Unit- Reconstruction, Jim Crow & the KKK

This unit is composed of four highly engaging, primary based, interactive power- points that will have students critically explore the different levels at which discrimination & various forms of oppression existed in the era of the Reconstruction & the Jim Crow years. Students will analyze different forms of control that the ex-Confederate leaders implemented, such as; the Black Codes, literacy tests, poll taxes, Jim Crow laws, the formation of the Ku Klux Klan, and the inequality of land and resources, all of which served to prevent newly freed blacks from exercising their constitutional rights. Students are to determine at which level; individual, societal and institutional, do these measures of control apply. Monumental Supreme Court decisions of 'Plessy v. Ferguson' and 'Brown V. Board of Education' will be introduced. This unit is abundant with hands on, critical thinking activities that will engage students and provide a meaningful context from which to understand this era of time. This Reconstruction Unit can be downloaded in its entirety, or as individual lessons. A lesson plan is included for the entire unit.

Lesson One: Introduction to the Reconstruction Era

This lesson includes:
• One power-point presentation- 34 slides
• One Power-Point Student handout
• One primary source: Black Codes scenarios

Lesson Two: Reconstruction Era and the Black Codes

This lesson includes:
• One presentation- 38 slides
• One Power-Point Student handout
• Two primary sources: State Literacy Tests and the answer keys

Lesson Three: The Ku Klux Klan

This lesson includes:
• One power-point presentation- 21 slides
• One Power-Point Student handout
• One Primary Source Reading CP. Ellis ‘Why I Quit the Klan’
• One Student Handout: Questions for the Reading C.P. Ellis

Lesson Four: The Jim Crow Laws

This lesson includes:
• One power-point presentation- 20 slides
• One Power-Point Student handout
• Cause & Effect Chart handout
• Supplementary materials:
• 'A Tale of Two Schools' Reading, and 'Tale of Two Schools'
Reading Questions
• Movie Guide Questions-Freedom Song student handout