should be viewed as an opening to the topic rather than a closing. Successful implementation of the unit’s lesson plans and resources will result in students not only developing a more nuanced understanding of slavery’s legacy, but also a curiosity and desire to expand their knowledge following their completion of the unit and course.
The first compelling question of this unit is, “How did the enslavement and forced importation of Africans into America shape American history?” The corresponding lessons that will equip students to eventually answer this question demonstrate that slavery cannot be isolated or taught separately from American history. Students will learn that the institution of slavery directly influenced longstanding American laws, policies, and customs, as well as the identity of America itself. The lessons will clarify that slavery and U.S. history are intertwined and interconnected.
These facts naturally lead to the unit’s second and final compelling question, “How does the history of slavery impact us today?” The corresponding lessons demonstrate how slavery touches Americans’ lives today in multiple ways, such as where people live and their ability or inability to fulfill basic needs and necessities. Within this compelling question, students will also have the opportunity to examine current threats to teaching the history of slavery in an honest manner in public schools throughout the country.
Note: The theme of resistance and activism is explicitly taught in more than one lesson in this unit. This is critical for students to develop a complete and nuanced perspective to the essential question, “What is the legacy of slavery in the U.S.?” In addition to these lessons, teachers should reinforce evidence of resistance and agency throughout the unit.
Performance Task
Note: The summative performance task described below should be implemented at the conclusion of the unit, following student examination of both compelling questions and their related formative assessments. However, the teacher should actually introduce the performance task, along with the essential question, at the beginning of the unit. This will help frame for students what they are working towards with the completion of every individual lesson and compelling question.
The teacher may also periodically build in time and opportunities for students to record their evolving thoughts and evidence on the essential question. This will not only support them in their completion of the performance task at the end of the unit but it will help smooth the transition from the final compelling question and formative assessment.
Goal: The goal of this performance task is for small groups of students to provide an original and well-supported answer to the essential question, “How can I define or redefine the impact of slavery in America?” Student responses should combine their own ideas and opinions with evidence and knowledge that they acquired throughout the unit.
Role: Students will assume the role of adolescents who produce and host an independent podcast that addresses issues facing young people today. The topic for their upcoming episode centers around the legacy of slavery in America and the extent to which the legacy of slavery impacts us today.
The teacher will assume the role of an executive producer. Each small group will create a separate episode and the teacher will inform the class that, as the producer, they will select one podcast to be financially backed and promoted to a national audience.
Audience: The target audience will be other young people whose ages range from approximately 12 to 18-years-old.
Situation: Current attempts by national politicians and state legislatures to recast American history in a false narrative that disregards facts and minimizes the role of unpleasant truths, such as the legacy of slavery, pose multiple threats to students and to the public at large. On one hand, it absolves existing systems and institutions from the role they continue to play in marginalizing and oppressing large groups of Americans. At the same time, it removes students’ voices and agency by determining for them the facts and stories that they can handle. This performance task intends to correct this potential harm. Students are empowered to factually examine the legacy of slavery using their own voices and opinions.
Product/Performance: Utilizing details from primary source documents and news articles to support their arguments, small groups of students create a podcast or video blog that discusses and provides answers to the question, “How can I define or redefine the impact of slavery in the U.S.?”
At a minimum, all groups must create a script for their podcast or vlog. Teachers may elect for students to additionally submit a digital recording.
Six-week unit plan for teachers, including texts and multimedia resources, lesson plan options, guiding questions for group discussions, and performance tasks for the unit. Download below, or scroll down to read the complete unit plan.
Week 1
Compelling Question 1: How did the enslavement and importation of Africans into America shape American history?
| Pacing | Focus text(s) / resource(s) for today's lesson | Lesson Objective(s) or Essential Question(s) | Lesson / Activities | Lesson Materials |
1-2 days |
“The Idea of America” by Nikole Hannah-Jones “The Fight for a True Democracy” episode from the The 1619 Project podcast |
Compelling question 1, supporting Question 1: How has America's identity been influenced by the experiences and contributions of Black Americans throughout history? |
Students engage with the compelling question by examining the essay, “The Idea of America” by Nikole Hannah-Jones from The 1619 Project using the resources and strategies below. This lesson plan from the Pulitzer Center can be used to introduce either excerpts or the entire text of the Nikole Hannah-Jones’ essay “The Idea of America.” The lesson also includes warm up exercises to introduce the text and get students thinking about the compelling question. In addition, the following resources may be used as supplements for facilitating student conversations and defining/unpacking key vocabulary and concepts like redlining. >Excerpt from “The Idea of America” with educator notes >Introducing “The Idea of America” powerpoint presentation for educators >Macon, Georgia redlining map >Modified reading levels may be available through Newsela. Podcasts and Videos to supplement this lesson: >“The Fight for a True Democracy” is a podcast (select episode 1) from The New York Times. >This link from the Pulitzer Center includes a listening guide and visual guide. Methods and Strategies for Facilitating Text Based Discussions: >The Conver-Stations strategy may be useful for discussing the questions described in the Pulitzer Center lesson plan. Implementation Suggestion: The Pulitzer Center lesson plan should be the primary resource for this lesson. As described, teachers may just utilize the excerpts that are included in the lesson plan or they may use the lesson plan to introduce the text and then assign the remainder of the text as a separate assignment. The podcast may be used to supplement the written text or substitute, depending on teacher preference. |
Exploring “The Idea of America” lesson plan from the Pulitzer Center Excerpt from “The Idea of America” with educator notes [PDF] Introducing “The Idea of America” powerpoint presentation for educators [.pptx] [PDF] Macon, Georgia redlining map [.docx] [PDF] The 1619 Project Podcast Listening Guide |
1-2 days |
Focus text: The Life Cycle of a Slave readings from Digital History Support texts: Four-minute video from Learning for Justice with historian Ibram X. Kendi Made in America podcast series from Scene on Radio Excerpts from the introduction and section 1 (Slavery, Power, and the Human Cost, pp. 1-9) of “A Brief History of Slavery” by Mary Elliott and Jazmine Hughes for The 1619 Project August 1619: a poem by Clint Smith |
Compelling question 1, supporting Question 2: What did the practice of chattel slavery reflect about American identity? |
Students explore the essential question, and build on their learning from the previous lesson, by engaging with the resources and strategies outlined below. Prepared Lesson Plan: >The Life Cycle of a Slave is a Digital History reading with suggested activities and questions. The text selections are from primary source documents that reflect the experiences of people who were enslaved in the United States. Podcasts and Videos: >In this four-minute video from Learning for Justice, historian Ibram X. Kendi uses the case of Elizabeth Key to trace how Virginians changed British law to protect the growing institution of slavery in the 17th century. Text dependent questions are included here. >Made in America is a Scene on Radio podcast that examines how chattel slavery in the United States, with its distinctive – and strikingly cruel – laws and structures, took shape over many decades in colonial America. Utilize stories one and two (pp. 1-7 in the transcript). Sample questions are included here. 1619 Project Text Selections: >Excerpts from the introduction and section 1 (Slavery, Power, and the Human Cost, pp. 1-9) of “A Brief History of Slavery” can support students’ explorations of the supporting question. Text dependent questions are included here. >August 1619: a poem by Clint Smith from The 1619 Project illustrates and further humanizes the horror of chattel slavery. Methods and Strategies for Facilitating Text Based Discussions: >Either the Journaling strategy from Facing History or Graffiti Boards strategy from Facing History may be useful for processing the emotionally difficult subject matter addressed in the subject matter and text selections. Implementation Suggestion: The teacher may utilize any one of the sources and materials, or some combination of multiple sources, in order to create their lesson. Excerpts from The 1619 Project text selections can easily be plugged into the format of the suggested lesson plan. The podcasts supplement information from both the lesson plan activity and text selections. The discussion strategies can help students process the difficult subject material after reviewing any of the sources above. |
The Life Cycle of a Slave readings and support questions from Digital History Text-dependent questions from Learning for Justice to accompany the video with historian Ibram X. Kendi Sample questions for the Made in America podcast series from Scene on Radio Text dependent questions for “A Brief History of Slavery” by Mary Elliott and Jazmine Hughes |
1-2 days |
Response to Slavery resource from Digital History “This forgotten language is seeing a revival thanks to TikTok” from NBC News A video from Instagram where the history of Tut language is explained. |
Compelling question 1, supporting Question 3: How did enslaved persons maintain agency and practice resistance? |
Students explore the essential question, and build on their learning from the previous lessons, by engaging with the resources and strategies outlined below. Prepared Lesson Plan: >Poetry of Defiance: How the Enslaved Resisted is a Zinn Education Project resource that introduces students to various ways enslaved people resisted, and then celebrates that resistance through the creation of a collective poem. Additional Resources: >Response to Slavery is a Digital History resource that includes lyrics to spirituals and guides students in analyzing how the lyrics reflect the thoughts and feelings of enslaved persons. Suggested student exercises are included. >“This forgotten language is seeing a revival thanks to TikTok” is a 2021 NBC News story on the Tut language. Sample questions are included here. >A video from Instagram where the history of Tut language is explained. Implementation Suggestion:The suggested lesson plan above provides a strong scaffold for this supporting question. The collective poem activity develops community within the classroom while providing students an authentic means to share their thoughts. The spiritual lyrics and Tut resources can either be integrated into the existing plan or utilized by the teacher in a separate lesson. |
Poetry of Defiance: How the Enslaved Resisted teaching resource from Zinn Education Project Sample questions for the article “This forgotten language is seeing a revival thanks to TikTok” from NBC News |
Week 2
| Pacing | Focus text(s) / resource(s) for today's lesson | Lesson Objective(s) or Essential Question(s) | Lesson / Activities | Lesson Materials |
1-2 days |
“The Economy that Slavery Built” episode from The 1619 Project podcast “Slavery and the Northern Economy” podcast from Learning for Justice Five-minute video from Learning for Justice historian Adam Rothman “Municipal Bonds” by Tiya Miles |
Compelling question 1, supporting Question 4: How did all of America become dependent on the institution of slavery? |
Students explore the essential question, and build on their learning from the previous lessons, by engaging with the resources and strategies outlined below. Podcasts and Videos: >“The Economy that Slavery Built” is a podcast (select episode 2) from the The New York Times Magazine. The episode explores how the institution of slavery made the U.S. a global economic leader for some and how the country as a whole became dependent on maintaining slavery. The listening guide resource from the Pulitzer Center includes guiding questions and a visual guide. >“Slavery and the Northern Economy” is a Learning for Justice podcast (with a written transcript) in which Dr. Christy Clark-Pujara explains why American slavery couldn't have existed without a national commercial infrastructure that supported and benefited from the labor of enslaved people. Sample questions are included here. >In this five-minute video from Learning for Justice, historian Adam Rothman traces how the labor of enslaved people in an area just outside New Orleans rippled across the globe to create wealth for the growing nation. Text dependent questions are included here. 1619 Project Text Selections: >In the article, “Municipal Bonds,” Professor Tiya Miles writes about the role that slavery played in developing Wall Street. Sample questions are included here. Methods and Strategies for Facilitating Text Based Discussions: >The Iceberg strategy from Facing History may help students understand the multiple factors that affected how the entire U.S. economy dependent on, and profited from, the institution of slavery. Implementation Suggestion: Portions of the various resources provided can be utilized by the teacher to create stations that all serve to enable students to answer the supporting question. The iceberg discussion strategy can be utilized at the end of the lesson to help students synthesize the sources. |
The 1619 Project Podcast Listening Guide Sample questions to accompany the “Slavery and the Northern Economy” podcast from Learning for Justice Text dependent questions included here to accompany a five-minute video from Learning for Justice historian Adam Rothman Sample questions to accompany “Municipal Bonds” by Tiya Miles |
Days 2-4 |
“The Color Line” by Bill Bigelow from the Zinn Education Project Methods for Controlling Slaves is a Digital History reading with suggested activities. Four-minute video from Learning for Justice scholar Annette Gordon-Reed |
Compelling question 1, supporting Question 5: How did laws and policies uphold and reinforce slavery? |
Students explore the essential question, and build on their learning from the previous lessons, by engaging with the resources and strategies outlined below. Prepared Lesson Plans: >The Color Line is a Zinn Education Project lesson that examines the origins of laws that established racial segregation, the motive behind these early laws, and their impact. >Methods for Controlling Slaves is a Digital History reading with suggested activities. The section chronicling Slave Codes is relevant to this supporting question. >Why did the Founding Fathers keep slavery in the Constitution? is a Stanford History Education Group lesson that includes primary and secondary sources students can explore to answer the essential question. Podcasts and Videos: >In this four-minute video from Learning for Justice, scholar Annette Gordon-Reed explores how the Constitution, written when slavery was seen as a “dying institution,” actually protected the institution and allowed enslavers to aggressively defend its expansion. Text dependent questions are included here. Implementation Suggestion:The teacher may implement any one of the suggested lesson plans as described or they may pick and choose specific materials and activities from a combination of them. The suggested video may also be used in the lesson to guide students’ engagement with the essential question. |
The Color Line resource and lessons from the Zinn Education Project Methods for Controlling Slaves Digital History reading with suggested activities. Why did the Founding Fathers keep slavery in the Constitution? Stanford History Education Group lesson Text-dependent questions included here to accompany the four-minute video from Learning for Justice scholar Annette Gordon-Reed |
Weeks 3-4
| Pacing | Focus text(s) / resource(s) for today's lesson | Lesson Objective(s) or Essential Question(s) | Lesson / Activities | Lesson Materials |
2-3 days |
Methods for Controlling Slaves from Digital History Slavery as a Form of Racialized Social Control from Learning for Justice Race and Identity from Digital History “How Race was Made” episode from the Scene on Radio podcast “Medical Inequality” by Linda Villarosa 1932: story by Yaa Gyasi |
Compelling question 1, supporting Question 6: How was a racial caste system created and what are its effects in America? |
Students explore the essential question, and build on their learning from the previous lessons, by engaging with the resources and strategies outlined below. Prepared Lesson Plans: >Methods for Controlling Slaves is a Digital History reading with suggested activities. The sections describing sermons preached to enslaved persons and Frederick Douglass’s chronicling of his master are relevant to this supporting question. >Slavery as a Form of Racialized Social Control is a lesson from Learning for Justice that utilizes excerpts from The New Jim Crow. The lesson chronicles how throughout its history, the United States has been structured by a racial caste system. >Race and Identity is a Digital History lesson that helps students answer the questions, “How does race shape the way we see ourselves and others?” and “To what extent do our ideas about race influence the choices we make?” Podcasts and Videos: >“How Race was Made” is a Scene on Radio podcast episode that investigates who invented race as we know it, and why? Discussion questions are included here. >In this five-minute video from Learning for Justice, historian Martha Jones traces the development of racist ideas about people of African descent from the colonial period through the early 19th century. Text dependent questions are included here. >Learning for Justice includes both the video and transcript of New Orleans’ Mayor Mitch Landrieu’s Address on the Removal of Four Confederate Statues in 2017. The speech explains the context in which statues like these were erected and their objectives. Text dependent questions are included. 1619 Project Text Selections: >“Medical Inequality” is an article written by Linda Villarosa that describes how myths about physical racial differences were used to justify slavery - and are still believed by many doctors today. Modified reading levels may be available through Newsela. Discussion questions are included here. >Yaa Gyasi’s 1932: story by Yaa Gyasi is a short fiction piece about the Tuskegee syphilis experiment for The 1619 Project. Discussion questions are included here. Methods and Strategies for Facilitating Text-Based Discussions: At the end of the lesson, the teacher may have students discuss the supporting question using the Snowball strategy. The teacher may also create a discussion question for either of the 1619 text selections and have students discuss using the same strategy. Implementation Suggestion: The teacher may implement any one of the suggested lesson plans in full, or they may pick and choose specific material and activities from a combination of them. Any of the suggested podcasts, videos, or text sources may also be used to either supplement the lesson or serve as the primary activity for the lesson depending on the tasks and activities the teacher designs. As described, the snowball strategy can serve as an effective closer to the lesson. |
Methods for Controlling Slaves Digital History reading and suggested activities. Slavery as a Form of Racialized Social Control lesson from Learning for Justice Race and Identity Digital History lesson plan Discussion questions included here to support “How Race was Made” episode from the Scene on Radio podcast Learning for Justice lesson plan activities for New Orleans’ Mayor Mitch Landrieu’s Address on the Removal of Four Confederate Statues in 2017. Discussion questions included here for “Medical Inequality” by Linda Villarosa Discussion questions included here for 1932: story by Yaa Gyasi |
2-3 days |
Speech on Lynch Law in America, given By Ida B. Wells in Chicago, IL, January, 1900 A Red Record from www.carolinak12.org An Outrage film from Learning for Justice Blindspot: Tulsa Burning podcast “A Racial Cleansing in America” episode from Scene on Radio July 30, 1866: story by ZZ Packer Feb. 12, 1946: story by Jacqueline Woodson |
Compelling question 1, supporting Question 7: How did slavery in America establish a system of domestic terrorism and racial violence that existed after the Civil War? What was the impact of this terrorism? |
Students explore the essential question, and build on their learning from the previous lessons, by engaging with the resources and strategies outlined below. Prepared Lesson Plans: >Lynching, Our National Crime [PDF] [.docx] is lesson plan developed by educators at Friendship Public Charter School using materials and activities from the Library of Congress in which students analyze and discuss the Ida B. Wells speech and examine the emergence and purpose of lynching following the Civil War. >An Introduction to A Red Record is a lesson from www.carolinak12.org that helps students formulate a definition for lynching, explore its prevalence throughout North Carolina from 1860 to 1950, and move beyond statistics to examine the lives of people impacted by lynching. >Lynching and Dehumanization is a lesson from www.carolinak12.org that examines the effects of lynching on not just an individual level but as a dehumanizing tool against African American people. Utilizing the resource, A Red Record, students learn how racial violence, systemic racism, and dehumanization are interwoven. >An Outrage is a thirty-minute film available through Learning for Justice that is set against the backdrop of six lynching sites and examines the history of lynching through the eyes of community activists, scholars, and the descendants of victims. A viewer’s guide includes teacher and student resources, including activities. Podcasts and Videos: >Blindspot: Tulsa Burning is a six-episode podcast that tells the story of a thriving neighborhood that attackers set on fire, and the scars that remain 100 years later. Any episode or a combination of excerpts would be relevant. >A Racial Cleansing in America is a Scene on Radio podcast episode that centers around the story of Corbin, Kentucky where in 1919 a white mob forced the entire black population to leave. As the podcast examines, it was one of many racial expulsions in the United States. Discussion questions are included here. 1619 Project Text Selections: >ZZ Packer writes a short fiction piece, ‘July 30, 1866,” about the New Orleans Massacre of 1866 in The 1619 Project.Jacqueline Woodson wrote the short fiction piece, “Feb. 12, 1946” about the 1946 attack of Army sergeant Isaac Woodard in The 1619 Project. Methods and Strategies for Facilitating Text Based Discussions: >The Save the Last Word for Me discussion strategy from Facing History may be useful for analyzing and processing the material addressed in either of the 1619 text selections. >At the end of the lesson, the teacher may have students organize their thoughts around the supporting question using the Affinity Mapping strategy. Implementation Suggestion:The teacher may implement any one of the suggested lesson plans in full or they may pick and choose specific material and activities from a combination of them. Any of the suggested podcasts, videos, or text sources may also be used to either supplement the lesson or serve as the primary activity for the lesson depending on the tasks and activities the teacher designs |
An Introduction to A Red Record lesson from www.carolinak12.org Lynching and Dehumanization lesson from www.carolinak12.org Viewer’s guide for An Outrage, a film from Learning for Justice Discussion questions included here for “A Racial Cleansing in America” episode from Scene on Radio |
| Day 5 | Zoning Matters: How Land-Use Policies Shape Our Lives from Urban Institute Race and Redlining: Housing Segregation in Everything from NPR’s Code Switch “The Wealth Gap” by Trymaine Lee “Traffic” by Kevin Kruse “The Land of Our Fathers, Parts 1 & 2” episodes from The 1619 Project podcast from The New York Times |
Formative assessment for compelling question 1: How did the forced enslavement and importation of Africans into America shape U.S. history? |
Students conclude their exploration of compelling question 1 and engage in a formative assessment using the resources below: Prepared Lesson Plan: >Learning for Justice lesson plan on racially segregated communities (Housing) The Color of Law: Creating Racially Segregated Communities Video Resources: >Zoning Matters: How Land-Use Policies Shape Our Lives from Urban Institute and Race and Redlining: Housing Segregation in Everything from NPR’s Code Switch help explain redlining to students. 1619 Project Text Selections: >“The Wealth Gap” by Trymaine Lee describes how violence, redlining, evictions and exclusions continue to create different realities in America for Black and White Americans. Pre-reading, during-reading, and post-reading activities from buffaloschools.org are included here. >“Traffic” by Kevin Kruse describes how contemporary traffic jams in American cities are a direct consequence of a century-long effort to segregate the races. The article uses Atlanta as a primary example but describes how most major cities apply. Here is a video interview with the author. Either of these two suggested activities from the Pulitzer Center can be used with the article: 1. Infographic Design: Visualizing Contemporary Linkages to Slavery. Students create an infographic that visualizes racial inequity in the U.S. and its links to slavery. In addition to data, they can include quotes from the article. Here are examples of infographics for students. 2. Write a News Pitch. Students develop a pitch for a news story about how the topic of traffic congestion in their community intersects with race. Their pitch must include: 1) a statement of the topic; 2) 1–3 quotes from the story highlighting how racist policies and racial inequities connect to traffic congestion on a national scale; 3) an explanation of how these racial inequities connect to traffic in their own community; 4) 5–7 people they will interview for the story; 5) the media they will use to present the story (photo, video, text, etc.); and 6) an argument for why this story needs to be published. Podcast: >“The Land of Our Fathers, Parts 1 & 2” is a podcast (select episode 5) from The New York Times that explores the history of Black land ownership in America through the experience of the Provost family, Black sugarcane farmers from Louisiana. The Pulitzer Center link here also includes a listening guide and visual guide. Additional Resources: >Mapping Inequality Redlining in New Deal America is a database that allows students to investigate redlining in various American cities. Implementation Suggestions:Teachers may begin the lesson by using a four-corner activity to begin with the essential question of -- Are Americans still living in racially segregated communities? Teachers may introduce unfamiliar vocabulary related to the resources in this lesson through a short presentation. Teachers may use a short video to present the topic. Before the video, teachers may create or use premade reflection questions for scholars to answer during and/or after watching those resources. Formative Assessment #1 (To be implemented upon completion of all compelling question 1 lessons) Utilizing the Pulitzer Center’s Alternate Timelines activity, small groups select three significant events they learned about as part of the unit and record the following for each event on sheets of paper: >the date >a concise statement of the event >1-3 quotes or summations that capture the event’s importance >a photograph that visualizes the event. The whole class then combines events to create a new timeline of U.S. history. |
Learning for Justice lesson plan on racially segregated communities (Housing) The Color of Law: Creating Racially Segregated Communities Lesson plan from Buffalo Public Schools to guide students’ engagement with “The Wealth Gap” by Trymaine Lee included here. The 1619 Project Podcast Listening Guide Mapping Inequality Redlining in New Deal America database |
Week 5
Introducing Compelling Question 2: How does the history of slavery impact us today?
| Pacing | Focus text(s) / resource(s) for today's lesson | Lesson Objective(s) or Essential Question(s) | Lesson / Activities | Lesson Materials |
| Day 1 | Legacies of Little Rock from Facing History Civil Rights Movement: Brown vs Board of Education from Education Videos for Student “60 Years On, A Look Back at the Little Rock Nine” from Associated Press |
Compelling Question2, Supporting Question 3:How does the legacy of slavery continue to impact Black students’ access to equal education? |
Students explore the essential question, and build on their learning from the previous lessons, by engaging with the resources and strategies outlined below. Lesson Plan: >Legacies of Little Rock from Facing History analyzes the legacy of the integration of Central High School by asking “What has changed? What has not changed?” Video Resources: >Civil Rights Movement: Brown vs Board of Education from Education Videos for Students is a three-minute animated video that provides a brief overview. >“60 Years On, A Look Back at the Little Rock Nine” is a three-minute interview (with historic images) of Ernest Green describing his experience integrating Central High School. Implementation Suggestion:Teachers may need to do a mini-lesson utilizing the provided resources on Brown V. Board of Education and school integration in order for scholars to understand the significance of the legacy of Little Rock. |
Legacies of Little Rock lesson plan from Facing History |
2-3 days |
“Mass Incarceration” by Bryan Stevenson “All the Ways Your Vote May Not Be Counted in South Carolina” by Brittany Gibson “Outcry from Biden, Democrats over Georgia's new elections law” from PBS Newshour |
Compelling Question 2, Supporting Question 4: How are individuals and groups still marginalized and oppressed due to the legacy of slavery? |
Students explore the essential question, and build on their learning from the previous lessons, by engaging with the resources and strategies outlined below.The class may focus on one case study in-depth or look at multiple case studies through station activities. Prepared Lesson Plan Case Studies: Mass Incarceration >The Pulitzer Center’s Exploring the Legacy of Slavery in Mass Incarceration serves as a guided reading for “Mass Incarceration” by Bryan Stevenson from the 1619 Project. Voter Suppression >Exploring Voter Suppression and Activism in U.S. Elections is a Pulitzer Center lesson that examines current voter suppression, and activism against voter suppression, in the U.S. at large and in individual communities in the U.S. >Compare state voting laws today with laws of the Jim Crow era is a 2021 PBS lesson that compares current state laws with those that preceded the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Racial Violence and White Supremacy >“Riots,” Racism, and the Police: Students Explore a Century of Police Conduct and Racial Violence is a Zinn Education Project lesson that uses sources to show the long history of racial violence by the police. >After Charlottesville is a Facing History lesson that uses the ‘Unite the Right’ rally to analyze the legacy of segregation and bigotry. Implementation Suggestion:Teachers may implement this lesson in either discussion or journal-reflection activities based on the audience. The Save the Last Word for Me discussion strategy may be a perfect discussion strategy to discuss the implications of mass incarceration. For further extensions, teachers may implement discussion on how incarcerated individuals are impacted by COVID-19. |
Exploring the Legacy of Slavery in Mass Incarceration lesson plan from Pulitzer Center Exploring Voter Suppression and Activism in U.S. Elections lesson plan from Pulitzer Center Compare state voting laws today with laws of the Jim Crow era lesson plan from PBS Learning “Riots,” Racism, and the Police: Students Explore a Century of Police Conduct and Racial Violence from Zinn Education Project After Charlottesville lesson plan from Facing History |
Week 6
| Pacing | Focus text(s) / resource(s) for today's lesson | Lesson Objective(s) or Essential Question(s) | Lesson / Activities | Lesson Materials |
1-2 days |
“From Harlem to Ferguson: LBJ’s War on Crime and America’s Prison Crisis” by Michael Flamm “How the Bad Blood Started” episode from The 1619 Project podcast (click to episode 4) “Hope” by Djeneba Aduayom and Nikole Hannah-Jones |
Compelling Question2, Supporting Question 5: How do Black Americans continue to resist and fight back against oppression? |
Students explore the essential question, and build on their learning from the previous lessons, by engaging with the resources and strategies outlined below. Prepared Lesson Plan: >Black Lives Matter, the Killing of George Floyd, and the Long Fight for Racial Justice is a Choices lesson that traces the history of Black activism, recognizes patterns, and evaluates evolving platforms in the fight for racial justice. Implementation Suggestion: Using the timeline, teachers may group students into small groups to explore a decade. Once complete, students may present their findings to the entire class. Teacher tip-- complete timeline with notes beforehand as answer key to guide review. Share the answer key with students after all decades are presented. Additional Lesson Plan: >Racism Past and Present is a lesson plan created by educators at Friendship Public Charter School that compares the protests of the 1960’s to present day protests going on throughout the U.S. >Racism Past and Present: Full lesson [.docx] [PDF] >Racism Past and Present powerpoint [.pptx] [PDF] >Reading: “From Harlem to Ferguson: LBJ’s War on Crime and America’s Prison Crisis” by Michael Flamm Podcast: >“How the Bad Blood Started” is a podcast (select episode 4) from the Pulitzer Center that includes a listening guide and visual guide. The episode explores how Black Americans have fought from the shadows of exclusion to create the nation’s first federal healthcare programs. 1619 Text Selection: >“Hope” by Djeneba Aduayom and Nikole Hannah-Jones establishes the unique education barriers that many Black Americans had to overcome before presenting a series of photo essays of recent graduates from Howard Law School. |
Black Lives Matter, the Killing of George Floyd, and the Long Fight for Racial Justice lesson plan from The Choices Program at Brown University Racism Past and Present: Full lesson plan [.docx] [PDF] Racism Past and Present powerpoint [.pptx] [PDF] Listening guide for The 1619 Project Podcast episode “How the Bad Blood Started” (click to episode 4) |
| 1 day | Compelling Question 2 Formative Assessment (.5 day) for the following question: How does the history of slavery impact us today? |
Students compose a multi-paragraph written response to the compelling question, “How does the history of slavery impact us today?” |
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| 1-5 days | Students will be able to apply knowledge and skills from the unit to the development of a podcast episode pitch that examines the question, “How can I define or redefine the impact of slavery in the U.S.?” | PERFORMANCE TASK Goal: The goal of this performance task is for small groups of students to provide an original and well-supported answer to the essential question, “How can I define or redefine the impact of slavery in America?” Student responses should combine their own ideas and opinions with evidence and knowledge that they acquired throughout the unit. Role: Students will assume the role of adolescents who produce and host an independent podcast that addresses issues facing young people today. The topic for their upcoming episode centers around what is the legacy of slavery in America and to what extent does it impact us today. The teacher will assume the role of an executive producer. Each small group will create a separate episode and the teacher will inform the class that as the producer they will select one podcast to be financially backed and promoted to a national audience. Audience: The target audience will be other young people whose ages range from approximately 12 to 18 years old. Situation: Current attempts by national politicians and state legislatures to recast American history in a false narrative that disregards basic facts and minimizes the role of unpleasant truths such as the legacy of slavery, pose multiple threats to students and to the public at large. On one hand, it absolves existing systems and institutions from the role they continue to play in marginalizing and oppressing large groups of Americans. At the same time, it removes students’ voice and agency by determining for them the facts and stories others feel they can handle. This performance task intends to correct this potential harm. Students are empowered to factually examine the legacy of slavery using their own voices and opinions. Product/Performance: Utilizing details from primary source documents and news articles to support their argument, small groups of students create a podcast or video blog that discusses and provides answers to the question, “How can I define or redefine the impact of slavery in the U.S.?” At the minimum, all groups must create a script for their podcast or vlog. Teachers may elect for students to additionally submit a digital recording. |
Taken from Learning for Justice’s Social Justice Standards
JU.12
Students will recognize unfairness on the individual level (e.g., biased speech) and injustice at the institutional or systemic level (e.g., discrimination).
JU.14
Students will recognize that power and privilege influence relationships on interpersonal, intergroup and institutional levels and consider how they have been affected by those dynamics.
JU.19
Students will make principled decisions about when and how to take a stand against bias and injustice in their everyday lives and will do so despite negative peer or group pressure.