One Year Anniversary

Teach Reconstruction Report

One year ago, we released the first ever national report on the teaching of Reconstruction.

Throughout this month we’ll share stories about how the report has been featured in national media, was the core text for a teacher workshop at the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), has been introduced in state and national conferences, and has led educators and policy makers to rethink how they teach Reconstruction.

We start this week with teacher stories and a new lesson with primary documents for teaching Reconstruction.

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I Was Blown Away

When the Reconstruction report emerged, I was blown away. Together, the students and I radically altered the syllabus and we spent about three weeks on this period.

Students were invited to either write a letter to everyone in the department with an accompanying draft lesson plan or create a “persuasive poster” with additional information online via a QR code. Below is one of the posters. — Jane Regan, high school U.S. history teacher, Duxbury, Vermont

Enlightening

I’m able to use the Reconstruction report in my classroom and to enlighten myself and my colleagues.

This is great stuff. — Roberta West, middle school social studies teacher, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Changed My Perspective

When I came across this report, it was absolutely groundbreaking.

It changed my whole perspective of teaching Reconstruction. — Catie Hodges, U.S. history teacher, Burlington, Vermont

New Reconstruction Lesson

Dozens of Primary Documents

We developed a new lesson, Reconstructing the South: What Really Happened, drawing on primary documents and photos used in the report. The documents focus on five themes of Reconstruction: land, labor, suffrage, safety/protections, and the Confederate coalition. The lesson, which takes off from our popular Reconstructing the South, prompts students to analyze each document in conversation with others.

Sample document from the lesson: A land certificate.

Reach More Educators

Donate to the Reconstruction Campaign

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Your support can bring the Teach Reconstruction campaign resources to more educators and policy makers. In appreciation, you’ll receive a copy of the report.

Support the Teach Reconstruction Campaign

Events

DC Area Black Lives Matter at School Curriculum Fair

January 21, 2023

The annual D.C. Area Black Lives Matter at School Curriculum Fair, hosted by Teaching for Change’s D.C. Area Educators for Social Justice (DCAESJ), is online and open to educators nationally. Workshops relate to the principles of the National Black Lives Matter at School Week of Action and Year of Purpose.

Black Women Radicals

Confront the Red Scare

January 23, 2023

The right wing attacks people’s history teachers with Red Scare tactics — journals publish educators’ names on lists, educators are threatened with firing and physical intimidation.

That is why we invited historian Dayo Gore to share stories from history about how to fight back. Join us on Monday, January 23, to learn about Black women radicals active in the struggle during the Red Scare. This session is part of our Teach the Black Freedom Struggle online people’s history series.

All sessions are free. ASL interpretation and PD certificates are provided.

January 28–29, 2023

This two-day conference features Michelle Alexander, Kelly Lytle Hernandez, Khalil Gibran Muhammad, James Forman Jr., Chesa Boudin, Nicholas Lemann, Danny Glover, and many others. Topics include incarceration, Reconstruction, disenfranchisement, criminal justice reform, reparations, the school-to-prison pipeline, and more. It will be held online and in person at the MIT Media Lab in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Learn More and Register