Teaching Hard History

Latest Episodes:

Teaching Slavery through Children's Literature, Part 2 – w/ Debbie Reese Nov 08, 2019

Show notes

Each autumn, Thanksgiving brings a disturbing amount of inaccurate information and troubling myths into classrooms across the United States. Most students don't learn much about the history of Native nations—and even less about Indigenous peoples today. Dr. Debbie Reese explains what to look for and what to avoid (or teach with a critical lens) when selecting children's books by and about Indigenous people. She also recommends specific books to counter common misconceptions in your classroom.

And you can find a complete transcript on our website, along with resources to help you teach the hard history explored in this episode. Resources like these...

Resources and Readings

Teaching Tolerance, I Am the Blood of the Conqueror; I Am the Blood of the Conquered
Teaching Tolerance, Teaching Thanksgiving in a Socially Responsible Way
ReadWriteThink: Debbie Reese, Native Americans Today: Lesson Plan

Dr. Debbie Reese Editor/Publisher, American Indians in Children's Literature (AICL) | Twitter

References:

AICL, A critical look at O'Dell's Island of the Blue Dolphins
Andrea L. Rogers, Mary and the Trail of Tears: A Cherokee Removal Survival Story
Traci Sorell, We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga
The New York Times, Everything You Learned About Thanksgiving Is Wrong
Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States
Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz (adapted by Jean Mendoza and Debbie Reese), An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States for Young People
Carole Lindstrom, We Are Water Protectors
First People, How the Chipmunk Got his Stripes
National Indian Education Association, Policy Issues: Education
Leilani Sabzalian, Indigenous Studies in Education, University of Oregon
Sarah Shear, K-12 Teacher Resources
Cynthia Leitich Smith, Hearts Unbroken
National Indian Child Welfare Association, Indian Child Welfare Act
AICL, L. Frank Baum: Author of Wizard of Oz books and racist editorials on American Indians
Charlene Willing McManis, Indian No More
Teaching Hard History, Summary Objective 16 (Lincoln and the Dakota 38)
The New York Times, Lincoln and the Sioux
Eric Gansworth, Writer and Visual Artist: Books
Robbie Robertson, Testimony

And you'll find a full episode transcript on our site.

Teaching Slavery through Children's Literature, Part 1 – w/ Ebony Elizabeth Thomas Oct 25, 2019

Show notes

Children's books are often the primary way young students are exposed to the history of American slavery. But many books about slavery sugarcoat oppression. Professor Ebony Elizabeth Thomas examines what we should consider when it comes to how children's books portray African Americans and Indigenous people, their cultures and the effects of enslavement. She also explains why it's crucial to create "a balance of narratives" when selecting books about marginalized and underrepresented communities.

And you can find a complete transcript on our website, along with resources to help you teach the hard history explored in this episode. Resources like these...

Resources and Readings

Teaching Tolerance, "Lies My Bookshelf Told Me"
Teaching Tolerance, "Hercules' Daughter"
Rethinking Schools, Teaching for Black Lives

Ebony Elizabeth Thomas

University of Pennsylvania, Literacy, Culture, and International Education
Twitter, @Ebonyteach
The Dark Fantastic: Race and the Imagination from Harry Potter to the Hunger Games

References:

Virginia Hamilton, The House of Dies Drear
Walter Dean Myers, The Legend of Tariq
John Steptoe, Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters
Tonya Bolden, Searching for Sarah Rector
PBS Africans in America, Benjamin Banneker
National Archives, "To Thomas Jefferson from Benjamin Banneker, 1791"
Chinua Achebe (Wikipedia)
Imani Perry, May We Forever Stand:A History of the Black National Anthem
James Weldon Johnson (Wikipedia)
Teaching Tolerance, Black History Month: Teaching Beyond Slavery
N. K. Jemisin, How Long 'til Black Future Month?
Rudine S Bishop, Free Within Ourselves: The Development of African American Children's Literature
Glenda Armand, Love Twelve Miles Long
Ashley Bryan, Freedom Over Me: Eleven Slaves, Their Lives and Dreams
Teaching Tolerance, Meet Frederick Douglass
Detroit History, Frederick Douglass and John Brown Meeting Place
Manumission (Wikipedia)
Amma Asante film, Belle (Wikipedia)
Emily Jenkins, A Fine Dessert: Four Centuries, Four Families, One Delicious Treat
The New York Times, "Scholastic Halts Distribution of 'A Birthday Cake for George Washington'"
Erica Armstrong Dunbar, Never Caught: The Washingtons' Relentless Pursuit of Their Runaway Slave, Ona Judge

Hasan Kwame Jeffries

Ohio State University, African-American History
All Sides with Ann Fisher (radio), Black History Is American History
Ohio State University, United Black World Month

And you'll find a full episode transcript on our site.

In the Elementary Classroom – w/ Kate Shuster, Marian Dingle, Bria Wright, Marvin Reed and Alice Mitchell Oct 04, 2019

Show notes

For elementary teachers approaching the topic of slavery, it can be tempting to focus only on heroes and avoid explaining oppression. But teachers' omissions speak as loudly as what they choose to include. And what children learn in the early grades has broad consequences for the rest of their education. Dr. Kate Shuster guides us through the new Teaching Hard History K–5 framework from Teaching Tolerance. We also learn how four elementary teachers are beginning to use it in their classrooms.

And you can find a complete transcript on our website, along with resources to help you teach the hard history explored in this episode. Resources like these...

Resources and Readings

Teaching Tolerance magazine, "We Are Our Ancestors' Wildest Dreams"
James Madison's Montpelier, The Mere Distinction of Colour (exhibition)

Kate Shuster

Teaching Tolerance articles
Teaching Tolerance, Teaching the Movement
Teaching Hard History, K-5 Framework: Essential Knowledge

Bria Wright Fifth grade, Raleigh, North Carolina, Teaching Tolerance Advisory Board

References:

Teaching Hard History, K-5 Framework: Essential Knowledge #1
Beyoncé, Freedom feat. Kendrick Lamar (video)
Glenn E. Singleton, Courageous Conversations About Race: A Field Guide for Achieving Equity in Schools
Teaching Tolerance, My Multicultural Self

Marvin Reed Third grade, Berkeley, California, Teaching Tolerance Advisory Board

References:

Teaching Tolerance, Remembering My Four Friends 50 Years Later
Teaching Hard History, K-5 Framework: Essential Knowledge #5
Teaching Tolerance, The Story of César Chávez, Dolores Huerta and a Great Movement for Social Justice
Teaching Hard History, K-5 Framework: Essential Knowledge #7
English Language Arts (ELA) Standards
Teaching Tolerance: Lesson, The Little Rock Battle for School Integration
Sharon Draper, Fire from the Rock
Teaching Tolerance: Feature, Beyond the Little Rock Nine
Langston Hughes
Maya Angelou

Alice Mitchell Fifth grade, Boston, Massachusetts, Teaching Tolerance Advisory Board

References:

Teaching Hard History, K-5 Framework: Essential Knowledge #12
NEA, K-W-L Charts (Know, Want to Know, Learned)
Teaching Hard History, K-5 Framework: Essential Knowledge #14
Teaching Tolerance, Poster Warning Blacks in Boston: Kidnappers

Marian Dingle Fourth grade, Atlanta, Georgia, Teaching Tolerance Advisory Board

References:

Teaching Hard History, K-5 Framework: Essential Knowledge #15
The New York Times: Nikole Hannah-Jones, The 1619 Project
U.S. Supreme Court, Dred Scott v. Sandford
PBS/WGBH, Africans in America: The Middle Passage

And you'll find a full episode transcript on our site.

Indigenous Enslavement: Part 2 – w/ Christina Snyder Sep 20, 2019

Show notes

Understanding Indigenous enslavement expands our conception of slavery in what is now the United States. It spread across the entire continent and affected millions of people of different backgrounds. If we define slavery too narrowly, we can fail to see its persistence over time and even its modern-day permutations. Historian Christina Snyder examines the Civil War, Lincoln and emancipation with Indigenous people in mind.

And you can find a complete transcript on our website, along with resources to help you teach the hard history explored in this episode. Resources like these...

Resources and Readings

Teaching Hard History, K-5 Framework: Essential Knowledge #18
Teaching Hard History, 6-12 Framework: Objective #8
Teaching Hard History, 6-12 Framework: Objective #16
National Museum of the American Indian, Native Knowledge 360°
Minnesota Historical Society, Dakota War of 1862

Christina Snyder McCabe Greer Professor of History, Penn State University

References:

Teaching Tolerance, The Underground Railroad
U.S. Supreme Court, Worcester v. Georgia
Smithsonian film, The "Indian Problem"
Malinda Maynor Lowery, The Lumbee Indians: An American Struggle
University of Minnesota, Holocaust and Genocide Studies
Teaching Tolerance, Emancipation Proclamation
Time, How a Court Answered a Forgotten Question of Slavery's Legacy
WNET, Slaughterhouse Cases (1873)
Crooked Media podcast, This Land

And you'll find a full episode transcript on our site.

Indigenous Enslavement: Part 1 – w/ Christina Snyder Sep 06, 2019

Show notes

Millions of Indigenous people lived in North America before European colonial powers invaded. Along with an insatiable desire for free labor, Europeans brought systems of slavery that significantly differed from the historical practices of enslavement among Native nations. Historian Christina Snyder explains what happened when these worlds collided. European concepts of bondage transformed the way Native nations interacted, resulted in the enslavement and death of millions and sparked widespread resistance.

And you can find a complete transcript on our website, along with resources to help you teach the hard history explored in this episode. Resources like these...

Resources and Resources

Teaching Tolerance: Lesson, Rethinking Discovery
Teaching Tolerance: I am the Blood of the Conqueror, I am the Blood of the Conquered
Teaching Tolerance: Stowage on the Slave Ship Brooks, 1788
Wikipedia: Requerimiento: The Spanish Requirement of 1513

Christina Snyder McCabe Greer Professor of History, Penn State University

References:

Teaching Tolerance: Lesson, Precolumbian Native Peoples and Technology
Doctrine of Discovery
Teaching Tolerance: The Atlantic Slave Trade what too few textbooks told you
U.S. Supreme Court, Johnson V. M'Intosh
Wikipedia: Requerimiento: The Spanish Requirement of 1513
Mapping the Mississippian Shatter Zone: The Colonial Indian Slave Trade and Regional Instability in the American South
Sarah Shear, Social Studies & Multicultural Education, University of Washington-Bothell

The Hidden History of American Slavery – w/ Maureen Costello, Eduardo Díaz and Renée Gokey Aug 23, 2019

Show notes

American slavery shaped our modern world and most certainly the foundation and development of what is now the United States. The Smithsonian's Eduardo Díaz and Renée Gokey discuss the importance of learning about Indigenous enslavement. And Teaching Tolerance Director Maureen Costello explains all of the program's classroom resources available for teaching this history, including a first-of-its-kind K-5 framework.

And you can find a complete transcript on our website, along with resources to help you teach the hard history explored in this episode. Resources like these...

Resources and Readings

Maureen Costello Director, Teaching Tolerance

References:

Ira Berlin, The Making of African America: The Four Great Migrations
Ira Berlin, The Long Emancipation: The Demise of Slavery in the United States
Kathy Swan, Department of Curriculum and Instruction, University of Kentucky
National Council for History Education
Teaching Tolerance: Text, I Have a Dream by MLK
Teaching Tolerance: Webinar, Beyond the Bus: Teaching the Unseen Story of Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott
Teaching Tolerance: The Moment, Teaching the Truth about Confederate History

Eduardo Díaz Director, Smithsonian Latino Center

Renée Gokey Teacher Services Coordinator, National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) | Teaching Tolerance author

References:

Andrés Reséndez, The Other Slavery: The Uncovered Story of Indian Enslavement in America
NPR Genevieve Valentine, Horrors Pile Up Quietly In 'The Other Slavery'
Stephen Warren, The Worlds the Shawnees Made: Migration and Violence in Early America
Christopher Columbus, Extracts from Journal
Indigenous Peoples' Curriculum Day and Teach-In
Native Knowledge 360°
National Museum of African American History and Culture
NMAI exhibition, Taíno: Native Heritage and Identity in the Caribbean
NMAI exhibition, T.C. Cannon: At the Edge of America
Teaching Tolerance: Text, Indian Removal Act: Primary Documents in American History
National Museum of American History, Molina Family Latino Gallery

Hasan Kwame Jeffries Department of History, Ohio State University | Teaching Hard History author

References:

CARTER Center for K–12 Black History Education, Teaching Black History Conference
Carter Conference 2019, Teaching about the Beauty, Power, and Resistance of Black History
Dr. LaGarrett King, founding director CARTER Center, University of Missouri
James Madison's Montpelier (Ohio State University students' visit)
Ebony Elizabeth Thomas, Graduate School of Education, University of Pennsylvania
Barry Thomas, Director of Equity and Diversity, Omaha Public Schools

Wrap up: Questions from the Classroom – w/ Bethany Jay Feb 14, 2019

Show notes

Historian Bethany Jay returns – answering questions from educators across the country. Host Hasan Kwame Jeffries and the co-editor of Understanding and Teaching American Slavery confront teacher anxieties and counter misconceptions in our season finale.

Visit the show notes for this episode to find a complete transcript and a list of resources to help you teach the ideas explored by our guests.

Young Adult Trade Books – w/ John H. Bickford Feb 07, 2019

Show notes

From elementary to high school, YA literature can introduce fundamental themes and information about slavery, especially when paired with primary sources. John H. Bickford shows how to capitalize on the strengths and weaknesses of trade books about slavery.

And be sure to visit the show notes for this episode, for a complete transcript and resources to help you teach the ideas explored by our guests.

Sample Lessons – w/ Jordan Lanfair and Tamara Spears Jan 23, 2019

Show notes

Using the present to explore the past. Tamara Spears and Jordan Lanfair suggest a Social Studies unit about Resistance & Kanye West, and a set of English Language Arts lessons examining holidays—from Juneteenth to Columbus Day—to understand the legacy of American slavery.

Visit the show notes for this episode to find a complete transcript and a list of resources to help you teach the ideas explored by our guests.

Classroom Experiences – w/ Tamara Spears and Jordan Lanfair Jan 15, 2019

Show notes

How it's done. Tamara Spears teaches middle school Social Studies in New York and Jordan Lanfair is a high school English Language Arts teacher in Chicago. Each has been developing additional lessons about slavery for years. They share their experiences.

And be sure to visit the show notes for this episode, for a complete transcript and resources to help you teach the ideas explored by our guests.

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