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Exploring History through a Multicultural Lens

By HomeschoolLeadLearner27
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
private
LEARNING PLAN
Essential Question
  • How can we celebrate what we have in common while also honoring our differences?
  • How does privilege shape the lives of individuals and groups?
  • What effect does injustice have on people and groups?
  • What is the difference between being treated unfairly by another person and receiving unequal treatment under the law?
  • How do bias and prejudice undermine equal rights?
  • What do we gain when we learn about the lived experiences of other people?
  • What did Martin Luther King mean when he said, “A threat to justice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere?” What does it mean today?
  • Why is it important to judge people by the content of their character and not the color of their skin, as Dr. King said?
  • How do our similarities and differences impact the relationships we have with people inside and outside our own identity groups?
Texts
Informational

Always Running

In this excerpt from his memoir, Rodriguez provides a stirring recollection from his adolescence: the first time he experienced racism as a result of being an immigrant in America. As he says, the experience "stays with [him] like a foul odor."
by
Luis J. Rodriguez
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
Topic
Class Immigration
Social Justice Domain
Identity Justice
July 2, 2014
Informational

‘Hope, Despair and Memory’

"Hope, Despair and Memory" is an address given by Elie Wiesel on December 11, 1986, the date Wiesel was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Wiesel is an author and humanitarian and is known for writing about his experience as a survivor of the Holocaust.
by
Elie Wiesel
Grade Level
9-12
Subject
History
Topic
Religion
Social Justice Domain
Diversity Justice Action
July 5, 2014
Informational

Rebel Yells

Like many schools being called on to reconsider their mascot, the University of Mississippi convenes a student-run committee to find a replacement for theirs—a Confederate soldier.
by
Robbie Brown
Grade Level
9-12
Subject
Civics
History
Geography
Social Justice Domain
Justice Action
July 5, 2014
Literature

The Fire Horse Girl

In this excerpt, the narrator, a young Chinese girl, poses as a boy with forged papers, trying to gain entry into the United States. When she realizes the American immigration agents are checking identity papers at the dock, she fights past them and runs for her life.
by
Kay Honeyman
Grade Level
9-12
Subject
Civics
History
Topic
Immigration
Social Justice Domain
Identity Diversity Justice
July 7, 2014
Informational

Danger on my Doorstep

Linda Schubert recounts the fear that consumed her Jewish family living in Nazi-Germany in the late 1930s. Each family member endured individual stress and anxiety, but each also contributed to the family's greater good of the family.
by
Linda Schubert
Grade Level
6-8
Subject
History
Geography
Topic
Religion
Social Justice Domain
Identity Justice
July 7, 2014
Literature

Seventeen Syllables

Rosie's mother and father did not marry out of love, and her mother writes haiku as an escape. After entering a contest, a man comes to deliver her prize—a framed picture. Angered by this intrusion, Rosie's father destroys the picture. In her anguish, Rosie's mother explains her marriage to her daughter.
by
Hisaye Yamamoto
Grade Level
9-12
Subject
History
Geography
Topic
Immigration Gender & Sexual Identity
Social Justice Domain
Identity Justice
July 7, 2014
Literature

Saffron Dreams

Although her husband died in the September 11 attack, Arissa is targeted for being Muslim. In this excerpt, she is held up by a group of men who berate her and threaten to kill her until they realize she is pregnant.
by
Shaila Abdullah
Grade Level
9-12
Subject
Civics
History
Geography
Topic
Religion
Social Justice Domain
Identity Justice
July 7, 2014
Literature

The Fog Machine

This excerpt focuses on the lives of African American students during Freedom Summer. After reading Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I Have A Dream” speech in class in 1963, students in main character C.J.'s school are asked to share their dreams at an assembly.
by
Susan Follett
Grade Level
6-8
Subject
Civics
History
Topic
Civil Rights Movement
Social Justice Domain
Identity Diversity Justice Action
June 9, 2015
Literature

Becoming Joey

This poem, told by a third-person omniscient narrator, paints a picture of José, an immigrant student who carries the burden of being from the “borderlands.”
by
Paul C. Gorski
Grade Level
6-8
Topic
Class
Social Justice Domain
Diversity Justice
October 29, 2015
Literature

A Slave Auction

Solomon Northup was kidnapped and sold into slavery for 12 years before he was freed. This excerpt from his memoir of those years, Twelve Years A Slave, details a New Orleans slave auction.
by
Solomon Northup
Grade Level
6-8
Subject
History
Economics
Social Justice Domain
Justice
April 27, 2016
Informational

Race Riots

In this essay, the author gives a short history of race riots, showing how they were originally organized by whites in an effort to show dominance over African Americans, particularly in the South.
by
Learning for Justice Staff
Grade Level
9-12
Subject
Civics
History
Geography
Social Justice Domain
Justice
June 20, 2016
Informational

Blankets for the Dead

In 1830, the government began systematically removing all Native Americans from the Eastern United States. The removal of Cherokees from Georgia in 1838 has become known as the Trail of Tears. But there were, in fact, many such trails, as the Creeks, Choctaws, Chickasaws, Seminoles and other tribes were forced to abandon their homelands.
by
Learning for Justice Staff
Grade Level
9-12
Subject
Civics
History
Geography
Social Justice Domain
Identity Diversity Justice Action
August 22, 2016
Informational

Una Vida de Esperanza

In this interview, Luis Rodriguez describes how the systemic demoralization he faced in school and society at a young age drove him to join a street gang and how writing his book, Always Running, was an attempt to call his son and other young people in similar situations to change their lives.
by
Luis Rodriguez and Sara Bullard
Grade Level
9-12
Subject
Civics
Topic
Class Immigration Bullying & Bias
Social Justice Domain
Identity Diversity Justice Action
June 20, 2016
Informational

The Power of Language

In this essay, the author identifies vague terminology used by the United States government during World War II to describe their actions toward Japanese Americans and outlines terms that would more appropriately describe the government's actions.
by
Learning for Justice Staff
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
Subject
Civics
History
Social Justice Domain
Diversity Justice
April 28, 2016
Informational

Race Against Time

Dozens of racially motivated murders took place in the South during the 1950s and 1960s. Time is running out to solve these cold cases.
by
Shaila Dewan
Grade Level
9-12
Subject
Civics
History
Economics
Geography
Social Justice Domain
Justice Action
July 5, 2014
Informational

Insult or Honor?

Are American Indian names, mascots and logos insulting or honorable? Veronica Majerol outlines the debate, citing evidence from local high school students, the N.C.A.A, and a founder of the National Coalition on Racism in Sports and the Media.
by
Veronica Majerol
Grade Level
9-12
Subject
Civics
History
Geography
Social Justice Domain
Diversity Justice Action
January 21, 2016
Informational

A Very Special Delivery

'Henry Brown left Richmond, Va. a slave and arrived in Philadelphia—in a freight box—a free man. Abolitionists who cheered Brown's 27-hour journey to freedom chose not to publicize it, fearing that others following in his path would be in danger.
by
Alison Leigh Cowan
Grade Level
9-12
Subject
History
Social Justice Domain
Justice
July 5, 2014
Informational

Si Se Puede

“In response to legislation that would have criminalized immigrants, thousands of high school students from across the country walked out of their classrooms and into history.”
by
Learning for Justice Staff
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
Subject
Civics
History
Topic
Class
Social Justice Domain
Identity Diversity Justice Action
August 9, 2017
Informational

This Land is Ours

“The Ponca’s challenge of the U.S. government marked a turning point on the long path of Indian resistance. Increasingly, after Standing Bear v. Cook, the fight for Native rights would shift from the battlefields to the courtrooms of the growing nation.”
by
Learning for Justice Staff
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
Subject
History
Geography
Social Justice Domain
Identity Diversity Justice Action
August 9, 2017
Informational

Freedom's Main Line

One of the earliest assaults on segregated transit in the South occurred in Louisville, Ky., in 1870-71. There, the city’s black community organized a successful protest that relied on nonviolent direct action, a tactic that would give shape to the modern civil rights movement nearly a century later.
by
Maria Fleming
Grade Level
9-12
Subject
Civics
History
Topic
Class Rights & Activism
Social Justice Domain
Identity Diversity Justice Action
December 6, 2017
Multimedia

My Identity

After growing up in foster care, Ashley, a young Native-American Caucasian woman, converts to Islam in hopes of finding structure in a life where it never existed. However, with that decision comes the risk of losing one of the few biological connections she still has.
by
Yasmin Mistry
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
Subject
History
Topic
Religion
Social Justice Domain
Identity Diversity Justice Action
January 12, 2018
Teaching Strategies
Word Work

Meaning-Making Paragraphs

Students learn the meaning of vocabulary words by writing the word in multiple ways. Students write guided paragraphs about words from the central text then share their writing with peers.
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
CCSS
L.6-12.5, L.6-12.6
July 19, 2014
Word Work

Vocabulary Frames

Students use this tool to identify a word’s meaning, its parts and its opposite. After organizing the information on an illustrated flashcard, students practice using the word in a sentence.
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
CCSS
L.6-12.4, L.6-12.6
July 19, 2014
Word Work

Vocabulary Prediction Chart

Students predict the meanings of vocabulary words before reading and confirm the accuracy of their predictions during and after reading. Students identify context clues from the text and revise their definitions accordingly.
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
CCSS
L.6-12.4, L.6-12.6
July 19, 2014
Word Work

Vocabulary Rounds

This contextual redefinition strategy encourages students to use the structure and context of words to predict their meanings. Students arrive at the definition through exposure to increasingly rich clues.
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
CCSS
L.6-12.4, L.6-12.6
July 19, 2014
Word Work

Vocabulary Tableaux

A tableau is a representation of a scene or picture by people posing silently without moving. In a vocabulary tableau, a group of students use their bodies to create a frozen picture of a vocabulary word.
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
CCSS
L.6-12.4, L.6-12.6
July 19, 2014
Word Work

Word Wall

A word wall is an organized display of vocabulary words drawn from the texts students are reading.
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
CCSS
L.6-12.4, L.6-12.5, L.6-12.6
July 19, 2014
Close and Critical Reading

Challenge the Text

Challenge the Text helps students ask and answer their own text-dependent questions by taking multiple perspectives and uncovering assumptions and biases within the text.
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
CCSS
RL.6-12.1, RL.6-12.2, RL.6-12.3, RL.6-12.6, RI.6-12.1, RI.6-12.2, RI.6-12.3, RI.6-12.6
July 19, 2014
Close and Critical Reading

Reading Against the Grain

In reading against the grain students analyze the dominant reading of a text and engage in alternative or "resistant" readings. Resistant readings scrutinize the beliefs and attitudes that typically go unexamined in a text, drawing attention to the gaps, silences and contradictions.
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
CCSS
RL.6-12.1, RL.6-12.2, RL.6-12.6, RI.6-12.1, RI.6-12.2, RI.6-12.6
July 19, 2014
Close and Critical Reading

Shared Reading

Shared reading combines aspects of guided reading and read-aloud strategies. During shared reading, a teacher or proficient student reads the text aloud, pausing at pre-selected moments to discuss content and analyze the text. This strategy facilitates close reading of a complex text in small or whole group settings.
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
CCSS
RL.6-12.1, RI.6-12.1
July 19, 2014
Close and Critical Reading

Text Graffiti

This strategy exposes students to multiple short pieces of a text before they read it in its entirety. Students read selected quotes out of context and comment on both the selection and the comments of other students. The activity ends with students reflecting on their reactions to and predictions about the text.
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
CCSS
RL.6-12.1, RI.6-12.1
July 19, 2014
Close and Critical Reading

Thinking Notes

Thinking notes are text annotations (highlights, underlines or symbols made on the text or in the margins) that document student thinking during reading. Depending on how you structure the task, these notes can indicate agreement, objection, confusion or other relevant reactions to the text.
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
July 19, 2014
Close and Critical Reading

Window or Mirror?

This task helps students consider if the text is a window or a mirror through practicing literacy skills and using technology.
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
CCSS
RL.6-12.1, RL.6-12.2, RL.6-12.3, RL.6-12.7, RI.6-12.1, RI.6-12.2, RI.6-12.3, RI.6-12.7
April 18, 2016
Community Inquiry

Socratic Seminar

A structured discussion in which students examine issues and respond to open-ended questions about a text. Students use dialogue rather than debate to communicate with each other.
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
CCSS
RL.6-12.1, RI.6-12.1, SL.6-12.1, SL.6-12.3, SL.6-12.4, SL.6-12.6
July 13, 2014
Community Inquiry

What Would They Say

A discussion strategy that asks students to infer how a particular author or character from a text would respond to questions and scenarios. Students must defend their conclusions using evidence from the text.
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
CCSS
RL.6-12.1, RI.6-12.1, SL.6-12.1, SL.6-12.3, SL.6-12.4, SL.6-12.6
July 13, 2014
Student Tasks
Write to the Source

Break It Down

Break it Down asks students to demonstrate their explanatory and descriptive writing skills.
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
CCSS
W.6-12.2, W.6-12.4, W.6-12.9
July 19, 2014
Write to the Source

Problem Solver

Problem Solver asks students to demonstrate their argumentative skills when identifying problems and solutions in writing.
Grade Level
6-8 9-12
CCSS
W.6-12.1, W.6-12.4, W.6-12.9
July 19, 2014
Plan Built By
HomeschoolLeadLearner27

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