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.
Wendell Phillips Speaks Out in Support of Reconstruction (en español)
In Spanish, this speech by abolitionist Wendell Phillips illustrate the shift in public opinion about Reconstruction in the North.
![Photograph of the House of Representatives chamber](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-07/Civil_Rights_1865_House_Representatives_Chamber_FH21273.jpg?h=6c27dd9d&itok=vOfIt-5L)
Apartheid Policies
Read the National Party’s 1948 statement in support of apartheid, which justifies separation as a way to preserve the white European race.
![The Reservation of Separate Amenities Act (passed in 1953) led to signs such as the one shown above. The Act prohibited people of different races from using the same public amenities.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-05/Apartheid_Era_Sign.jpg?h=77e8015d&itok=b86oNSyE)
Experiencing Apartheid
Writer Mtutuzeli Matshoba provides a vivid account of life under apartheid through the story of his friend who was forcibly ejected from his home.
![A child walks to school through the barren village of Qunu, South Africa, located just outside of the town of Mthatha.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-05/Democracy_2013_GirlWalkingtoSchoolMthatha_FH281816.jpg?h=a5f2f23a&itok=lR43Ngto)
The Freedom Charter
Examine the 1955 Freedom Charter, established by the ANC and supporting groups, which calls for all races to enjoy equal rights, protections, and benefits under the law.
![A group of resisters proudly pose after their release from prison in Durban during the Defiance Campaign Against Unjust Laws, 1952.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-05/Democracy_1952_TheDefianceCampaign_FH281822.jpg?h=56feb499&itok=2LnEBZM4)
Mandela on Trial
Nelson Mandela describes the ANC and PAC’s shift from non-violent resistance of apartheid to violent sabotage under the militant faction MK in his testimony during the Rivonia Trial.
!["A young Nelson Mandela poses for a photograph in Umtata shortly before moving to Fort Beaufort to attend Healdtown Comprehensive School. "](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-05/Nelson_Mandela_Medium_res.jpg?h=623540e1&itok=0V950_BY)
A Wife's Lament
Consider the unique experiences of black South African women during apartheid, many of whom were forced to live far away from their husbands on bantustans.
![A group of women hold signs in demonstration against the pass laws in Cape Town on August 9, 1956, the same day as the massive women’s protest in Pretoria.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-05/Democracy_1956_WomenResistPassLaws_FH281823.jpg?h=cb9047e7&itok=NA94IMQt)
How It Feels to Be Colored Me
Zora Neale Hurston describes her sense of identity and experience being a black woman in this 1928 essay.
![Author Zora Neale Hurston wearing a hat with her head turned to her right.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-09/Zora_Neale_Hurston_1938_Wikimedia_Commons.jpeg?h=8e4088dc&itok=sQRUzvvP)
Voting Rights in the United States
These three excerpted stories demonstrate how voting restrictions in the United States can impact various groups of people in different ways.
![General Election 2016, Voters in NY](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Midterm_Elections_high-res_AP_17307716664453_.jpg?h=c6980913&itok=_2pZdXA_)
5 Facts About Angel Island and Ellis Island, 1910-1940
This reading outlines 5 Facts About Angel Island and Ellis Island from 1910-1940.
![Barges at Ellis Island.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-01/Barges_At_Ellis_Island_1920_FH2110066.jpg?h=56b0d64b&itok=3Clg2bxG)
5 Facts About Angel Island and Ellis Island, 1910-1940 (en español)
This reading outlines 5 Facts About Angel Island and Ellis Island from 1910-1940. This resource is in Spanish.
![Barges at Ellis Island.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-01/Barges_At_Ellis_Island_1920_FH2110066.jpg?h=56b0d64b&itok=3Clg2bxG)
Quotes from Historians Erika Lee and Judy Yung
This reading contains quotes from historians Erika Lee and Judy Yung detailing the differences between Ellis Island and Angel Island.
![Two Volta Elementary School students work at their desks.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-07/Chicago_Classroom_2019_%20FH2101627.jpg?h=56d0ca2e&itok=Pd3sRqZO)