Black Peoples of the USA

Civil Rights topic

Rationale

Image: http://members.aol.com/fttbic/kingmalcolm.jpg

History Skills

Visual & Textual Source Analysis Independent Research Structured Writing Describing & Analysing Features of Past

Societies Cause & Consequence Making Links – historical & contemporary

societies

Generic Concepts

Compare & Contrast Cause & Effect Seeing Links within & between topics Making Connections Significance

Where does the topic fit in? Black Peoples of the USA

1. This is a two-term topic, split over three separate, but complimentary, sections.

2. Each section has its’ own Objectives and Key Question. 3. Together, the three sections form a comprehensive study of the ‘story’ of

African-Americans. 4. The topic begins with Africa before Slavery, and ends in 2003 when three

Black actors won the three major Oscars. 5. The topic forms the entire study of the popular ‘Black Peoples of the

Americas’ Scheme of Work.

Where does this section fit in to the topic? Civil Rights

1. The section begins by Comparing & Contrasting the objectives and the methods of the two most famous post-WWII black leaders.

2. The students then move on to look at the two most famous cases of ‘desegregation’ in the 1950’s; the ‘Bus Boycott’ and Little Rock High School.

3. From these very positive events in the struggle for Civil Rights, the students move on to look at the case of Emmett Till and consider whether this case represented a move forwards, or a move backwards, for black civil rights in the USA.

4. The positive/negative theme then continues; students evaluate the causes and the consequences of the 1965 Watts Riots, before the final outcome assesses the living conditions at the start of the Twenty-First Century, again through visual source analysis.

5. The final lesson of the topic sees a ranking exercise, living graph and piece of structured writing to assess the situation for black people in the USA today. Students could also consider which was the most important ‘turning point’ in the struggle for civil rights.