Write the three Reconstruction amendments (the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments) on posters and post them around the classroom. Have students walk around the room and visit each poster three times. With each round, they should answer one of the following questions on each poster. Allow students to choose which question they answer for each round to better differentiate for individual needs and interests.

• Summarize the amendment. In your own words, what does it mean?
• Make a connection between the amendment and another historical event.
• Make a connection between the amendment and a current event or issue.
• To what extent has this amendment expanded access to civil rights for marginalized groups? Explain.
• What is missing from this amendment? What would you add if you were writing it?
• Respond to a peer’s comment on the poster.

Close by having a full class discussion on the following question:

• To what extent have legal precedents, including Constitutional amendments and Supreme Court cases, improved and/or undermined Black Americans’ access to civil rights in the United States?