Warm Up: Introduction to the Black Freedom Movement and Rosa Parks’ Activism (5 minutes)

1. The teacher will introduce the lesson by defining the Black Freedom Movement:
   1. The Black Freedom Movement is a distinct era in the African American struggle for civil and human rights that began in the mid-1940s with a surge in public protest and ended in the mid-1970s with a shift in emphasis toward electoral politics. It encompasses two of the most unique and enduring periods of Black activism. The first is the civil rights movement, which resulted in the elimination of Jim Crow laws in the South and the upending of Jim Crow customs in the North. The second is the Black Power movement, which not only expanded on the gains of the civil rights movement but also elevated African American racial consciousness, forever changing what it meant to be Black^. Reference: Hasan Kwame Jeffries, “Black Freedom Movement,” in Erica R. Edwards, Roderick A. Ferguson, and Jeffrey O.G. Ogbar, Keywords for African American Studies (New York: NYU Press, 2018), 21.
   2. Explain that the Black Freedom Movement represents a continuum of Black protest that is both chronologically and thematically wider and deeper than traditional narratives of the Civil Rights Movement with which students may be familiar.
   3. Explain that today students will study Rosa Parks’ role in the Black Freedom Movement in order to widen and deepen their understanding of her civil rights activism. They will also consider how her activism changed over time. Today’s lesson should complicate and might challenge their prior knowledge of Rosa Parks.

Activity: Evolving Hypothesis and Primary Source Analysis (40 minutes)

1. Initial Hypothesis (10 minutes)
   1. Show students the introduction video to the Library of Congress exhibit “Rosa Parks: In Her Own Words.”
   2. Ask students to develop an initial hypothesis of 1-2 sentences that answers the focus question: How did Rosa Parks' activism evolve during the Black Freedom Movement? The hypothesis should include an argument and a line of reasoning. Encourage students to consider the term “evolve,” which implies that Parks’ activism extended beyond the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
2. Primary Source Analysis Rotation (20 minutes)
   1. Break students into groups of 4.
   2. Give each group a set of primary sources created from the Library of Congress exhibit “Rosa Parks: In Her Own Words.” 2 primary source sets are attached to the lesson. **Please note: sources include references to racial and sexual violence.
   3. Ask groups to distribute one source to each student.
   4. Rotations
      1. Round 1: students receive 3 minutes to analyze their initial primary source. Students should apply the Library of Congress analysis tool of Observe- Reflect-Question to their source and write in the margins around the source.
      2. Rounds 2-4: students rotate their primary sources to the right and receive 3 minutes to analyze their next source. Students should continue to apply the Observe-Reflect-Question tool. They may add elaboration (adding a detail), a new point (adding something that was missing), or a connection (adding a relationship to a previous note) (Project Zero +1 Routine).
      3. Rotate until every group member has analyzed each source.
      4. Allow a few minutes for students to review group analysis notes after completing rotations.
3. Evolving Hypothesis (10 minutes)
   1. Ask students to review their initial hypotheses for the focus question How did Rosa Parks' activism evolve during the Black Freedom Movement?
   2. Ask students to consider what adjustments are needed for their initial hypotheses based on the primary sources they analyzed.
      1. Did the initial hypothesis fully reflect Rosa Parks’ contributions to the Black Freedom Movement?
      2. Did the initial hypothesis fully reflect how Rosa Parks’ contributions to the Black Freedom Movement changed over time?
   3. Ask students to modify their hypotheses based on the primary source analysis.
   4. Ask a few students to share their initial and final hypotheses. Compare and contrast hypotheses. An important historical understanding that should emerge is Rosa Parks’ legacy as a lifelong activist differs from her traditional portrayal in narratives of the Civil Rights Movement.