A student speaks while another listens attentively.

Collection

Current Event

Current Events in the Classroom

Explore classroom resources for making connections between current events and your curriculum, including activities and discussion strategies for high school and middle school students.

Published: August 2, 2019

Last Updated: May 22, 2022

Collection

Language

English — US

Subject

Civics & Citizenship
History
Social Studies

Grade

6–12

Democracy & Civic Engagement
Global Migration & Immigration
Human & Civil Rights
Racism

Overview

Engaging with current events is an essential part of educating young people to be informed and humane participants in society, helping them develop the capacity to examine issues from multiple perspectives and think critically about the world around them.

Our current events collection includes strategies for addressing current events with your students and mini-lessons on topics in the news, which can be adapted to teach in one class period or less.

This collection supports thoughtful classroom conversations about current events. It includes:

Flexible mini-lessons to help you address specific events and issues in the news.
Printable explainers to introduce key terms and ideas that are essential to understanding today’s news.
Collections of resources on four key topics: global immigration, democracy and civic engagement, racial justice in the United States, and bigotry and hate.

Preparing to Teach

Toolkit

This toolkit provides flexible and adaptable tools and strategies for integrating current events into your teaching.

Professional Learning

Mar 27 - Jun 30, 2023

Virtual

This workshop introduces Facing History’s approach to teaching with current events, which includes reflection, pedagogy, and teaching strategies.

Guide

This guide includes tools and strategies for organizing discussions about current events in your classroom.

Photo of students seated in a classroom.

Inside this Collection

Mini-Lesson

Learn about some of the factors impacting teen mental health and actions we can take to promote wellbeing.

New

Mini-Lesson

These six activities help students reflect on the past school year, celebrate their school community, and look ahead to what comes next.

Two students in conversation with each other. Both appear to be joyful.

Mini-Lesson

In this Mini-Lesson, students reflect on stories of migration and learn about migration from El Salvador to the United States as a means of exploring the underlying factors that drive migration.

Mini-Lesson

This mini-lesson helps students understand recent events in the Tennessee and Montana state legislatures and consider the implications of using rules of decorum to sanction state representatives.

Expelled State Rep. Justin Pearson, D-Memphis, delivers remarks outside the state Capitol, in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 10, 2023. Pearson was sworn in, a week after he and state Rep. Justin Jones were banished for a gun control protest on the floor of the House, in the aftermath of a deadly school shooting.

Mini-Lesson

This is the first mini-lesson in a two-part series on the impact generative AI tools such as ChatGPT and DALL-E have on education.

Students in classroom work on their laptops.

Mini-Lesson

This is the second mini-lesson in a two-part series on the impact of generative AI tools such as ChatGPT and DALL-E on education.

There are more than 250 million migrants around the world, including more than 65 million refugees. Explore the policies, debates and human stories of immigration around the world.

Democracies across the globe are increasingly fragile. Examine the health of democracy, voting and elections, and the pivotal role civic participation of young people plays.

We are in the midst of a national and global reckoning on race and justice. Use these resources to understand the past and present of racial inequities in the United States and the ongoing struggle for justice today.

Hate is in the headlines around the world. These resources offer sensitive entry points to confront troubling violence and injustice, including terrorism, genocide, and attacks on human rights.

Additional Resources

Facing History & Ourselves is designed for educators who want to help students explore identity, think critically, grow emotionally, act ethically, and participate in civic life. It’s hard work, so we’ve developed some go-to professional learning opportunities to help you along the way.

Professional Learning

On-Demand

Virtual

Listen to #DisruptTexts founder Julia Torres about taking a critical lens to text selection in ELA classrooms.

Three students at table, working on a project

Professional Learning

On-Demand

Virtual

Issues of equity and education have long existed in our country and continue to manifest today. How can writing and the power of one's voice help us respond to these disparities? Listen to writer and educator, Dr. Clint Smith, where we hear his poetry and reflections on working for justice, equity, and civic agency in our schools.

Professional Learning

On-Demand

Virtual

Explore approaches to centering student voice, building authentic relationships and cultivating community with Molly Josephs, the creator of This Teenage Life, a youth-driven, story-sharing podcast that started as a school club.

More Like This View Upcoming Events View On-Demand Events

Most teachers are willing to tackle the difficult topics, but we need the tools.

— Gabriela Calderon-Espinal, Bay Shore, NY

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Current Events in the Classroom