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.

Search by keyword or browse our lesson bank—you can filter lessons by grade level, subject, topic or social justice domain. And remember, you can always create, save and share your own lessons with our Learning Plan Builder.

“[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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56 Lessons

Different Colors of Beauty

The overall goal of these lessons is to help students develop their racial or ethnic identities in a safe and open classroom environment. Each lesson capitalizes on a slightly different modality of learning. The lessons
Grade Level
Subject
Reading & Language Arts
Social Studies
SEL
Arts
ELL / ESL
Social Justice Domain
September 2, 2011

Looking Closely at Ourselves

In this lesson, students explore race and self-identity by creating self-portraits. The lesson aims to help students develop detailed observational skills and use these skills in relation to themselves and others. It also begins constructing a vocabulary that is crucial in helping build community and discuss some of the more challenging aspects of race and racial identity formation.
Grade Level
Subject
Reading & Language Arts
Arts
Social Justice Domain
September 1, 2011

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

The Resurgence of Hate

The purpose of this activity is to take a look at one of the most famous hate groups, try to understand why its members believe the way they do and learn what can be done to stop hate groups from returning to their historic levels of power and influence.
Grade Level
6-8
Social Justice Domain
January 11, 2010

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
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A map of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi with overlaid images of key state symbols and of people in community

Learning for Justice in the South

When it comes to investing in racial justice in education, we believe that the South is the best place to start. If you’re an educator, parent or caregiver, or community member living and working in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana or Mississippi, we’ll mail you a free introductory package of our resources when you join our community and subscribe to our magazine.

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