Brick by Brick: Exploring and Archiving the History of the City of Newark

This unit focuses on underreported stories of migration and the local history of everyday people of the City of Newark. From the global stories of women migrants on the move to the wards of the City of Newark, we will examine the experiences of the people who live and inhabit these places and spaces, and who also make history. Far too often we solely focus on major reported stories related to migration from the point of view of the elite, those in power, or the victors who wrote down their version of history for posterity. This unit seeks to reclaim history for those who resisted, suffered, lost yet triumphed. Anchored by Pulitzer Center migration resources, this unit explores the intersection of the history of the City of Newark (aka Brick City) and global migration using a variety of historical documents, texts, and visuals in which everyday people and the disenfranchised occupy an important space of representation.

Material Type: Lesson Plan

Author: Jazmin Puicon

Comparing and Contrasting Global Migration Policies

The purpose of this unit is for students to investigate migration and immigration policies across the globe using current events articles from the Pulitzer Center. Students in this unit will read, comprehend, analyze, synthesize, and evaluate these articles. From these articles students will discover issues and trends of migration and immigration from an international perspective, and will compare and contrast the policies they learn about. It is important for students in the 21st century to view reality from outside of their individual context.

Material Type: Lesson Plan

Author: Matthew Wynne

Creations of the Fortunate: Borders and Their Impacts on Vulnerable Populations

The story of migration is a shared human experience. Utilizing sources such as “Women on the Move” from National Geographic and The Everyday Projects, students will address the following questions: Using scales of analysis, what are the common themes that are seen in migration stories? What are the reasons that cause one to migrate? In what ways does physical geography intersect with migration? Based on your analysis of various sources in the media, how is migration perceived by general audiences? Developing social and emotional learning, how do individual and under-reported stories inspire your own activism in regards to migration? As they engage with these questions, students will be asked to utilize a variety of skills. They will compare and contrast various migration stories on different scales of analysis, analyze sources critically for author’s purpose and target audience, develop critical thinking skills to analyze complex questions that arise from migration crises, and develop persuasive writing skills that inspire letters advocating for an action to address challenges faced by people who are migrating.

Material Type: Lesson Plan

Author: Adam Guerrero

Equity and COVID-19

As of April 16, 2021, about 37.1% of Chicago residents have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. But the question is: WHO is getting vaccinated? In this unit, students will identify inequities in vaccine distribution in Chicago and then explore why these inequities exist. Students will then work to take action to address these inequities.

Material Type: Lesson Plan

Author: Rebecca Coven

Listening to Immigrants’ Stories: Comparing the American Dream to the Reality Upon Arrival to the United States

This 12-day unit focuses on the various experiences of immigrants traveling to the United States. Students will identify a variety of reasons people choose to move to the United States by analyzing a range of texts that detail the individual experiences of immigrants from various parts of the world. Texts and conversation will encompass themes common to the immigrant experience: hope, hardship, and adaptation. In order to give students a real world application and view of the immigrant experience, they will learn the skills of interview questioning in order to conduct their own interview. Students will use the texts explored in the unit to inform the questions they craft for their interview.

Material Type: Lesson Plan

Author: Vanessa Carcanaquez

The Migrant's Experience

In this mini-unit, high school students examine the question, “What is the migrant experience?” with the intention of demonstrating how international policies feed migration patterns that have a global effect. “The Migrant Experience” mini-unit contains three (3) lessons. Each lesson is designed for approximately 90-minute class periods to be taught over a period of two or three weeks using 7 Step Lesson Plans - Do Now, Direct Instruction, Guided Practice, Independent Practice, Closure, Exit Ticket, and Homework - as well as media literacy resources and technological educational tools. The unit has been devised to be implemented in the traditional classroom setting or with the virtual classroom in mind.

Material Type: Lesson Plan

Author: Keysiah Middleton

Thank you in advance

In this unit of study, students will work with lawmakers or changemakers who are working towards a more equitable future through policy change and become their allies in the struggle. Students will work with leaders to enact change by creating photojournalism projects which illustrate how passing legislation will help them reach their dreams. They will be thanking them in advance for supporting a bill that will improve their lives and their communities. During this unit, students will develop an understanding of underreported stories and learn how to tell their story through the lens of photojournalism. They will sharpen their communication skills by learning effective interview techniques and speaking to changemakers. Students will foster a deeper understanding of the legislative process. They will examine assets and challenges in their communities and create a powerful, empathic educational community.

Material Type: Lesson Plan

Author: Kelly Fischer

The Ties That Bind: Cross-Cultural Solidarity in Social Justice Movements

History has given us remarkable examples of cross-cultural solidarity within the context of social justice movements. These working relationships are the legacy on which today’s age of activism stands. By examining this historical/contemporary phenomenon through a diverse range of texts and media, students will hone analytical, writing, and social-emotional skills with an eye toward their collective role as a conscientious, global citizenry.

Material Type: Lesson

Author: Heather Ingram

We Find New Names: Creating Stories of Migration Using Google Earth

In this six-lesson unit, students will explore stories from people who have migrated to Europe or North America from different countries in Africa in order to analyze the following essential questions:

Material Type: Lesson Plan

Author: Ken Hung

Personal Account of U.S. Solider In Vietnam War

Text with link to Youtube video and audio file of personal account of war experience

Material Type: Homework/Assignment

Author: Amit

TEACHING ABOUT GENOCIDE from Echoes & Reflections

This unit is shaped by four fundamental questions that have shaped each lesson: What is genocide? Who were the people before they became victims? How did genocide occur? How do we remember a genocide? In asking these questions about four genocides of the 20th century, the purpose of this unit is to encourage critical thinking in students to explore the concept of genocide and analyze some of the common themes seen across multiple genocides. This unit challenges students to find value and meaningful lessons in the study of genocide and how memory and the understanding of genocides of the past can empower them to act against hatred today.

Material Type: Homework/Assignment

Author: Echoes & Reflections

Slave Narratives: Constructing U.S. History Through Analyzing Primary Sources

The realities of slavery and Reconstruction hit home in poignant oral histories from the Library of Congress. In these activities, students research narratives from the Federal Writers' Project and describe the lives of former African slaves in the U.S. -- both before and after emancipation. From varied stories, students sample the breadth of individual experiences, make generalizations about the effects of slavery and Reconstruction on African Americans, and evaluate primary source documents.

Material Type: Lesson Plan

Race to the Moon

After World War II, there was non-violent, political hostility between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR), which became known as the Cold War. During this contentious time, both nations created rockets for long-range military weaponry. The Cold War catalyzed the expansion of rocket technology and each country’s desire to conquer outer space. Not only did America want to explore one of the last frontiers, it also wanted to claim technological dominance over the USSR and ensure America’s title of superiority in a time of unease and tension. In 1955, the US and the USSR each announced plans to launch a satellite into orbit. Who would be the first to succeed? On October 4, 1957, the USSR launched Sputnik I into orbit, taking the lead in the Space Race. Only four months later, the US successfully launched its own satellite, the Explorer I, into space. In the wake of these first successful orbital space flights, President Dwight D. Eisenhower recommended to the US Congress that a civilian agency should be established to direct non-military space activities. Thus, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) was born and the Space Race was underway. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, the American space program and its new classes of astronauts achieved breakthroughs in science and space exploration—even sending a man to the Moon. This exhibition was created as part of the DPLA’s Digital Curation Program by the following students in Professor Helene Williams's capstone course at the Information School at the University of Washington: Danielle Rios, Dianne Bohach, Jennifer Lam, and Bobbi deMontigny.

Material Type: Diagram/Illustration, Primary Source, Unit of Study

Authors: Bobbi deMontigny, Danielle Rios, Dianne Bohach, Jennifer Lam

A Brief Mathematical Guide to Earth Science and Climate Change

This collection of activities is based on a weekly series of space science problems distributed to thousands of teachers during the 2009-2010 school year. They were intended for students looking for additional challenges in the math and physical science curriculum in grades 9 through 12. The problems were created to be authentic glimpses of modern science and engineering issues, often involving actual research data. The problems were designed to be ‘one-pagers’ with a Teacher’s Guide and Answer Key as a second page. This compact form was deemed very popular by participating teachers.

Material Type: Lesson

EconGuy Videos: How to Reduce Debt and Climate Change Simultaneously

What are the two biggest threats facing future generations? The growing Federal debt, and climate change. The national debt will trash the economy, and global warming will trash the planet. But economics offers a solution to BOTH problems: a carbon tax. So why do economists cry themselves to sleep?

Material Type: Lecture

Author: Patrick Walsh

Climate Change 1958: The Bell Telephone Science Hour

Bell Telephone Science Hour produced this video in 1958, explaining how the production of CO2 from factories and automobiles is causing the atmosphere to warm, melting the polar ice caps, and causing the sea level to rise.

Authors: Bell Telephone Science Hour, Frank Capra

Climate Science in a Nutshell: Climate Change Around the World?

This video is part of the Climate Science in a Nutshell video series. This short video looks at the effects of climate change happening right now around the globe, including: more extreme weather events, droughts, forest fires, land use changes, altered ranges of disease-carrying insects, and the loss of some agricultural products. It concludes with a discussion of the differences between weather, climate variability, and climate change.

Authors: Planet Nutshell, Utah Education Network

Storytelling in the Social Studies Classroom

People make the past come alive as students research and then share stories about famous Americans who promoted democratic ideals.

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Unit of Study

Using Pictures to Build Schema for Social Studies Content

Looking to help students practice "reading" images for a variety of contextual meanings while engaging in content area study? This lesson uses images of the Boston Massacre to deepen students' comprehension of both the event and the effects of propaganda. Students begin by completing an anticipation guide to introduce them to Boston Massacre, propaganda, and British/colonial reactions to the massacre. They then complete an image analysis to make inferences about various images of the massacre. The culminating activity-a presentation about students' observations and inferences-demonstrates students' knowledge of the Boston Massacre and propaganda in a variety of ways. This lesson benefits English-language learners (ELLs) and struggling readers because it involves viewing images, participating in discussions, working with peers, and listening to a read-aloud that reinforces the lesson content and vocabulary.

Material Type: Lesson Plan, Teaching/Learning Strategy

Author: Maureen Martin

Fighting Injustice by Studying Lessons of the Past

Social injustice occurs every day all over the world. In this lesson, students research a few historical examples of social injustice, including the Holocaust, the Trail of Tears, and Japanese internment.

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan, Unit of Study