Current Issues

Classroom activities to engage students in learning about and discussing issues in the news

Students consider arguments over whether the filibuster should be abolished - and learn about its context and racist roots.

Black history isn't just for February. Here, some perspectives on teaching Black history - and suggested activities for any time of the year. 

Students explore the Biden-Harris administration's ambitious agenda and challenges, including impeachment hearings and a narrow Congressional majority. 

Students listen to and reflect on Amanda Gorman's powerful poem, which she recited at the 2021 presidential inauguration.

Students watch videos with Martin Luther King III and Rev. William Barber, co-founder of today’s Poor People’s Campaign, and discuss the continuing fight for economic and racial justice.

Here's a collection of online lessons and resources to help you talk with students about the January 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol.

Ideas and resources for you to consider as you prepare for conversations with elementary students about the January 6 insurrection and the issues surrounding it. 

Students learn about the history of policing in African American communities and connect it to the controversy over how police treated insurrectionists at the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

The election of Raphael Warnock to be Georgia's first Black senator was the result of decades of organizing by voting rights activists. Students discuss that history and the news.

Students reflect on the state of democracy in the U.S. in light of the insurrection at the Capitol, and discuss news stories about events during the first week of 2021.