Women's History

Seneca Falls, 1848: Women Organize for Equality

Teaching Activity PDF. By Bill Bigelow. 17 pages.
A role play allows students to examine issues of race and class when exploring both the accomplishments and limitations of the Seneca Falls Convention.

Civil Rights Movements, Democracy & Citizenship, Laws & Citizen Rights, Women's History

Salt of the Earth: Grounds Students in Hope

Teaching Activity PDF. By S.J. Childs. 6 pages.
The author describes how she introduces students to the classic 1953 film Salt of the Earth about a miners’ strike in New Mexico.

Labor, Latino, Social Class, Women's History

Exploring Women’s Rights: The 1908 Textile Strike in a 1st-grade Class

Teaching Activity PDF. By Dale Weiss. 3 pages.
A teacher’s reflections about a curriculum unit on women’s rights contextualizes the history of the feminist movement within the broader struggle of people working for greater equality in the United States.

Labor, Women's History

Unsung Heroes: Encouraging Students to Appreciate Those Who Fought for Social Justice

Teaching Activity PDF. Essay by Howard Zinn and lesson by Bill Bigelow. 11 pages.
Students research and share stories about unsung heroes in US history.

Civil Rights Movements, Individuals in US History, Wars & Related Anti-War Movements, Women's History

Daughter of Earth: Reading, Writing, and Social Class

Teaching Activity PDF. By Bill Bigelow. 7 pages.

Education, Social Class, Women's History

The Truth About Helen Keller

Background Reading for Teachers and High School Students - PDF. By Ruth Shagoury. 6 pages.
A review of children’s picture books about the life of Helen Keller reveals that the omission of any description of her active role in key social movements of the 20th century.

Education, Individuals in US History, Women's History

Lawrence, 1912: The Singing Strike

Teaching Activity PDF. By Bill Bigelow and Norm Diamond. 18 pages.
Role play on the 1912 strike in Lawrence, Mass.

Art & Music, Labor, Women's History

Rethinking the U.S. Constitutional Convention: A Role Play

Teaching Activity PDF. By Bob Peterson. 14 pages.
A role play on the Constitutional Convention which brings to life the social forces active during and immediately following the American Revolution with focus on two key topics: suffrage and slavery. An elementary school adapation of the Constitution Role Play by Bill Bigelow.

Democracy & Citizenship, Laws & Citizen Rights, Native American, Slavery, Women's History

On the Road to Cultural Bias: A Critique of The Oregon Trail

Background Reading for Teachers PDF. By Bill Bigelow. 13 pages.

Education, Native American, Racism & Racial Identity, Women's History

Promoting Social Imagination Through Interior Monologues

Teaching Activity PDF. By Bill Bigelow and Linda Christensen. 3 pages.
Empathy, or “social imagination,” allows students to connect to “the other” with whom, on the surface, they may appear to have little in common.

Individuals in US History, Racism & Racial Identity, Slavery, Wars & Related Anti-War Movements, Women's History