Lessons
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These robust, ready-to-use classroom lessons offer breadth and depth, spanning essential social justice topics and reinforcing critical social emotional learning skills.

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“[Learning for Justice] provides me with the means to promote social justice, challenge bias, and engage students in discussions about diversity that would perhaps not happen otherwise.”

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94 Lessons

Defusing School Violence

This lesson explores the complexities of a situation in which immigrant students attend a school that is plagued with racially motivated violence. Working in small groups and as a class, students will discuss possible solutions and outcomes and apply their problem-solving skills to issues affecting their own school and community.
Grade Level
Subject
Reading & Language Arts
Social Studies
SEL
ELL / ESL
Social Justice Domain
April 1, 2010

Stereotypes and Tonto

This lesson revolves around Sherman Alexie’s poignant yet humorous and accessible essay, “I Hated Tonto (Still Do).” It explores the negative impact that stereotypes have on the self-worth of individuals and the damage that these stereotypes inflict on pride in one’s heritage. The reading is supported by a short video montage of clips from Western films. The clips offer students the opportunity to evaluate primary sources for bias and bigotry, as well as providing context for the protagonists’ experiences in the essay.
Grade Level
Social Justice Domain
March 17, 2010

Letters to the Editor

Students identify parts of arguments – using the ARE framework – by reading and evaluating letters to the editor. They identify weaknesses and strengths of letters, suggesting improvements to arguments used within the letters.
Grade Level
Social Justice Domain
December 4, 2009

Latinos and the Fourteenth Amendment: A Primary Document Activity

In this lesson, students will work in pairs and use expert reading strategies to analyze the Court’s ruling in Hernandez v. Texas. After participating in a carousel discussion, students will write a three-minute paper describing how the United States would be different if the Court had reached an alternate conclusion.
Grade Level
Subject
Reading & Language Arts
Social Studies
Civics
ELL / ESL
Social Justice Domain
September 14, 2009