Analysis of the timelines below can help students to locate important events in Disability History in a larger historical framework. Timelines also offer opportunities to explore the impacts of activism, policy, and social change. Disability History timelines work best when students are also gaining contextual background knowledge about larger social forces and events. Thus these particular…

The Japanese attack on December 7, 1941 at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii forever altered the course of WWII. Although the attack left the American fleet crippled, it failed to strike a fatal blow. From the death and destruction of December 7th rose a nation dedicated to rebuilding and avenging the loss of Pearl Harbor. Using this primary source set students will be able to evaluate how the attack…

In this lesson, students learn about the Social Security Act and its provisions to care for the elderly, the unemployed, mothers and children, and children and adults with disabilities. Students will examine several primary source images and documents related to the New Deal era, using a primary source analysis organizer. The lesson offers options in how students can show their learning. This…

The following primary source set, created using materials from the Library of Congress, contains a vast array of sources focused on Disability History in the United States. Disability has been interwoven into America’s history since the country’s inception through letters, images, newspapers, diaries and other primary sources. The set provides a comprehensive look into a wide range of Library…

The massive influx of immigrants to the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries shaped American society both at the time and indefinitely. The following primary source set explores materials organized for the Collaborative for Educational Services and by the Library of Congress. The Library of Congress has crafted a vast number of primary source sets, interactive presentations…