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Frances Harper, William Sylvis, Isaac Myers, and John Roy Lynch pictured. They were leaders of the Reconstruction Era in US history

When the Impossible Suddenly Became Possible: A Reconstruction Mixer

Teaching Activity. By Adam Sanchez and Nqobile Mthethwa. 25 pages. A mixer role play explores the connections between different social movements during Reconstruction.

Teaching Activity by Adam Sanchez

Students Bring Reconstruction to Life 1 (Material) | Zinn Education Project

How My Students Brought Reconstruction to Life

Article. By Amy Trenkle. One of the teachers who piloted the Make Reconstruction History Visible project with her students shares the process she used.

Teaching Activity by Amy Trenkle

Freedom’s Shore

Book – Non-fiction. By Russell Duncan. 1986. 192 pages. Freedom’s Shore tells the incredible story of Tunis Campbell, a Northern abolitionist minister who heads South after the Civil War to help freedpeople in Georgia.

Cause: Reconstruction America, 1863-1877

Book – Non-fiction. By Tonya Bolden. 2014. 138 pages. One of the few non-fiction texts on Reconstruction aimed at young readers, Cause is a strong alternative to the textbook treatment of the era.

The Slave’s Cause: A History of Abolition

Book – Non-fiction. By Manisha Sinha. 2017. 784 pages. A groundbreaking history of abolition that recovers the largely forgotten role of African Americans in the long march toward emancipation from the American Revolution through the Civil War.

Last Seen: Finding Family After Slavery

Digital Collection. This website publishes thousands of “Information Wanted” advertisements taken out by people freed from slavery who are searching for family members who had been sold apart.

Reconstruction: The Second Civil War

Film. By Elizabeth Deane and Dion Graham. 2004. 174 min. Through the voices of several historians and dramatic re-enactments by actors, PBS’s Reconstruction: The Second Civil War uses the stories of ordinary citizens to paint a picture of the Reconstruction era.

Black Reconstruction in America

Book – Non-fiction. By W. E. B. Du Bois. Introduction by David Levering Lewis. 2014. 623 pages. Originally published in 1935, Du Bois’ Black Reconstruction was the first book to challenge the prevailing racist historical narrative of the era and in sharp, incisive prose, tell the story of the Civil War and Reconstruction from the perspective of African Americans.

The Era of Reconstruction, 1861-1900

Book – Non-fiction. By National Park Service. 2017. 165 pages. A theme study on the history of the Reconstruction era.

A Short History of Reconstruction, Updated Edition

Book - Non-fiction. By Eric Foner. 2015. 352 pages. A people's history view of the Reconstruction era.

Reconstructing the South: A Role Play

Teaching Activity. By Bill Bigelow. 17 pages. This role play engages students in thinking about what freedpeople needed in order to achieve—and sustain—real freedom following the Civil War. It's followed by a chapter from the book Freedom's Unfinished Revolution.

Teaching Activity by Bill Bigelow

The Reconstruction Era and the Fragility of Democracy

Teaching Guide. By Facing History and Ourselves. 2015. A collection of lessons, videos, and primary sources to teach about Reconstruction.

Slavery by Another Name

Film. By Sam Pollard, Catherine Allan, Douglas Blackmon and Sheila Curran Bernard. 2012. 90 min. Reveals the interlocking forces in the South and the North that enabled “neoslavery” post-Emancipation Proclamation.

The Amazing Age of John Roy Lynch

Picture book. By Chris Barton. Illustrated by Don Tate. 2015. An in-depth look at the Reconstruction period through the life of one of the first African-American congressmen.

In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse

Book - Fiction. By Joseph Marshall III. Illustrations by Jim Yellowhawk. 2015. 176 pages. A contemporary Native American boy learns about the history of Crazy Horse in a journey with his grandfather.

Roudanez: History and Legacy

Digital Collection. The work of Dr. Louis Charles Roudanez, founder of the first Black daily newspaper in the U.S., the New Orleans Tribune, with articles, excerpts, videos, and a timeline.

The Price of Freedom: How One Town Stood Up to Slavery

Picture book. By Dennis Brindell Fradin and Judith Bloom Fradin. Illustrated by Eric Velasquez. 2013. Story of John Price's escape to freedom with the help of the Oberlin–Wellington Rescue.

Sugar

Book - Fiction. By Jewell Parker Rhodes. 2013. 288 pages. Historical fiction about Reconstruction-era Louisiana through the eyes of a young girl who bridges the divide between the long-time plantation workers and the Chinese indentured servants.

Why I’m Rooting for Tommy Lee Jones

Article. By William Katz. 2013. An opportunity to highlight Congressman Thaddeus Stevens' fight for equality.

Rethinking Cinco de Mayo

By Sudie Hofmann

I recently came across a flier in an old backpack of my daughter’s: Wanted: Committee Chairs for this Spring’s Cinco de Mayo All School Celebration. The flier was replete with cultural props including a sombrero, cactus tree, donkey, taco, maracas, and chili peppers. Seeing this again brought back the moment when, years earlier, my daughter had handed the flier to me, and I’d thought, “Oh, no.” The local K-6 elementary school’s Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA) was sponsoring a stereotypical Mexican American event. There were no Chicana/o students, parents, or staff members who I was aware of in the school community and I was concerned about the event’s authenticity. I presumed the PTSA meant well, and was attempting to provide a multicultural experience for students and families, but it seemed they were likely to get it wrong.

Freedom’s Unfinished Revolution: Teaching a People’s History of Reconstruction

Background Reading for Teachers. By Bill Bigelow. 4 pages. A review of Freedom's Unfinished Revolution, a collection of primary documents for high school on the Civil War and Reconstruction.

Teaching Activity by Bill Bigelow

Rev. Henry McNeal Turner | Zinn Education Project

Henry McNeal Turner: “Eligibility of Colored Members to Seats in the Georgia Legislature”

Film clip. Voices of a People's History. Henry McNeal Turner's "Eligibility of Colored Members to Seats in the Georgia Legislature" (1868), read by Danny Glover.

Forty Acres and Maybe a Mule

Book - Fiction. By Harriette Gillem Robinet. 1998. 144 pages. Historical fiction featuring 12-year-old Pascal, 8-year-old Nellie, and their older brother Gideon, a Union Army aide, as they claim and farm the land promised to them during Reconstruction.

A Peoples History of the United States Book | Zinn Education Project

A People’s History of the United States: 1492 – Present

Books - Non-fiction. By Howard Zinn. 2005, with a new introduction by Anthony Arnove in 2015. 784 pages. Howard Zinn's groundbreaking work on U.S. history. This book details lives and facts rarely included in textbooks—an indispensable teacher and student resource.

Voices of a People’s History of the United States (Book, 10th anniv.) | Zinn Education Project: Teaching People's History

Voices of a People’s History of the United States, 10th Anniversary Edition

Book - Non-fiction. Edited by Howard Zinn and Anthony Arnove. 2014. 704 pages. Speeches, letters, poems, and songs for each chapter of A People's History of the United States.