Pocahontas married John Rolfe on this date in 1614.

Students read "The Chieftan's Daughter" and are shown the fresco that tells the legend of Pocahontas. A class discussion follows regarding fact and fiction and students research Pocahontas.

Grades   7 – 12

Jazz and blues singer Billie Holiday was born in 1915.

Students listen to Holiday's song "Strange Fruit" and identify powerful and descriptive images for a mini-lesson on tone and about the lynchings in the South during this time.

Grades   9 – 12

In 1939, Marian Anderson was denied permission to sing at Constitution Hall.

Students view Eleanor Roosevelt's resignation letter to the DAR in response to Andersen being denied permission to sing. Students write a letter to a newspaper editor about social injustice.

Grades   7 – 12

The Statute of Anne, an influential copyright law, went into effect in 1710.

Student groups do web research, compile their information, and make a booklet on copyright rules for the class to use as a reference.

Grades   6 – 12

Sharon Draper was born on this day in 1952.

Students read a book from one of Draper's trilogies and then meet to discuss their book with students have read the other two books.

Grades   5 – 12