The Reconstruction Era and the Fragility of Democracy
This resource guides students through a deep exploration of the pivotal era of American history when a nation divided by slavery and war was challenged to rebuild.
![Book cover of American flag with faces over it.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Reconstruction_cover_large.jpg?h=51bee232&itok=yY8xN3AK)
Political Polarization in the United States
This Explainer defines the term political polarization and provides information on how it impacts US politics and society.
![Abstract red, white, and blue painting with thick brush strokes.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/PoliticalPolarization_full-res.jpg?h=5eef411c&itok=dyNgzenB)
Fostering Civil Discourse: How Do We Talk About Issues That Matter?
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The ideas and tools in this guide will help you prepare students to engage in reflective conversations on topics that matter.
![Student art on the topic of "we choose"](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/we_chose_ctp_344330005_o.jpg?h=c6d0d1c4&itok=r8HMDWBE)
David M. Kennedy: "Twoness”
In this film clip from American Creed, historian David Kennedy discusses the complexity of American identity.
![](/sites/default/files/brightcove/videos/images/posters/image_1344.jpg)
Big Paper Example
In a Big Paper activity, students respond silently to a text excerpt or image by writing their comments on a shared paper.
![A text quotation taped on a large piece of paper with student feedback written in markers.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-08/Big_Paper_Example.jpg?h=481317ef&itok=oivQYEYv)
Exploring Identity
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Use these slides to help students learn about the social and cultural factors that help shape our identities by analysing a story and creating personal identity charts.
![Arms being raised in a crowd](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Belonging_Arms_FH229369.jpg?h=5f62bdfc&itok=c4uJXB-2)
Dismantling Democracy (UK)
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Use these slides to help students examine the steps the Nazis took to replace democracy with dictatorship and draw conclusions about the values and institutions that make democracy possible.
![Germans look on as the Reichstag building burns on February 27, 1933.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Holocaust_1933_ReichstagFire_%20FH229429.jpg?h=40d6a7d7&itok=PBcAxqXk)
"Home" by Warsan Shire
British-Somali poet Warsan Shire gives voice to the experiences of refugees in this poem about "home."
![Syrian refugees cross from Syria to Turkey via the Orontes River, near the village of Hacipasa, Turkey, Dec. 8, 2012. This image was one in a series of 20 by AP photographers that won the 2013 Pulitzer Prize in Breaking News Photography.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/2013_SyrianRefugeesontheOrontesRiver_FH248167.jpg?h=c9f93661&itok=Gx3XIq0Q)
How Should We Remember?
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Use these slides to help students learn how to both respond to and design Holocaust memorials as they consider the impact that memorials and monuments have on the way we think about history.
![Aschrott Memorial Fountain](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Aschrott_Fountain_2012_FH229488.jpg?h=2bcabc6b&itok=BgrGV_Ft)
Introducing the Unit
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Use these slides to help students prepare to study the unit by reading a letter and working together to create a classroom contract.
![High school student in a classroom](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/5-1-17FacH08212.jpg?h=2992ba0a&itok=gzBuRJcY)
Justice and Judgement after the Holocaust
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Use these slides to help students grapple with the meaning of justice and the purpose of trials as they learn how the Allies responded to the atrocities of Nazi Germany.
![Criminal proceedings before the International Military Tribunal in Nuremberg from 20.11.1945 to 1.10.1946 against leading persons prosecuted for war crimes, crimes against the peace and against the humanity.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Bundesarchiv_Bild_183-V01057-3%2C_NuI%CC%80%CB%86rnberger_Prozess%2C_Angeklagte_Medium_res.jpg?h=eb24755d&itok=BXfLmrsX)