Teach students about what gossip and rumors are and the impact they have on others, especially those identity groups which may be more vulnerable to and marginalized by rumors and gossip.
9 Ideas for Teaching Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month
Lesson Plan
Use these activities to bring the history, culture and experience of the AAPI (Asian American Pacific Islander) people and community to your classroom.
GRADE LEVEL: Elementary School, Middle School, High School
COMMON CORE STANDARDS: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, Language
SEL STANDARDS*: Self-Awareness, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills, Responsible Decision Making Using Video and Film in the Classroom
Short evocative videos and films can be a great way to engage young people in conversations about identity, diversity, bias and social justice. This lesson plan includes compelling and powerful, short films…
GRADE LEVEL: Middle School, High School
COMMON CORE STANDARDS: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, Language
SEL STANDARDS*: Self-Awareness, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills, Responsible Decision-Making What is hair discrimination and how does it impact individuals and society?
For centuries, Black people, especially Black women and girls, have faced hair discrimination. Recent studies indicate that Black girls as young as five years old experience hair…
GRADE LEVEL: High School
COMMON CORE STANDARDS: Reading, Writing, Speaking & Listening, Language
SEL STANDARDS*: Self-Awareness, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills, Responsible Decision-Making What is media bias and how can we spot it while consuming news?
The media is a large and influential part of our everyday lives. Through radio, podcasts, television, news, images, video and the internet, there is bias in all aspects of media—sometimes subtle and sometimes overt…
GRADE LEVEL: Middle School, High School
COMMON CORE STANDARDS: Reading, Writing, Speaking & Listening, Language
SEL STANDARDS*: Self-Awareness, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills, Responsible Decision-Making To what extent do the Brian Flores lawsuit, the Rooney Rule, and other historical issues reveal racial discrimination in the N.F.L.?
In February 2022, former N.F.L. (National Football League) Miami Dolphins Head Coach Brian Flores filed a class action lawsuit against the…
Will New State Laws about Vote Counting Overrule the Will of the People?
Lesson Plan
GRADE LEVEL: High School
COMMON CORE STANDARDS: Reading, Writing, Speaking & Listening, Language
SEL STANDARDS*: Self Awareness, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills, Responsible Decision-Making How do we ensure that election outcomes reflect the will of the people?
The freedom to vote and the tallying of accurate and fair vote counts are at the heart of U.S. democracy. In recent years, there has been a great deal of concern and attention paid to the first part…
Why are Children’s and Young Adult Books Challenged and Banned?
Lesson Plan
GRADE LEVEL: Middle School
COMMON CORE STANDARDS: Reading, Speaking and Listening, Language
SEL STANDARDS*: Self-Awareness, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills, Responsible Decision-Making What are Reasons and Explanations for Challenging and Banning Books?
Challenging and banning books goes back centuries. In recent times, children’s and young adult books have been challenged and banned. The reasons and explanations are many and varied and include profanity, “values,…
Don't Let Hate Ruin the Fun: Youth and Online Games
Lesson Plan
GRADE LEVEL: Middle School, High School
COMMON CORE STANDARDS: Reading, Writing, Speaking & Listening, Language
SEL STANDARDS*: Self-Awareness, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills, Responsible Decision-Making What can we do about hate and harassment taking place in online games?
Video games are widely used and enjoyed by adults and young people alike. In fact, of all American adults, 67% play video games and among young people under age 18, 76% play video games. In ADL’s…
What is the Soul Cap and Why Was it Rejected for Olympic Use?
Lesson Plan
GRADE LEVEL: Middle School
COMMON CORE STANDARDS: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, Language
SEL STANDARDS*: Self-Awareness, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills, Responsible Decision-Making What does the FINA ban of the soul cap in the Olympics say about inclusivity and representation, especially in competitive swimming?
The “Soul Cap,” invented in England by two friends, Michael Chapman and Toks Ahmed-Salawudeen, provides Black swimmers with a…
Civics Lesson
GRADE LEVEL: High School What is privilege? How does privilege impact the criminal justice system?
On August 9, 2014, Michael Brown, an unarmed 18-year-old Black teenager, was shot and killed by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri. The officer was not indicted. The story captured the attention of the nation and the media, and in many ways became the beginning of the Black Lives Matter movement. Many stories like this occurred in the following years and continued…
The Future of Policing in the U.S.: Reform, Transform or Abolish?
Lesson Plan
GRADE LEVEL: High School
COMMON CORE STANDARDS: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, Language
SEL STANDARDS*: Self-Awareness, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills, Responsible Decision-Making In May 2020, George Floyd was killed by then Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who kneeled on Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes, while Floyd pleaded for his life, continually stating that he could not breathe. The killing was recorded on video by a bystander and the…
Direct to Student Activity
GRADE LEVEL: Middle School, High School In December of 2019, cases of pneumonia from an unknown cause were treated by Chinese authorities in Wuhan, China. Those cases, which are now known to have been caused by the coronavirus, or COVID-19, were the first documented cases of a pandemic. The coronavirus has spread to at least 147 countries since then. The first case in the United States was found in Washington State, on January 21st, 2020. Since then,…
Why are States Trying to Ban Transgender Student Athletes?
Lesson Plan
Introducing Bills to Limit Transgender Athletes from Playing Sports
In 2020, twenty bills in eighteen states were introduced by state legislatures to limit athletes who are transgender from competing on sports teams. Only Idaho was successful in passing such a law. By the end of January 2021, these bills began to gain momentum again, with states once again introducing bills to limit athletes who are transgender from competing on sports teams. If the bills pass, these students would be…
Civics Lesson
GRADE LEVEL: High School How Were Youth Involved in the Civil Rights Movement?
Throughout history, young people have stepped up and into leadership roles during different civil rights and social movements. This was never more evident than in the Civil Rights Movement, where young people were on the frontlines of the Montgomery bus boycotts, Freedom Rides and sit-ins. Given that student activism is on the rise again across the U.S., understanding how those young voices…
Major League Baseball and the Negro Leagues: Correcting an Injustice
Lesson Plan
GRADE LEVEL: Middle School, High School
COMMON CORE STANDARDS: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, Language
SEL STANDARDS*: Self-Awareness, Social Awareness, Responsible Decision-Making Baseball and Segregation
In December 2020, Major League Baseball (MLB) announced that they will correct a longtime injustice in the game’s history by officially elevating the Negro Leagues (of 1920-1948) to “Major League” status. For historical context, in the…