Black‑and‑white photograph of a classroom filled with young students seated at wooden desks. Many students have one arm raised, as if responding to a question. In the foreground, one student sits at a desk facing the camera while others behind and to the sides raise their hands. The room includes a chalkboard or bulletin board along the back wall with several papers pinned up, a doorway at center-right, and large windows on the right side letting in light. Books and classroom materials are stacked near some desks, and the overall setting suggests an older, traditional schoolroom.

Lesson Plan

Separate & Unequal: Investigating the Road to Brown v. Board

Students explore Investigation Stations to better understand the pivotal Brown v. Board of Education case that recognized the human and civil rights of all students by declaring school segregation unconstitutional.

About this lesson

In 1896, Plessy v. Ferguson upheld the “separate but equal” doctrine, legalizing segregation. In reality, segregated schools were far from equal. In 1954, the NAACP, led by Thurgood Marshall, challenged this in Brown v. Board of Education, arguing that segregation harmed Black students and violated the 14th Amendment. The Supreme Court unanimously agreed, declaring school segregation unconstitutional. Although resistance to integration followed, the decision became a pivotal step in dismantling segregation nationwide.

Grade Level

  • Grade Level

    Fifth, Eighth

  • Subject

    Civics, Social Studies, US History

  • Duration

    60 minutes

  • Class Period Structure

    One 60-minute class period

  • Activities, Background Essay, Biographies, Glossary, Primary Sources, Rubric, Secondary Sources, Timeline

  • At the end of this lesson students will be able to:

    • Explain the significance of the Brown v. Board of Education
    • Analyze the case’s impact from multiple perspectives.

  • It will be helpful for students to be familiar with:

    • Plessy v. Ferguson
    • 14th Amendment
    • The U.S. Supreme Court
    • Jim Crow Laws

  • SS5H6 Describe the importance of key people, events, and developments between 1950-1975.

    1. Explain the key events and people of the Civil Rights movement: Brown v. Board of Education (1954), Montgomery Bus Boycott, the March on Washington, Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Act, and civil rights activities of Thurgood Marshall, Lyndon B. Johnson, Cesar Chavez, Rosa Parks, and Martin Luther King, Jr.

    SS8H11 Evaluate the role of Georgia in the modern civil rights movement.

    1. Explain Georgia’s response to Brown v. Board of Education including the 1956 flag and the Sibley Commission.

    SSCG7 Demonstrate knowledge of civil liberties and civil rights.

    1. Define civil liberties as protections against government actions (e.g., First Amendment).
    2. Define civil rights as equal protections for all people (e.g., Civil Rights Act, Brown v. Board of Education, etc.)

    CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.1  Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources.

    CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.2  Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source.

Supporting Materials

Primary Source

Glossary

  • Appeal –

    A legal proceeding by which a case is brought to ahigher court for review. 

  • Integration –

    The deliberate process of bringing together people ofdifferent racial or ethnic groups into shared public spaces, such as schools,housing, and other facilities, especially in response to laws or policies thatpreviously enforced their separation.

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