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Reform to Equal Rights - Disability History Curriculum

The Reform to Equal Rights: K-12 Disability History Curriculum includes 250 primary sources in 23 lessons in seven units. Inclusive lessons feature Universal Design for Learning strategies and exemplary assessments. Lesson content facilitates integration into many regular K-12 topics. Skill and language development addresses C-3 History and Social Science frameworks as well as Educating for American Democracy Roadmap themes. Developed with Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources grant with additional support from Mass Humanities. 

Paired History and ESL lessons demonstrate support for language learners

Published on Tue, 11/07/2023

Index photos and titles of lessons are pictured as they appear on a computer screen.

The English Learner Collaborations project has added new lesson plan examples to the Emerging America website that demonstrate the use of scaffolds and supports for English Learners. 

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Language-aware lesson example: Is it ever okay to break a law? (High School)

Explore primary sources connected to the Civil Rights movement.

The English Learner Collaborations project of the Massachusetts Council for the Social Studies commissioned the development of lessons to illustrate applying English Language Development (ELD) teacher resources to History and Social Studies content.

By the end of the sequence of lessons linked below, students should be able to explain the principles of non-violent civil disobedience, and will be able to provide examples of non-violent civil disobedience.

Wendy Harris lesson on "How Activists Create Change" for Black History Month

Published on Wed, 02/02/2022

Black Panther Newspaper front page, with banner headline "HANDICAPPED WIN DEMANDS - END H.E.W. OCCUPATION", photos of black demonstrators in wheelchair, with sign,

Wendy Harris teaches at Metro Deaf School in St. Paul, Minnesota. She has been a classroom teacher for Deaf students of all ages since 2003 and currently splits her teaching duties between high school social studies and teaching braille and other skills to the school’s DeafBlind students ages 2-21.

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Disability, Protest, and the 504

“I Can’t Even Get To The Back of the Bus” – Disability, 504 and the Power of Protest

This lesson investigates why and how people take action to make a difference. Building from an inquiry-based RAN chart, the lesson explores the context of the 1977 protests calling on the Federal Government to actually implement 504 access legislation. Featuring a variety of primary sources, including testimony of activist Ed Roberts.   

What is our value? A look at undervalued people

What is our value? The principle that people are paid for their work does not always work as it should; many people who have been historically undervalued have contributed to American society, including many people of color, people with a disability, women, and children. Students view images and text of people whose lives may not have been adequately valued by their contemporaries. Students examine those documents, do further research, and come to their own conclusions about how those individuals should have been and should be valued, and possibly assisted.

Road to Freedom: Emancipation Proclamation

Since arriving in North America in the 15th century, Africans in the United States were forced to navigate the social, economic, and physical limitations placed upon their lives by the institutions of slavery and the racist ideology that justified it. The following primary source set shows several ways that different communities responded to the outlawing of the Atlantic slave trade (and subsequent yearly celebrations of the event) and the Emancipation Proclamation. These two events fundamentally challenged and changed the institutional practices of slavery. 

The Fugitive Slave Act: No Turning Back!

The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 allowed for the capture and return of runaway slaves. Northerner legislatures passed laws in an attempt to reduce the impact of the FSA and how the work of the Underground Railroad (UGRR) was impacted. Students will learn how the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 (FSA) changed perspectives of Northerners and the ultimate destination of the fugitives themselves. Students will learn background knowledge and vocabulary about the Underground Railroad in the United States.

The Fight for Women’s Rights

This two day lesson uses the Declaration of Rights and Sentiments from the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention and the 19th Amendment to the Constitution to assess the efficacy of the Women’s Rights Movement of the 19th century. Using the grievances from the Declaration establishes some understanding of women’s rights prior to 1848. Students will engage in class discussion to determine the progress women made in gaining equal rights. Students will use specific examples to assess progress as of today.

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