Resource Library
Find compelling classroom resources, learn new teaching methods, meet standards, and make a difference in the lives of your students.
We are grateful to The Hammer Family Foundation for supporting the development of our on-demand learning and teaching resources.
![A group of high school students sit at desks in conversation.](/sites/default/files/styles/scale_480/public/2023-10/AdobeStock_254378868.jpg?itok=f6YAphey)
Introducing Our US History Curriculum Collection
Draw from this flexible curriculum collection as you plan any middle or high school US history course. Featuring units, C3-style inquiries, and case studies, the collection will help you explore themes of democracy and freedom with your students throughout the year.
Staging the Compelling Question
Students are introduced to the themes of the compelling question by responding to a quote from James Baldwin that sparks their thinking about the complexities and contradictions within US history.
![Photo of student listening to student-led teaching session](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-11/SL_190522_0700%20%281%29.jpg?h=4362216e&itok=glf-JB3p)
Supporting Question 1: The Nation’s Founding Ideals
Students explore the supporting question "What does the Declaration of Independence state about the nation’s founding ideals?"
![United States Declaration of Independence](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-11/master-rbc-rbc0001-2004-2004pe76546-001%20%281%29.jpg?h=4ec2df74&itok=6j3UL0rd)
Supporting Question 2: Founding Ideals Versus Realities
Students explore the supporting question "What contradictions existed between the ideals and the reality of the founding of the United States?"
![Photo shows a group of African American slaves posed around a horse-drawn cart, with a building in the background, at the Cassina Point plantation of James Hopkinson on Edisto Island, South Carolina.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-11/service-pnp-ppmsca-39500-39590v.jpg?h=fd5c1401&itok=K1ckwjtu)
Pre-Viewing: “Take This Giant Leap”: Preparing to Teach Schindler’s List
Students prepare for their study of Schindler's List by creating a contract establishing a thoughtful, respectful, and caring classroom community.
![Picture of woman taking a leap.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-12/2216_BW_K5856_05A.jpg?h=d5d02efb&itok=6b8h_xaO)
Pre-Viewing: Establishing the Historical Context for Schindler’s List
Students are introduced to the history of ideas, events, and decisions that shaped the world of Schindler’s List.
![Nazi officers stand guard and march at Wawel Castle in Krakow, Poland.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-09/1939_OfficersinKrakow_FH291610.jpg?h=e5734912&itok=SddlSAia)
Viewing: Watching Schindler’s List
Students experience a thoughtful viewing of Schindler's List by completing activities immediately before and after watching it that help them reflect and process reactions.
![Picture of two men look at a typewriter.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-12/2216_BW_K1109_16A.jpg?h=9d5da6b6&itok=MJJYxUaN)
Viewing: Oskar Schindler and the Making of a Rescuer
Students consider how Schindler's evolution from collaborator to rescuer adds to their thinking about the importance of individual choices.
![Picture of a man standing in front of people.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-12/2216_BW_K6038_13.jpg?h=7b9c7397&itok=wQkQEwl0)
Viewing: Analyzing the Art of Schindler’s List
Students analyze the film as a work of art and consider how Spielberg’s artistic choices foster emotional engagement with Holocaust history.
![Close up picture of a man.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-12/2216_BW_K6541_24A.jpg?h=6a83b953&itok=G6CAUU8K)
Post-Viewing: The Persecution of the Rohingya and the Persistence of Genocide
Students reflect on how the Holocaust can educate us about our responsibilities to confront genocide and injustice today.
![A woman and a baby are helped off a boat.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-07/2017_RohingyaRefugeesArrivingbyBoat_FH261964.jpg?h=eb24755d&itok=pei1Gszb)
Do You Take the Oath?
Students consider the choices and reasoning of individual Germans who stayed quiet or spoke up during the first few years of Nazi rule.
![German military recruits swear allegiance to Adolf Hitler.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Holocaust_SwearingAllegianceToHitler_FH229433.jpg?h=827069f2&itok=8JL6O5JQ)
Staging the Compelling Question
Students are introduced to the themes of the compelling question by exploring the concept of borders and learning about the Chinese Exclusion Act.
![Long border fence.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-01/Long_border_fence_FH2185286.jpg?h=56d0ca2e&itok=ouYCfOSu)