Teaching Materials Archive

Pink and Say

Picture book. By Patricia Polacco. 1994. 48 pages.
The narrative of two young boys who meet and help each other during the Civil War. For upper elementary.

Si, Se Puede! Yes, We Can!: Janitor Strike in L.A.

Picture book. By Diana Cohn and illustrated by Francisco Delgado. 2008. 31 pages.
A children's book based on the true story of the Justice for Janitors strike.

Swimmy

Picture book. By Leo Lionni. 1973. 32 pages.
A classic tale for young children about the power of organizing.

Act of War: The Overthrow of the Hawaiian Nation

Film. By Na Maka o ka `Aina. 1993. 58 minutes.
A comprehensive documentary that focuses on the events surrounding the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy in 1893.

Barefoot Gen: The Bombing of Hiroshima As Seen Through the Eyes of a Young Boy

Film. By Geneon; directed by Mori Masaki. 1992. 170 minutes.
A story about the devastating effects of war on everyday life.

Mighty Times: The Children’s March

Film. By Hudson and Houston. Learning for Justice. 2005. 40 minutes.
This Academy Award-winning documentary film tells the heroic story of the young people in Birmingham, Alabama, who brought segregation to its knees.

The Corporation

Film. By Mark Achbar, Jennifer Abbott, and Joel Bakan. 2004. 145 minutes.
This award-winning documentary examines the nature, evolution, impacts, and future of the modern business corporation and the increasing role it plays in society and our everyday lives.

Earth and the American Dream

Film. By Bill Couturie. 1993. 90 minutes.
U.S. history from the standpoint of the earth.

Eyes on the Prize: America’s Civil Rights Years, 1954-1985

Film. Produced by Henry Hampton. Blackside. 1987. 360 minutes.
Comprehensive documentary history of the Civil Rights Movement.

February One

Film. Produced by Dr. Steven Channing. 2004. 61 minutes.
The story surrounding the 1960 Greensboro lunch counter sit-ins.

Freedom Song

Film. By Phil Alden Robinson. 2006. 117 minutes.
Based on the actual history of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), student activism, and voter registration in McComb, Mississippi, during the Civil Rights Movement.

Golden Lands, Working Hands

Film. By Fred Glass for the California Federation of Teachers. 1999. 170 minutes.
Ten-part film series brings the hidden history of working people in California to light, from the Gold Rush through the present.

The Good War and Those Who Refused to Fight It

Film. Produced by Rick Tejada-Flores and Judith Ehrlich. 2002. 60 minutes.
Documentary film on WWII conscientious objectors and excellent online resources for the classroom.

The Good Fight: The Abraham Lincoln Brigade and the Spanish Civil War

Film. By Mary Dore, Noel Buckner, and Sam Sills. 1984. 98 minutes.
Documentary narrated by Studs Terkel on the Abraham Lincoln Brigade.

Granito de Arena/Grain of Sand

Film. Produced by Jill Freidberg. Corrugated Films. 2005. 62 minutes.
Documentary about teachers, parents, and students fighting to defend Mexico's public education system from the impacts of economic globalization.

The Good Soldier

Film. Directed by Lexy Lovell and Michael Uys. 2009. 79 minutes.
Documentary that offers examples of these too-often-forgotten "good soldiers" who, in different ways, tried to follow their consciences.

The Meaning of Sacco and Vanzetti

Audio. By Howard Zinn. 2008. 35 minutes.
A lecture by Howard Zinn on "The Meaning of Sacco and Vanzetti" at the Dante Alighieri Society Italian Cultural Center.

Matewan

Film. Written and directed by John Sayles. 1987. 132 minutes.
A feature ﬁlm depicting a strike in a mining town in Appalachia and the struggle for solidarity across racial lines.

Making a Killing: Philip Morris, Kraft and Global Tobacco Addiction

Film. By Kelly Anderson and Tami Gold. 2001. 30 minutes.
How Philip Morris has conspired to hook children on tobacco and keep governments from protecting public health.

The Murder of Emmett Till

Film. Produced and directed by Stanley Nelson. 2003. 60 minutes.
Documentary on the murder of teenager Emmett Till and the actions of Mamie Till Bradley which helped launch the modern Civil Rights Movement.

Race — The Power of an Illusion

Film. By California Newsreel. 2003. Three episodes – 56 minutes each.
A three-part documentary series that questions the very idea of race as biology.

Scarred Justice: The Orangeburg Massacre 1968

Film. Produced by Judy Richardson and Bestor Cram. 2009. 57 minutes.
A documentary film that brings to light the story of the attack by state police on a demonstration in Orangeburg, South Carolina -- leaving three students killed and 28 injured.

Soldiers of Conscience

Film. By Catherine Ryan and Gary Weimberg. 2007. 86 minutes.
Documentary about war, peace, and U.S. soldiers in Iraq, from active military to conscientious objectors, wrestling with conscience over killing in war.

Standing on My Sisters’ Shoulders

Film. By Joan Sadoff, Robert Sadoff, and Laura Lipson. 2002. 60 minutes.
Documentary film on women in the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi.

Teaching About the Montgomery Bus Boycott

Film. By Teaching for Change. 2006. 15 minutes.
First grade teacher Maggie Donovan (SNCC veteran) introduces her students to the fight to desegregate the buses, placing Rosa Parks in the context of the larger community efforts.