Resource Library
Find compelling classroom resources, learn new teaching methods, meet standards, and make a difference in the lives of your students.
We are grateful to The Hammer Family Foundation for supporting the development of our on-demand learning and teaching resources.
![A group of high school students sit at desks in conversation.](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_480/public/2023-10/AdobeStock_254378868.jpg?itok=f6YAphey)
Introducing Our US History Curriculum Collection
Draw from this flexible curriculum collection as you plan any middle or high school US history course. Featuring units, C3-style inquiries, and case studies, the collection will help you explore themes of democracy and freedom with your students throughout the year.
Reflecting on George Floyd’s Death and Police Violence Towards Black Americans
This mini-lesson is a guide for teachers to begin conversations with their students about George Floyd’s death and the events that surround it.
![Image of people marching in a protest for George Floyd.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/GeorgeFloyd_2BWD3NW_Medium_res.jpg?h=c9f93661&itok=A_f_D8bv)
Reflecting on the New Zealand Mosque Attacks
These activities are designed to help students reflect on the devastating attacks in Christchurch, New Zealand.
![Image fore Reflecting on New Zealand Mosque attacks.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/NewZealand_RTS2DRND_Medium_res.jpg?h=c9f93661&itok=5LQLauXi)
Responding to Rising Antisemitism
Inform students about the rising number of antisemitic incidents in the United States and explore the story of one teacher’s response to an antisemitic incident involving high school students in her community.
![Photo antisemitism protesters marching over bridge.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/RisingAntisemitism_2AJTPW1_highres_-_Copy_Medium_res.jpg?h=c9f93661&itok=RqIxUlwV)
Responding to the Insurrection at the US Capitol
This mini-lesson is designed to help guide an initial classroom reflection on the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol.
![Photo from January 6 Insurrection.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-07/GettyImages-1230453891_Medium_res.jpg?h=c4482f5d&itok=2V7uQTVL)
Stereotypes, Media, and Islamophobia
This mini-lesson is designed to help students reflect on how the movies, shows, and books we consume can reinforce stereotypes about Muslims and the harmful impact stereotyping has on people's lives.
![Khalid.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-07/20091022_khalid154_fullres_Medium_res.jpg?h=c9f93661&itok=EYhjiPJv)
The Debate over Reparations for Racial Injustice
This mini-lesson helps students define the term, learn what forms reparations can take, and consider what reparations should be offered for slavery and other racist policies.
![Chains on wooden floor.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Reparations_FullRes_iStock-614509372_Medium_res.jpg?h=827069f2&itok=A4f0NzQP)
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.
![Image for The History of Slave Patrols, Black Codes, and Vagrancy Laws.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-07/TI2_master-pnp-stereo-1s00000_full-res.jpg?h=8af6349d&itok=UO9HzG6b)
Supporting Question 4: Memory of the Founding
Students explore the supporting question "How should we remember the nation’s founding?"
![Washington DC, Library of Congress, Thomas Jefferson Memorial Building Southwest Pavilion. The Library has had an ongoing exhibition entitled "Thomas Jefferson's Library", which presents the Library's efforts to completely recreate Thomas Jefferson's personal library. The exhibit is located on the Building's second floor in the Southwest Pavilion, called the Pavilion of the Discoverers due to the paintings and bas-reliefs that adorn the space.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-11/2F36F1J.jpg?h=4362216e&itok=uc3dLkqF)
Staging the Compelling Question
Students are introduced to the themes of the compelling question by responding to a quote from James Baldwin that sparks their thinking about the complexities and contradictions within US history.
![Photo of student listening to student-led teaching session](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-11/SL_190522_0700%20%281%29.jpg?h=4362216e&itok=glf-JB3p)
Supporting Question 1: The Nation’s Founding Ideals
Students explore the supporting question "What does the Declaration of Independence state about the nation’s founding ideals?"
![United States Declaration of Independence](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-11/master-rbc-rbc0001-2004-2004pe76546-001%20%281%29.jpg?h=4ec2df74&itok=6j3UL0rd)
Supporting Question 2: Founding Ideals Versus Realities
Students explore the supporting question "What contradictions existed between the ideals and the reality of the founding of the United States?"
![Photo shows a group of African American slaves posed around a horse-drawn cart, with a building in the background, at the Cassina Point plantation of James Hopkinson on Edisto Island, South Carolina.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-11/service-pnp-ppmsca-39500-39590v.jpg?h=fd5c1401&itok=K1ckwjtu)