Grade 6   World Geography and Ancient Civilizations I

Grade 7   World Geography and Ancient Civilization II

Topic: World History

• PBS Learning Media - a range of grades, videos and interactive lessons on topics in world and U.S. history

Topic: Current Global Issues

• Model UN for Remote Learning UNAGB MUN Modules - current global issues (2-4 week program, daily lessons)

Topic: International Relations 

• iCivics game - Crisis of Nations and Extension Pack lessons and other resources, on international relations

• Model UN for Remote Learning UNAGB MUN Modules, current global issues (2-4 week program, daily lessons)

Topic: Migration

• Re-imagining Migration - Resources to learn about migration at home

• Re-imagining Migration - Addressing anti-Chinese bigotry related to COVID-19

Topic: News and Media Literacy

• New England First Amendment Coalition Experts and journalists available for classroom presentations.

• News Literacy Project, provides tools to address misinformation about the current health crisis as well as free access to Checkology, an online platform to help students develop media literacy skills 

• iCivics game - NewsFeed Defenders and Extension Pack lessons; take on the role of curating a social media site to learn media literacy 

• Newsela provides current and differentiated content in multiple subject areas. Currently offering free access to all of their resources to individual teachers.

• CNN 10 (formerly CNN Student News) - news of the day in 10 minutes

Multiple Topics/Instructional Strategies

• Emerging America’s accessible lesson plans integrate Disability History into grades 6-7 Ancient and World History. 

• Reimagining Migration - Thinking Routines promote Civic Action in a World on the Move. These routines are designed to help young people reflect on a repertoire of civic engagement tools to take informed and compassionate action to create more welcoming, inclusive, and sustainable communities.

• Reimagining Migration - Joe Maddon and the Hazelton Integration Project - How a white baseball manager built support for immigrants in a community that had seemingly forgotten its immigrant roots.

 Grade 8   United States and Massachusetts Government and Civic Life

 Topic: History of the Constitution

• iCivics game Race to Ratify and Extension Pack lessons and other resources, play a role in the debate over ratification of the Constitution

• Democratic Knowledge Project - Portrait of a Tyrant, a six-episode online adventure game (in pilot version) co-developed by the Democratic Knowledge Project and Amplify, Inc. for students to learn about the Declaration of Independence, its historical context, and contemporary relevance.

• Democratic Knowledge Project - Lessons on the Articles of Confederation to the Constitution - Students learn about the Articles of Confederation and the Constitutional Convention. They learn about some of the delegates at the Convention and explore various historical perspectives and dilemmas involved in the creation of the Constitution.

Topic: Federalism

• Library of Congress Worksheets:

  • What is the definition of federalism?

  • Why is federalism an important civic concept to understand?

  • To what extent has the definition of federalism changed throughout history?

• Khan Academy Video

• Crash Course Government & Politics Video

• Democratic Knowledge Project - Lesson on Federalism, Separation of Powers, and Checks and Balances In this lesson, students are introduced to the concept of federalism and its role in the separation and checking of power in the U.S. Constitution.

Topic: Bill of Rights / Amendments to the Constitution

• iCivics game Do I Have a Right? and Extension Pack lessons, on the Bill of Rights and other amendments; includes Spanish version and supports for English Language Learners

• Reimagining Migration - Wong Kim Ark a Chinese American, who was detained after returning to the US from a trip to China, used the 14th amendment to win the right of birthright citizenship.

• Democratic Knowledge Project - Lessons on Exploration of the Bill of Rights Students are introduced to and examine the language of the amendments in the Bill of Rights, and explore three rights enshrined in the Bill of Rights in depth

• Democratic Knowledge Project - Lessons on Amendments as a Lever of Change Students learn about amendments and the federal constitutional amendment process. They also explore how amendments have been used as a lever of change by the Women’s Rights Movement.

Topic: Elections

• iCivics game Win the White House and Extension Pack lessons; run your own presidential campaign; includes Spanish version and supports for English Language Learners

• iCivics game Cast Your Vote, and Extension Pack lessons, on local elections; includes Spanish version and supports for English Language Learners

• Generation Citizen -  Election Resources This curated set of election-related lesson plans and resources helps educators and caregivers learn and teach about the history of our democracy, voting rights, election fundamentals, political representation, voter registration, poll workers, and debates.

• Democratic Knowledge Project  - Elections Module Provides lessons and other resources to teach concepts about elections.

Topic: Branches of Government / Checks and Balances

• iCivics game Branches of Power and Extension Pack lessons, to learn about all three branches of government; includes Spanish version and supports for English Language Learners

• iCivics game Executive Command and Extension Pack lessons; take on the role of President

• iCivics WebQuest Three Branches: Laws in Action, follow a law from start to finish; students conduct their own research using the questions, pre-vetted websites and guiding tools provided.

• iCivics WebQuest Three Branches: Checks and Balances; students conduct their own research using the questions, pre-vetted websites and guiding tools provided.

• iCivics WebQuest Being President, the role and responsibilities of the President; students conduct their own research using the questions, pre-vetted websites and guiding tools provided.

• Democratic Knowledge Project - Unit on the Powers of Government; Students explore the key concepts of separation of powers, checks and balances, and federalism. They learn about the Articles of Confederation and the creation of the Constitution, including the dilemmas around the balance of power that the Convention tried to address. They build knowledge about the three branches of government and gather information about how the role of the executive has evolved since the ratification of the Constitution.

Topic: Global Citizenship 

• Model UN for Remote Learning UNAGB MUN Modules - current global issues (2-4 week program, daily lessons)

Topic: News and Media Literacy

• News Literacy Project - provides tools to address misinformation about the current health crisis as well as free access to Checkology, an online platform to help students develop media literacy skills

• iCivics game NewsFeed Defenders and Extension Pack lessons and other resources; take on the role of curating a social media site to learn media literacy

• YouthLearn Media Literacy Toolbox offers an array of activities, handouts, and curricular resources to support media literacy education. These include a media literacy activity, photo zoom and media mashup hands-on activities, news literacy prompts, and a media gallery of student work for inspiration. Most of these can be easily adapted for remote learning.

• Facing History and Ourselves -“Where Do We Get Our News and Why Does It Matter?”, “How to Read the News Like a Fact Checker”, and News Literacy in a Digital Age include lessons with a number of videos and other materials 

• New England First Amendment Coalition Experts and journalists available for classroom presentations.

• Democratic Knowledge Project - Media Literacy Module The Media Literacy module is a set of activities to support teaching and learning about media literacy, digital citizenship, and free press.

Topic: Current Events

• Facing History and Ourselves - Teaching with Current Events provides resources and teaching ideas for a wide range of current events topics, including Coronavirus. This lesson on the common good includes slides.

• Newsela - provides current and differentiated content in multiple subject areas. Currently offering free access to all of their resources to individual teachers.

• CNN 10 (formerly CNN Student News) - news of the day in 10 minutes

• Educators 4SC - compilations of resources, including lesson plans, on teaching major current events and topics

• Generation Citizen - Talking About Cens-US: Learn how to engage students in the 2020 Census in a culturally responsive way

• Democratic Knowledge Project - Current Events Toolkit - The elections module is a set of activities to support teaching and learning about elections in the United States. The range of activities is designed to be usable any year, whether candidates on the ballot are at the local level, the state level, or the federal level.

Topic: Massachusetts State and Local Government / Civic Participation

• iCivics game Cast Your Vote and Extension Pack lessons, on local elections; includes Spanish version and supports for English Language Learners

• iCivics game Responsibility Launcher and Extension Pack lessons, on civic duties and responsibilities

• iCivics WebQuest Civic Heroism, on civic duties and acts of civic courage; students conduct their own research using questions, pre-vetted websites and guiding tools provided.

• iCivics WebQuest Who Represents Me?, investigate who represents you at the local, state and federal level; students conduct their own research using the questions, pre-vetted websites and guiding tools provided.

• iCivics lesson plan on Comparing Constitutions

• iCivics lesson plan on Local Government in Massachusetts 

• Democratic Knowledge Project - Policy Change: Political Processes and Decision-Makers Students will review and use what they know about the structures of the federal and state governments to help them investigate the structure of the local government. As a class, they will create a guide to the government of the community in which their school is located and the important decision-makers in it. This lesson is intended to strengthen students’ civic self-confidence and ensure that they have the necessary knowledge to take informed policy-oriented action at the local level.

Topic: Civics Projects / Action Civics

• Education Development Center - Supporting Readiness through Vital Civic Empowerment (SRVCE) - Free civics curriculum blends inquiry-based civic learning, media literacy education, and exploration of public service careers to prepare students to be active citizens and thrive in the workforce.

• Democratic Knowledge Project - Unit on  Student Led Civics Project - Students conduct a civics project and strengthen their own skills as changemakers. They look back on their work this year around identity and values in order to identify a topic and an issue that matters to them. They research the issue and propose a direction for action. They plan and take action on that issue, using skills and knowledge they’ve gained throughout the year.

• Democratic Knowledge Project - Student-led Civics Project

• Democratic Knowledge Project - Read Changemaker biographies from history and write your own biography, as studied in Unit 1 that students can complete at home. 

• Facing History and Ourselves  - From Reflection to Action: A Choosing to Participate Toolkit, readings and activities designed to support student-led civic action projects at middle and high school levels

• Generation Citizen - Democracy Doesn’t Pause, lesson plans and family activities to create change in the community

• Generation Citizen -Take Action: Lobby a Legislator: If you're leading a virtual classroom, we have developed a lesson you can teach to connect this moment to civic action for your students. As your students engage in their reflections about everything happening around them through this lesson, please encourage them to post their thoughts and experiences using the hashtags in the plan, and be sure to @generationcitizen on Instagram and @gencitizen on Twitter, in order to connect with other young people sharing their voice across the country.

• Generation Citizen - Family Activity: Encourage families and students to post their experience and reflections on Instagram and Twitter!

• Generation Citizen - Beyond the Ballot: Provides strategies for teachers and parents to take civic action in the community. A 2-lesson curriculum draws students’ attention to their local governments, systems and services, students will gain appreciation for the potential power of their actions at the local level. Students work together to choose an issue in their community they feel needs to be solved, and then seek out a local elected official to address it.

• Generation Citizen - Kick Start Action Civics Bring the classroom to life for your students by learning how to teach Action Civics through this online course.

• CIRCLE Data Tool offers a unique way to explore the relationships between voting and other forms of civic participation, and some of the conditions that shape such engagement. It features more than 40 unique indicators and includes data at the national, state, congressional district, and county levels. The classroom companion illustrates examples for teachers from many disciplines to use the data in inquiries and other projects.

• Constitutional Rights Foundation - Civic Action Projects Student Discussions. Students can discuss issues with other student leaders from across the U.S. 

• iCivics Resources for the Six Stages of Civics Projects Resources for the Six Stages of Civics Projects

• Students 4SC: online writing course and internship hybrid on current events

• Reimagining Migration - Somos Mas Americanos: Music and Civic Action This lesson explores the music of Los Tigres del Notre to explore how music can shape the way we think about ourselves, our civic identities, our histories.

• Reimagining Migration - Quinceaneras at the Capitol is a lesson exploring the strategic civic choices made by 15, 15 year olds who sought to bring attention to what they saw as  anti-immigrant legislation in Texas. 

• Reimagining Migration - When does poetry become civic action? This mini unit exploring Emma Lazarus's The New Colossus ends with a call to action for young people to write their own civic poetry.

Multiple Topics/Instructional Strategies

• Education Development Center’s Zoom In! -a research-based online tool, offers 18 free US History units that build students’ literacy skills by helping them develop arguments on important social questions. Students delve into compelling human conflicts throughout history, and argue with evidence about what the past means and why it matters.

• We the People / Project Citizen - middle school lesson plans 

• Emerging America’s Accessible Lessons incorporate Disability History into 8th Grade Civics. 

• Reimagining Migration -  Thinking Routines promote Civic Action in a World on the Move. These routines are designed to help young people reflect on a repertoire of civic engagement tools to take informed and compassionate action to create more welcoming, inclusive, and sustainable communities. 

• Reimagining Migration - Re-Imagining Migration Student Civic Inquiries These easy to implement inquiries lessons and resources can be used to promote civic knowledge, understanding, and dispositions. 

• Reimagining Migration - Joe Maddon and the Hazelton Integration Project How a white baseball manager built support for immigrants in a community that had seemingly forgotten its immigrant roots.

• Democratic Knowledge Project - Civic Engagement in Our Democracy - a year-long eighth grade civics curriculum, which seeks to help students identify what they value, deepen what they understand, and develop what they can do to be self-caring, reciprocal, and self-confident changemakers.

 United States History I and II, the Colonial Period to the Present, Electives

 Topic: Origins of the American Revolution and the Constitution

• Massachusetts Historical Society - From Tea to Shining Sea: The Boston Tea Party: Investigate primary source documents to discern the different economic, political, and social factors that created the tension leading up to the Boston Tea Party.

• Massachusetts Historical Society - Siege of Boston: Examine primary sources in order to better understand daily life for civilians and soldiers during the Siege of Boston, 19 April 1775—17 March 1776.

 Topic: History of the Constitution and the Early Republic

• iCivics game Race to Ratify and Extension Pack lessons, play a role in the debate over ratification of the Constitution

• Democratic Knowledge Project - Portrait of a Tyrant, a six-episode online adventure game (in pilot version) co-developed by the Democratic Knowledge Project and Amplify, Inc. for students to learn about the Declaration of Independence, its historical context, and contemporary relevance.

Topic: Social, Political, and Religious Change

• Massachusetts Historical Society - Abigail Adams, the Writer: “My pen is always freer than my tongue": Explore Abigail Adams's correspondence and diaries to learn about the historical, cultural, and ethical role of women in early America.

• Massachusetts Historical Society - The Role of Massachusetts Women in Abolition and Suffrage Movements: Explore the evolving role of Massachusetts women in the abolition and suffrage movements through a variety of primary source materials.

Topic: The Bill of Rights / Amendments to the Constitution

• iCivics game Do I Have a Right? and Extension Pack lessons, on the Bill of Rights and other amendments; includes Spanish version and supports for English Language Learners

• Reimagining Migration - Wong Kim Ark, a Chinese American, who was detained after returning to the US from a trip to China, used the 14th amendment to win the right of birthright citizenship.

Topic: Elections

• iCivics game Win the White House and Extension Pack lessons; run your own presidential campaign; includes Spanish version and supports for English Language Learners

• iCivics game Cast Your Vote, and Extension Pack lessons, on local elections; includes Spanish version and supports for English Language Learners

• League of Women Voters of Massachusetts - Teen Voting Rights Challenge student video contest, open to all Massachusetts high school students: Create a 30-second video giving your opinion on the question “ Should 16-year-olds have the right to vote?”

• #HistoriansGuideto2020 - Collection of resources on the 2020 national election. Curated by the Washington Post, includes student-view.

• Generation Citizen - Election Resources - This curated set of election-related lesson plans and resources to helps educators and caregivers learn and teach about the history of our democracy, voting rights, election fundamentals, political representation, voter registration, poll workers, and debates.

• Democratic Knowledge Project  - Elections Module Provides lessons and other resources to teach concepts about elections.

Topic: Branches of Government / Checks and Balances

• iCivics game Branches of Power and Extension Pack lessons, to learn about all three branches of government; includes Spanish version and supports for English Language Learners

• iCivics game Executive Command and Extension Pack lessons; take on the role of President

• iCivics WebQuest Three Branches: Laws in Action, follow a law from start to finish; students conduct their own research using the questions, pre-vetted websites and guiding tools provided

• iCivics WebQuest Three Branches: Checks and Balances; students conduct their own research using the questions, pre-vetted websites and guiding tools provided.

• iCivics WebQuest Being President, the role and responsibilities of the President; students conduct their own research using the questions, pre-vetted websites and guiding tools provided

Topic: Local Government / Civic Participation

• iCivics game Cast Your Vote and Extension Pack lessons, on local elections; includes Spanish version and supports for English Language Learners

• iCivics game Responsibility Launcher and Extension Pack lessons, on civic duties and responsibilities

• iCivics WebQuest Civic Heroism, on civic duties and acts of civic courage; students conduct their own research using questions, pre-vetted websites and guiding tools provided

• iCivics WebQuest Who Represents Me?, investigate who represents you at the local, state and federal level; students conduct their own research using the questions, pre-vetted websites and guiding tools provided.

Topic: Global Citizenship 

• Model UN for Remote Learning - UNAGB MUN Modules - current global issues (2-4 week program, daily lessons)

Topic: The Civil War and Reconstruction: Causes and Consequences

• Massachusetts Historical Society - Soldiers’ Experiences of the Civil War: Learn about the nature of African American and Irish American recruitment in the Civil War; the wartime experiences of individuals from Massachusetts; and the role of George’s Island as a training facility and prisoner camp during the war.

Topic: Reconstruction

• Facing History and Ourselves -The Reconstruction Era and the Fragility of Democracy, a collection of videos, lessons and primary sources 

Topic: Race and Membership

• Facing History and Ourselves - Race, Democracy and Citizenship: The American Ideal

Topic: Civil Rights Movement

• Facing History and Ourselves - Streaming access to Eyes on the Prize: America’s Civil Rights Movement with accompanying lessons

Topic: Immigration / Migration

• Re-imagining Migration - Resources for about migration at home

• Re-imagining Migration - Addressing anti-Chinese bigotry related to COVID-19

Topic: News and Media Literacy

• News Literacy Project, provides tools to address misinformation about the current health crisis as well as free access to Checkology, an online platform to help students develop media literacy skills

• Facing History and Ourselves - “Where Do We Get Our News and Why Does It Matter?”, “How to Read the News Like a Fact Checker”, News Literacy in a Digital Age includes lessons with a number of videos and other materials 

• Facing History and Ourselves - News Literacy in a Digital Age

• iCivics game - NewsFeed Defenders and Extension Pack lessons and other resources; take on the role of curating a social media site to learn media literacy 

• New England First Amendment Coalition Experts and journalists available for classroom presentations.

Topic: Current Events

• Facing History and Ourselves - Teaching with Current Events, resources and teaching ideas for a wide range of current events topics, including Coronavirus; COVID-19 - How Can We Make Choices that Promote the Common Good includes slides 

• Newsela provides current and differentiated content in multiple subject areas; currently offering free access to all of their resources to individual teachers.

• CNN 10 (formerly CNN Student News) - news of the day in 10 minutes

Topic: Common Good

• Facing History and Ourselves - Readings with Connection Questions; Exploring our Universe of Obligation (with handout); “Walking with the Wind” by Rep. John Lewis; Who We Are, Or Could Be, in Times of Crisis; Lesson about Coronavirus: Protect Yourself and Stand Against Racism (includes links to many resources)

Topic: AP Courses

• AP Exam Information / Free Virtual AP Course Review

• iCivics, through Study Edge offers curated and tested AP® U.S. Government and Politics Exam resources for free. The study course features over 100 videos and accompanying study guides that break down all of the essential content, making it more accessible for all learners. All of the content can be used at home. Email iCivics@studyedge.com now to gain free access via a custom code that will be sent to you within two business days and be valid until Aug. 31, 2020.

Topic: Civics Projects / Action Civics

• Education Development Center - Supporting Readiness through Vital Civic Empowerment (SRVCE) - Free civics curriculum blends inquiry-based civic learning, media literacy education, and exploration of public service careers to prepare students to be active citizens and thrive in the workforce.

• Facing History and Ourselves - From Reflection to Action: A Choosing to Participate Toolkit, with readings and activities designed to support student-led civic action projects at middle and high school levels

• Generation Citizen - Democracy Doesn’t Pause, lesson plans and family activities to create change in the community

• Generation Citizen - Take Action: Lobby a Legislator: If you're leading a virtual classroom, we have developed a lesson you can teach to connect this moment to civic action. As your students engage in their reflections about everything happening around them through this lesson, please encourage them to post their thoughts and experiences using the hashtags in the plan, and be sure to @generationcitizen on Instagram and @gencitizen on Twitter, in order to connect with other young people sharing their voice across the country.

• Generation Citizen - Family Activity: If you're providing families with materials for distance learning, we have developed an activity that students and their families can engage with. Encourage families and students to post their experience and reflections on Instagram and Twitter!

• Generation Citizen - Beyond the Ballot: Provides strategies for teachers and parents to take civic action in the community. A 2-lesson curriculum draws students’ attention to their local governments, systems and services, students gain appreciation for the potential power of their actions at the local level. Students will work together to choose an issue in their community, and then seek out a local elected official to address it.

• Generation Citizen - Government Guide lesson: Students work to create a government guide with relevant information for their state, county, and municipal government.

• Generation Citizen - Kick Start Action Civics: Bring the classroom to life for your students by learning how to teach Action Civics through this online course.

• CIRCLE Data Tool offers a unique way to explore the relationships between voting and other forms of civic participation, and some of the conditions that shape such engagement. It features more than 40 unique indicators and includes data at the national, state, congressional district, and county levels. The classroom companion illustrates examples for teachers from many disciplines to use the data in inquiries and other projects.

• Education Development Center Law & Justice Program includes innovative curriculum and research-based professional development, designed to empower students to think critically, develop solutions, and take civic action. Many of the curriculum activities can be adapted for distance learning. Students can explore COVID-19 legislation using the project and activities in Foundations in Law, Unit 2: The Legal System in Action. And Foundations in Criminal Justice, Unit 1: There Ought to Be a Law! provides a great opportunity for students to consider community, state, and federal actions such as quarantines, lockdowns, and restaurant closures in the context of community safety.

• Constitutional Rights Foundation - Civic Action Projects Student Discussions Students can discuss issues with other student leaders from across the U.S. 

• Reimagining Migration - Somos Mas Americanos: Music and Civic Action This lesson explores the music of Los Tigres del Notre to explore how music can shape the way we think about ourselves, our civic identities, our histories?

• Reimagining Migration - Quinceaneras at the Capitol is a lesson exploring the strategic civic choices made by 15, 15 year olds who sought to bring attention to what they saw as  anti-immigrant legislation in Texas.

• Reimagining Migration - When does poetry become civic action? This mini unit exploring Emma Lazarus's The New Colossus ends with a call to action for young people to write their own civic poetry.

Topic: American Identity/Art History

• Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas presents an award-winning online course Exploring Personal and National Identity Through Art: includes amazing artwork, fun activities and a range of “Big Ideas” and opportunities for students to develop their own ideas about their identity and American identity.

Topic: Science Literacy

• National Science Foundation Infectious Diseases: provides engaging and scientifically accurate instructional materials aimed at deepening high school students’ understanding of infectious diseases, enhancing their skills in seeking additional information to make informed decisions, and influencing their behaviors in response to an epidemic. Following an overarching storyline of the Ebola epidemic and measles outbreak, as well as emerging material on COVID-19, the resources are organized into four modules that can be used in sequence or individually. 

Multiple Topics/Instructional Strategies

• National Constitution Center - video series on aspects of the Constitution,  key Supreme Court cases, amendments, other historical event

• National Constitution Center - interactive Constitution

• National Constitution Center - podcasts and other resources

• National Constitution Center - games

• Khan Academy - U.S. History

• Khan Academy - U.S. Government and Politics

• Center for Civic Education - 60 Second Civics podcasts

• John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum Curricular Resources

• Consource - videos of lectures and indexed documents on the Constitution

• Library of Congress - digital collection of historic videos, recordings, documents

• PBS Learning Media - a range of grades, videos and interactive lessons on civics and U.S. history topics

• iCivics Games and WebQuests, see examples below

• Bill of Rights Institute - over 300 digitally accessible lessons and activities

• Civics 101 - podcasts on a variety of civics topics

• We the People / Project Citizen - Massachusetts Center for Civic Education high school lesson plans

• Mikva Challenge and many other organizations - Online Civic Education Resources

• Facing History and Ourselves - video library (free access for students)

• The College Board AP Exam Information / Free Virtual AP Course Review

• iCivics, through Study Edge: curated and tested AP® U.S. Government and Politics Exam resources for free. The study course features over 100 videos and accompanying study guides that break down all of the essential content, making it more accessible for all learners. All of the content can be used at home. Email iCivics@studyedge.com now to gain free access via a custom code that will be sent to you within two business days and be valid until Aug. 31, 2020.

• Historians 4SC: primary sources, writing prompts and more on writing historical event-based argumentative writing pieces.

• Emerging America’s Disability History through Primary Sources A portal to primary sources and dozens of accessible, teacher-created lesson plans on Disability History. 

  Reimagining Migration - Thinking Routines promote Civic Action in a World on the Move. These routines are designed to help young people reflect on a repertoire of civic engagement tools to take informed and compassionate action to create more welcoming, inclusive, and sustainable communities. 

  Reimagining Migration - Re-Imagining Migration Student Civic Inquiries These easy to implement inquiries lessons and resources can be used to promote civic knowledge, understanding, and dispositions. 

  Reimagining Migration - Joe Maddon and the Hazelton Integration Project How a white baseball manager built support for immigrants in a community that had seemingly forgotten its immigrant roots. 

  Also see lessons, activities, games listed under Students and Families Resources and Resources to address a range of ages, grade levels and topics. 

• Educational Resources for Students and Families -assembled by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) to address the current crisis

• Civics Renewal Network -provides a wide variety of activities and other resources for students K-12

• PBS Learning Media -educators resources across the disciplines, including video and lessons 

• WGBH Distance Learning Center - designed to address the needs of parents, students, and teachers during the current crisis

• Wide Open School -remote learning resources from many organizations and Common Sense Media

• Digital Public Library of America’s Open Ebooks program provides thousands of free ebooks to Title 1 schools. Readers can immediately download works of the past and present, with no costs, no holds, and no late fees. Titles were selected by DPLA’s Curation Corps of school and youth librarians. Register your school today.

• John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum Curricular Resources - lesson plans, documents, photos and other resources

• Emerging America - Teaching Civics online: games and activities: supported by Library of Congress; Six different products: Grades 2-12. School and family.

• iCivics Remote Learning Toolkit, offers advice for remote/virtual learning, some suggested games, tools for structured research and activities on a range of civics topics

• Boston Debate League is leading virtual PD sessions in April and May focused on activities that teachers of all content areas and grade levels can use to engage students more effectively and collaboratively over virtual platforms. E-Mail mike@bostondebate.org to receive the updated schedule of trainings.

• Bill of Rights Institute - over 3,000 digitally accessible lessons and activities

• The Student Reporting Lab at PBS has created a special unit, “Making Sense of Coronavirus Through Storytelling and Media Making” covering the basics of local community journalism, storytelling, scripting, and video editing.

• News Literacy Project - provides tools to address misinformation about the current health crisis as well as free access to Checkology, an online platform to help students develop media literacy skills 

• National Constitution Center - games

• Civics 101 - podcasts on a variety of civics topics

• Supplement to the Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for History and Social Science

• The College Board AP Exam Information / Free Virtual AP Course Review

• Facing History and Ourselves - streaming videos on a wide range of topics have always been free to teachers but now also are available to students directly without them needing a password to log in.

• Emerging America Accessing Inquiry is a clearinghouse with extensive strategies, tools, curriculum, and professional development for teaching students with disabilities and English Learners.

• Educators 4 Social Change provides collections of resources for teachers on teaching about the election and many other key issues.

• Educators 4 Social Change Academy is an animated video collection with the mission of providing an accessible interdisciplinary liberal arts education to students of all ages with lesson plans and worksheets with each video.

Historical Documents, Museum Collections and Other Sources

Library of Congress 

• Online Exhibitions - hundreds of rich, well-researched, primary source-based sites (K-12, school and family)

• Born in Slavery: Slave Narratives from the Federal Writers' Project - 1936-1938 contains more than 2,300 first-person accounts of slavery and 500 black-and-white photographs of former enslaved Americans.

Upworthy

• Voice Recordings of former enslaved Americans - ABC News Nightline / Ted Koppel Accounts of former enslaved Americans in their own words recorded in the 1930s and 1940s. Ted Koppel narrates this segment from 1999. (Note: use of word “slave” as opposed to “enslaved person.”)

National Park Service

• The Hidden Worlds of the National Parks - online visits and exhibits

 John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum 

• Curricular Resources, lesson plans, documents, photos and other resources

Emerging America 

• Emerging America offers a portal to strategies, primary source collections (featuring the Library of Congress), accessible lesson plans, especially on Disability History.

The Boston Athenæum 

• Digital collections of visual and textual primary sources, including materials related to the study of government and civic engagement, particularly in the 19th and 20th centuries, such as:

  • Harriet Hayden Albums - two photograph albums featuring portraits of white and Black abolitionists, activists, soldiers, and parishioners.

    • Harriet Hayden Albums, Volume 1

    • Harriet Hayden Albums, Volume 2

  • Nineteenth-Century Political Ballots - collection features some state and national candidates, but majority are from Boston political elections

  • Broadsides - single-sheet publications; the BA’s collection includes materials related to the American Civil War, poetry, governmental proclamations, as well as a range of other political, religious, and historical subjects.

• The Events Archive (book talks, lectures, panel discussions) includes recorded programs (video and podcast formats) with scholars, authors, and artists on topics across the humanities and arts.

Digital Public Library of America 

• Primary Source Sets - DPLA’s free primary source sets explore topics in history, literature, and culture developed by educators and include teaching guides for class use.

• DPLA Search: Search to access more than 36 million images, texts, videos, and sounds from DPLA’s 4,000+ partner institutions across the country. The collection is useful for primary source research and analysis and research projects on almost any topic, as well as creating things like scavenger hunts and games for putting a little fun in e-learning.

 Massachusetts Historical Society

• Boston Tea Party - print materials, including broadsides and poems.

• Phillis Wheatley - poetry of the first published African American writer in America

• Coming of the American Revolution - primary sources and contextual essays arranged into 15 topics relating to the events leading up to the American Revolution.

• Perspectives on the Boston Massacre - letters, pamphlets, diary entries, legal notes, and engravings relating to the Boston Massacre.

• Fire! Voices from the Boston Massacre - view video of re-enactors portraying eye witnesses to the events of March 5, 1775.

• John Adams and Abigail Adams Correspondence - John and Abigail Adams exchanged over 1,100 letters, beginning during their courtship in 1762 and continuing throughout John's political career (until 1801).

• 54th Regiment - visual materials from the MHS relating to the Fifty-fourth Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment, the first military unit consisting of black soldiers to be raised in the North during the Civil War.

• African Americans and the End of Slavery in Massachusetts -historical manuscripts and rare published works that serve as a window upon the lives of African Americans in Massachusetts from the late seventeenth century through the abolition of slavery under the Massachusetts Constitution in the 1780s.

• The Case for Ending Slavery - primary sources that reveal how slavery, and debates about slavery, contributed to the formation of the United States, including letters, diaries, broadsides, artifacts, songs, legal notebooks, and photographs representing a variety of viewpoints.

• Images of the Anti-Slavery Movement in Massachusetts - digital images of 840 visual materials that illustrate the role of Massachusetts in the national debate over slavery, including photographs, paintings, sculptures, engravings, artifacts, banners, and broadsides that were central to the debate and the formation of the antislavery movement.

• Massachusetts in the Civil War (1861-1862) - letters, photographs, and broadsides that provide examples of the great cost to families from Massachusetts in the first two years of the Civil War, 1861-1862.

• Women’s Suffrage and Anti-Suffrage - learn about pro-suffrage and anti-suffrage activities and activists from Massachusetts.

MCN Guide to Virtual Museum Resources 

• The MCN Guide to Virtual Museum Resources offers access to a vast set of collections K-12.

World Digital Library

•  The World Digital Library - 19,147 captivating items from 193 countries (K-12).

National Archives

•  Online Exhibits (K-12)

Ellis Island

• Ellis Island Virtual Tour (Grades 2-12)

Lower East Side Tenement Museum 

•  Virtual Tour (Grades 2-12)

Perkins School for the Blind 

• Virtual Museum (Grades 3-8)

New York Historical Society Online

• Access to the New York Historical Society’s extensive collection, special exhibits and educational resources

Ford’s Theater in Washington, DC.

• Online Resources, including virtual tours and experiences 

The Equal Justice Initiative (EJI)

• True Justice, HBO's documentary about Bryan Stevenson focuses on Mr. Stevenson's life and career and tracks the intertwined histories of slavery, lynching, segregation and mass incarceration.

U.S. Census Bureau

• New activities designed specifically for the 2019-2020 school year spotlight the 2020 Census and the importance of making sure everyone is counted, especially children. Use activities for pre-K through 12th grade today to help your students, school, and community.

The Nature Conservancy

• Nature Lab - Interactive lesson plans for teachers, students and families to explore nature around the globe alongside Conservancy scientists

New York Times: The Learning Network

• The Learning Network - publishes about 1,000 teaching resources each school year, all based on using New York Times content — articles, essays, images, videos, graphics and podcasts — as teaching tools across subject areas. Most of the resources are free (only lesson plans are limited to five per month for non-subscribers). Intended audience is middle and high school teachers and students. 

CNN

• CNN 10 (formerly CNN Student News) - news of the day in 10 minutes

CIRCLE

• CIRCLE Data Tool offers a unique way to explore the relationships between voting and other forms of civic participation, and some of the conditions that shape such engagement. It features more than 40 unique indicators and includes data at the national, state, congressional district, and county levels. The classroom companion illustrates examples for teachers from many disciplines to use the data in inquiries and other projects.