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)
The 1968 East LA School Walkouts
Students learn about education, identity, and activism through an exploration of the East Los Angeles school walkouts, when thousands of students protested unequal educational opportunities for Mexican American students.
![John Ortiz, Mexican-American student leader at James A. Garfield High School, addressing assembled students during a walkout.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/1968_LAStudentWalkoutatGarfieldHigh_FH2169821.jpg?h=61a57aa7&itok=I40HzuJ5)
California Grape Workers’ Strike: 1965–66
Students explore the first year of the Delano grape strike, when grape workers in California's San Joaquin Valley went on strike to demand higher wages and better work conditions.
![Dolores Huerta and others hold up "Huelga" signs as part of the grape strike.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/1965_GrapeStrikeDelanoCalifornia_FH2121754.jpg?h=ae158943&itok=JphiCAwe)
The Hope and Fragility of Democracy in the United States
In this mini-lesson, students learn about the history of democratic and anti-democratic efforts in the United States and examine sources that illuminate this tension from Reconstruction through today.
Enacting Freedom
Students consider what it means to be free by learning about the choices and aspirations of freedpeople immediately after Emancipation.
![Black students standing outside in front of a clapboard school house](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Civil_Rights_1900_The_School_at_Pinehurst_Summerville_SC_FH2174932.jpg?h=539e276e&itok=BkLqdaXv)
The Legacies of Chinese Exclusion
Teach students about the Chinese Exclusions Act, an immigration law passed in 1882, and its lasting impact on attitudes toward citizenship and national identity in the United States today.
![The Legacies of Chinese Exclusion](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Chinese_Family1898_LOC_17886u_for_Web_or_Office_Use.jpg?h=6a263c61&itok=umnIvn5w)
Understanding #TakeaKnee and Athlete Activism
Explore the origin and legacy of the Take A Knee protest in the NFL, the significance of the more recent athlete boycotts, and the long history of athletes protesting racial injustice in the United States.
![Basketball Court with Athletes and American Flags.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-07/AP_20243625782990_fullres_Medium_res.jpg?h=c9f93661&itok=Od4NR1jZ)
Introducing and Dissecting the Writing Prompt
Students begin to understand and stake out a preliminary position in response to the assessment writing prompt.
![Facing History and Ourselves Bullying Summit September 29th 2012 in Los Angeles CA](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/111_Bully_Summit%2C_2012%2C_LA%2C_116.jpg?h=265e640d&itok=TnPmRLpp)
Introducing Evidence Logs
After learning about the Armenian Genocide, students reflect on the writing prompt a second time by adding a historical lense.
![Facing History and Ourselves Bullying Summit September 29th 2012 in Los Angeles CA.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-08/LosAngeles_Summit_2012_FH116200.jpeg?h=4997dc06&itok=1Eg7FyQv)