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.
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.
The Honoured Representative of Four Millions of Colored People (en español)
In Spanish, historian Douglas R. Egerton describes the life and political career of Mississippi politician Blanche K. Bruce, the first African American to serve a full six-year term in the United States Senate.
Klansmen Broke My Door Open (en español)
In Spanish, this reading contains the testimony of a victim of Ku Klux Klan violence.
Letter from Jourdon Anderson: A Freedman Writes His Former Master (en español)
In Spanish, Jourdon Anderson, a formerly enslaved person, responds to a request from his former master to return to work for him.
Names and Freedom (en español)
In Spanish, historians Douglas Egerton and Leon Litwack explain the process of freedpeople adopting new surnames.
A Nucleus of Ordinary Men (en español)
In Spanish, consider the role that secrecy and fear play in mob violence with W. E. B. Du Bois’ analysis of the Ku Klux Klan’s power.
Reconstructing Mississippi (en español)
In Spanish, learn about the accomplishments of the first interracial legislature in Mississippi from the account of John Roy Lynch, a freedman who served in the state’s House of Representatives.
A Right to the Land (en español)
In Spanish, Freedman Bayley Wyatt advocates for freedpeople's rights to their land at a public meeting.
Savannah Freedpeople Express Their Aspirations for Freedom (en español)
In Spanish, read an excerpt from the transcript of the Savannah Colloquy, a meeting between Union officials and Savannah’s Black community in January 1865.
South Carolina Freedpeople Demand Education (en español)
In Spanish, read an excerpt of the resolution passed at an 1865 convention of freedmen in South Carolina that demanded, among other rights, education.
What the Black Man Wants (en español)
In Spanish, Frederick Douglass demands voting rights and civil equality for Black Americans in an 1865 speech.
Statistics from the War (en español)
In Spanish, this reading features statistics on the number of deaths during the Civil War.