More external lesson added

Sharon Pennock
Tue, 01 Sep 2026 20:01:35 +0000

We’ve continued reviewing lessons written by other organizations and are happy to share a new batch with you now.

The Day the World Heard: Kent State and Gallaudet University - 7th - 12th grade

Students are introduced to two important events in US history: the Kent State Massacre and the Deaf President Now protest. Through primary sources and discussion, they compare and contrast the two events, examine the First Amendment, and consider what it means to make your voice heard.

Gaelynn Lea Music Lessons by YourClassical Class Notes / Minnesota Public Radio - K - 8th grade

Gaelynn Lea is a violinist, singer, and songwriter from Duluth, Minnesota. These free resources use her music and practice as the basis for K-8 music lessons on songwriting, instrument technique, and music technology.

PBS Learning Media - The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Curb-Cut Effect | Interactive Lesson - 6th - 12th grade

Students explore the history of curb cuts, from early disability rights advocacy in the 1940s through the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990, and examine how accessibility features designed for disabled people often benefit far broader communities. Through an interactive lesson and writing prompt, students consider how civic engagement by a specific group can shape policy in ways that serve everyone.

PBS Learning Media - Braille | Move to Include - 3rd - 12th grade

Students watch a short video introducing Braille as a tactile literacy system and learn how it works as a code of raised dots representing letters and words. Through background reading and discussion questions, students explore how Braille functions as a tool for access and consider how technology has expanded the ways blind, low-vision, and deaf-blind people interact with written language.

CommonLit - The Girl Who Listened with Her Feet - 5th grade

Students read an informational text about Laura Bridgman, the first deaf-blind person to learn to read and write a language, and explore how she developed her own ways of communicating and learning. Through reading and discussion, students consider how access to education shapes what people are able to do, and what assumptions about disability can get in the way of that access.

CommonLit - A Touch of Genius - 5th grade

Students read a biographical profile of Michael Naranjo, a Tewa sculptor who is blind, and explore how his artistic practice is rooted in memory, touch, and a lifelong connection to his community and culture. Through reading and discussion, students consider what it means to express yourself through art and how Naranjo's work connects to his identity as a Native American artist and Vietnam veteran.

CommonLit - Identifying Main Ideas and Central Idea with "College Students with Disabilities Are Too Often Excluded" - 11th grade

Students learn about the experiences of people with disabilities in college and the actions that can be taken to create more inclusive campuses. Students practice finding the main ideas of each paragraph or section and then the article's overall central idea.

CommonLit - On Disability Rights: Highlights from Speeches by Ed Roberts - 10th grade

Students read a compilation of speeches by Ed Roberts, a disability rights activist and organizer, and examine how he uses personal narrative, humor, and argument to make the case for disabled people's autonomy, access, and civil rights. Through reading and discussion, students analyze Roberts' rhetorical choices and consider how individuals and communities build power to challenge systemic barriers.