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Who Killed Vincent Chin: Civil Rights Activism From the website:
"In this lesson, students will:
(1) investigate evidence to determine how the killing of Vincent Chin was racially motivated,
(2) demonstrate how to stand up for a civil rights issue, and
(3) analyze the mistakes of the American justice system"
The lesson takes place over two 50-minute class periods with optional homework in between.
PBS and History Toolkit Cautions:
Please be advised that this lesson plan contains material that may be sensitive for some students. Also, referring to anyone of Asian descent as “oriental,” a Japanese or Japanese American person as a “Jap,” or that someone might be "handicaped" because they are Chinese is inappropriate and racist.
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Integrating Asian Pacific Islander Desi Americans (APIDA) in Your Everyday Teaching These slides are from a webinar by the Asian American Education Project aimed to help teachers integrate APIDA histories into their existing teaching. The slides share examples of APIDA inclusion into existing curriculum, pedagogical strategies to do so, and reflective questions to help K-12 history teachers probe their own teaching.
Example teaching strategies/historical moments are:
- Angel Island and Ellis Island
- Japanese Incarceration during WWII, Treatment of Muslim Americans and South Asian Americans post 9/11, and U.S. Detention Facilities at the Border
- Tape vs. Hurley and Brown vs. Board
- Immigration Patterns of Southeast Asian refugees as a result of the Vietnam War
- Lue Gim Gong saves Florida's Citrus Plants
- Colonization of Hawai'i
Standards for each example are below.
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Cultural Diversity Inquiry Unit: What do Things I Wear Say About Me? From the unit plan:
"This third-grade inquiry expands students’ understandings of how groups represent themselves through what they wear. The compelling question—“What do things I wear say about me?”—engages students in an examination of material culture by considering the factors impacting their own choices of what they wear such as geography, culture, and religion. Students will examine the similarities and differences they share with their classmates, as well as diverse cultures in their communities and around the globe."
This inquiry is designed to for three, 45 minute lessons, but can and should be adapted to best meet your students.
HTK note: this lesson is designed for 3rd grade, but may be a better fit for 2nd. We've included standards for both grades.
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Confidence and Crises: Women and the American Story History Unit (1920-1948) Key ideas from the unit:
"1. Major social, economic, and political shifts in this period forced Americans to once again question what it meant to be an American.
2. Women of all backgrounds continued to feel the tension between traditional expectations of domesticity and expanding opportunities in work, education, social interaction, and politics.
3. After the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment, women activists lacked a unifying issue. Instead, they focused on an increasingly diverse array of social and political issues.
4. Although women’s experiences varied depending on age, race, ethnicity, geography, and economic status, women across all these categories actively contributed to reform and activated their citizenship in creative ways throughout the era."
As with all WAMS unit plans, "each resource includes background information and vocabulary lists to provide context. Resources also include suggested activities and how to combine different resources on a certain topic. You can easily integrate these materials into current lesson plans or structure new lessons around them. Many resources in this unit allow you to teach historical themes and topics in your curriculum by including the perspective of women in this era."
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Industry and Empire: Women and the American Story History Unit (1866-1904) Key ideas from the unit:
"1. Women contributed to the reimagining of what it meant to be American in the wake of the Civil War and during widespread immigration and migration.
2. Industrialization changed the daily lives of women from many different backgrounds.
3. Westward expansion and imperialism affected women across the country and beyond.
4. The experiences of women in this period varied widely based on race, class, age, identity, and geographic region."
As with all WAMS unit plans, "each resource includes background information and vocabulary lists to provide context. Resources also include suggested activities and how to combine different resources on a certain topic. You can easily integrate these materials into current lesson plans or structure new lessons around them. Many resources in this unit allow you to teach historical themes and topics in your curriculum by including the perspective of women in this era."
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Expansions and Inequalities: Women and the American Story History Unit (1820-1869) From the unit plan:
"In most histories of the United States, the mid-19th century is dominated by the narrative of the Civil War. But beyond the war, this period was one of rapid and monumental transition. . .
"Expansions and Inequalities, 1830–1869, provides resources to allow you to explore the complicated and fascinating history of this period. The unit contains three sections: Westward Expansion, Industry and Immigration, and Politics and Society. The questions surrounding slavery and freedom as well as the events of the Civil War and Reconstruction appear throughout, but you’ll find a more thorough examination of all these topics in A Nation Divided: 1832–1877. Each section contains resources that illustrate the experiences of a wide range of women across race, gender, age, social, and economic spectrums."
As with all WAMS unit plans, "each resource includes background information and vocabulary lists to provide context. Resources also include suggested activities and how to combine different resources on a certain topic. You can easily integrate these materials into current lesson plans or structure new lessons around them. Many resources in this unit allow you to teach historical themes and topics in your curriculum by including the perspective of women in this era."
