
Kate Harris
Social Studies teacher
Pittsburgh CAPA
Middle School (13 to 15 years old), High School (16 to 18 years old)
Teacher/Educator
Language Arts And English, Civics, Literature, Cultures, Economics, Social Studies, Geography, Writing, US History, Arts, Other
I'm a history-lover, art fan, and bookworm. I taught high school history (U.S. History and World Religions) for ten years in North Carolina, teach currently in Pittsburgh, PA, and am working to help teachers make the most of this new resource!
Kate Harris's collections
Slave Resistance
This collection includes items representing various forms of slave resistance and rebellion. Students should determine what kind of actions are pictured in the case of each item and use them to create a robust definition of slave resistance.
Guiding Questions:
What does it mean to "resist" slavery?
How did white slave-owners respond to such actions?
Is maintaining a distinct cultural heritage a form of resistance? Why or why not?
How do religion, art, and music encourage resistance?

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How did this happen? How do we keep it from happening again?
<p>My lesson is aimed at my AP Government class and will be divided into two parts. I will teach it towards the end of the year, as part of our unit on Civil Liberties. </p>
<p><strong>Part 1: How did this happen? </strong></p>
<p>What government actions led to the incarceration of Japanese-American citizens? What social conditions led to this? What connections do we see to today?</p>
<p>In this section, students will review the timeline of government actions that led to incarceration (including land acts, the ABC lists, the obfuscation of Exec Order 9066, and censorship of documentation/photography) and analyze images and press/propaganda that reflect existing social perceptions and anti-Asian sentiment. They will look for continuing patterns that emerged after 9/11 and more recently in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. </p>
<p><strong>Part 2: How do we keep it from happening again? </strong></p>
<p>How do people resist government power and policy? How do people shift from bystanders to allies?</p>
<p>In this section, students will visit stations to learn about different types and methods of resistance. These sections will include: Teachers/Librarians, Court Cases and Legal Advocates, Family to Family Help, and No-No Boys and the Heart Mountain Fair Play Committee. </p>
<p>At the end of this activity, students will work on a written reflection considering what they have learned from these examples of resistance.</p>
<p><em>This collection was made as part of a 2022 Landmarks of American
History and Culture workshop “Little Tokyo: How History Shapes a
Community Across Generations,” which has been made possible in part by a
major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy
demands wisdom. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations
expressed in this collection do not necessarily represent those of the
National Endowment for the Humanities or the views of the workshop
presenters/ host institution. #NEHLittleTokyo2022</em></p>

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World War II Lesson Plans and Interactives
<p>Collection of lesson plans and interactive websites related to World War II from the Smithsonian Institution.</p>

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Emmett Till: Confronting a Difficult History
This collection looks at how a tragic incident like the murder of Emmett Till is remembered in American history and national memory, as well as the significance of the decision of Till's mother, Mamie Mobley-Till, to share her son's loss publicly with an open-casket. Her actions created a galvanizing moment for the modern civil rights movement, heightening its significance and influence. The collection includes photographs, art work, and two newspaper articles about modern memorials to Till and other lynching victims.
Teachers might use the following images as the basis for silent discussion (see the Big Paper strategy from Facing History, included on the last resource) prior to a group conversation on the following questions:
-How did this case impact the civil rights movement?
-What were the effects of having an open casket at Till's funeral? How does media continue to impact the civil rights movement?
-How should Emmett Till be remembered and honored? How should his mother be remembered and honored?
-Should national memorials and museums include objects like Till's original casket or the soil from lynching sites? Why or why not?

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Red Caps and Pullman Porters
<p>This is a topical collection of items relating to red caps and Pullman porters, positions associated with train travel during the 20th century.</p><p>Teachers and students might use this collection to explore how these jobs reinforced the social status of African-Americans while at the same time ensuring steady, reliable work and the rise of an African-American middle class. They also might consider the impact of A. Philip Randolph and the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters. How did the development of this labor union later impact the Civil Rights movement?</p><p>tags: amtrak, railroad, trains, sleeping car, segregation</p>

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Negro League Baseball
<p>This is a topical collection of resources related to the Negro Leagues. Students and teachers can use this collection to supplement United States history lessons from after the Civil War through the mid 20th century. Sports often echoes social and cultural changes that take place in the nation and reflect the norms of the times. </p><p>tags: baseball, civil rights, African-Americans, Homestead Grays, Satchel Paige, Hank Aaron, Buck Leonard, Josh Gibson, Cuban Giants</p>

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Nixon in Political Cartoons
<p>This collection includes nine political cartoons about Richard Nixon's presidency and the Watergate scandal, as well as a cartoon analysis worksheet from the National Archives and Record Administration and a link to more cartoons about Nixon at the Library of Congress.</p><p>Teachers may use this collection in many ways: by assigning individual students or groups cartoons to analyze and share with the class via presentations, using the "jigsaw" format to create expert groups on each cartoon and then share information that way, or by creating a gallery walk of cartoons for students to work on individually. Students might even create their own political cartoon about the Nixon presidency, focusing on one of several topics: Watergate, ping-pong diplomacy, detente, visit to Moscow, environmental protections, the "southern strategy," busing, his relationship with the press, Vietnam, and more. </p>

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The Seventies: A Crisis of Confidence
<p>This is a teaching collection designed to support an inquiry into why the public lost confidence in the government in the 1970s (70s). Topics covered include the economic recession, the Nixon presidency and Watergate, the Ford presidency, the Carter presidency, the Iran hostage crisis, the oil embargo, the Kent State massacre and the Pentagon Papers.</p><p><br /><br /></p><p>Guiding questions:<br /></p><p>-Why did the U.S. public lose confidence in the presidency in the 1970s?<br /></p><p>-What impact did economic crises have on American lives?</p>

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Six Degrees of Separation: An APUSH Review Activity
Use this collection as a starting point for an AP United States History review activity that emphasizes connections and cause-and-effect. Students will copy the collection and add in four resources that form a chain of connection from one item to another (ending with six resources total). For each resource, they should add an annotation describing each of the events or items included, analyzing any important details in the resources themselves, and explaining how each connects to the next one.

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Archaeology Lessons
This collection includes lesson plans and artifact collections that would be useful for any K-12 study of archaeology. Brief descriptions of the resources are included where necessary, so that teachers can quickly determine what might be applicable to their own classrooms.

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Modern Migrations
This collection offers teaching resources that provide context for today's modern refugee crisis and the ethical and political questions raised by the migration of so many people at this time. <br /><br />
The resources in this collection ask students to consider what it means to migrate, the choice (or lack thereof) that is involved in moving from one place to another, and how the word "migrant" differs from "refugee." As students examine different examples or objects in this collection, ask them to consider the reasons behind the migration and how these particular migrants are percieved. Suggested questions for discussion are embedded on the information tabs throughout. <br /><br />

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Coffee Break
The best selection of coffee makers, urns, and mugs to be found in the Smithsonian collection. The best thing about waking up...

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