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Standards-based curricula accompany and video modules Independent Lens films on a broad range of topics including immigration, civil rights, political cartoons, women’s rights, religion and more.



Video Modules

WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT

Four compelling documentaries address global issues and local concerns through personal stories of women's empowerment and leadership around the world. Meet an indigenous Bolivian leader fighting for labor rights; a young Israeli Arab karate champion with feminist ideas; three Egyptian women working for fair elections; and a Kenyan woman leading a nationwide environmental movement. Lesson plans and video modules encourage students to learn and understand international struggles and take an active role in addressing local concerns.

Lessons are directed toward high school and college students.
Subject areas: Social Studies, Global Studies, Civics, Economics, Government, Political Science, Sociology, World History, Language Arts, Geography
Find out more >>


African American man, filmmaker Byron Hurt’s image is layered over of a turntable with a hand on the vinyl “scratching” the record
Video Modules

HIP-HOP: Beyond Beats and Rhymes

A groundbreaking documentary that examines representations of manhood, sexism, and homophobia in hip-hop culture. It is a “loving critique” of certain disturbing developments in rap music culture from the point of view of a fan who challenges the art form’s representations of masculinity.

Lessons are directed toward high school and college students.
Subject areas: language arts, social studies, history, civics
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Point of view is over the shoulder of a woman in Muslim headscarf as she looks through a video camera lens at a child and woman in full burka sitting against a green wall

AFGHANISTAN UNVEILED
These two lessons use AFGHANISTAN UNVEILED and several Web sites to explore women’s issues including the struggle to survive in post-war Afghanistan, the progress being made to secure the rights of women and some of the challenges that slow the process.

Lessons are directed toward grades 7 through 12.
Subject areas: history, English, women’s studies
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Four black men, the Greensboro Four, dressed in suits and jackets, walk down the sidewalk on February 1, 1960

FEBRUARY ONE: The Story of the Greensboro Four
These two lessons examine how the Greensboro, North Carolina sit-ins were part of a tradition of protests that included nonviolent approaches and music as a means of publicizing injustice. Students will also examine a few of the many ways in which African Americans were treated unfairly under Jim Crow, and analyze methods of nonviolent protest.

Lessons are directed toward grades 7 through 12
Subject areas: language arts, social studies, history, civics
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Two men in suits, one older and one younger, stand in the middle of a suburban block holding black briefcases, a wide sky behind them

Video Modules

KNOCKING
KNOCKING opens the door on Jehovah's Witnesses. They are moral conservatives who stay out of politics and the Culture War, but they won a record number of court cases expanding freedom for everyone. They refuse blood transfusions on religious grounds, but they embrace the science behind bloodless surgery. In Nazi Germany, they could fight for Hitler or go to the concentration camps. They chose the camps. Following two families who stand firm for their controversial and misunderstood Christian faith, KNOCKING reveals how one unlikely religion helped to shape history beyond the doorstep.

Lessons are directed toward high school and college students.
Subject areas: social studies, history and civics, human/civil rights, religion, theology, ethics, sociology, political science, anthropology
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Three black students, in graduation caps and gowns, smile for the camera; a young man in blue and two young women in yellow

THE NEW AMERICANS
This site offers 11 lesson plans that address varied historic and modern day immigration issues. Lesson plans give students hands-on opportunities to grasp the essence of immigration to the United States, from analyzing factual data to conducting oral histories of first or second generation immigrants.

The 11 lessons are directed toward grades 7 through 12.
Subject areas: language arts, U.S. and world history, social studies, civics, mathematics, behavioral studies, humanities, global connections

The New Americans Series Guide and Activity Kit for higher education settings, including ESOL and professional development, is available through the Community Connections Project at itvs.org.

The Immigration Myths and Realities Quiz offers multiple choice questions regarding immigration and its effects on American society.
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A young Cambodian man stares into the camera; a simple box-like house stands in a water-filled field behind him

Video Modules

SENTENCED HOME
Putting a human face on controversial immigration policy, SENTENCED HOME follows three young Cambodian Americans through the deportation process. Raised in inner city Seattle, they pay an unbearable price for mistakes they made as teenagers. Caught between their tragic pasts and an uncertain future, each young man confronts a legal system that offers no second chances.

Lessons are directed toward high school and college students.
Subject areas: social studies, history and civics, human/civil rights, new immigrants and refugees (past and present), personal stories, Asia, culture clash, family, men, war
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Photo of a young Dr. Seuss, Theodor Geisel, in a suit jacket, drawing sketches of his characters

THE POLITICAL DR. SEUSS
These lessons examine how the famed children's author was influenced by the political and social issues of the day, including racism, injustice and especially World War II. Students will also examine how important ideas and themes are addressed in their own favorite books and analyze political cartoons, past and present.

Lessons are directed toward grades 7 through 12.
Subject areas: language arts, social studies, art, civics
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A diverse group of women, circa 1977, march together holding American flags

SISTERS OF ‘77
These two lessons allow students to deepen their understanding of the issues addressed by the women's movement and some of the general issues that affect women and girls today. While they address themes that are clearly related to women and girls, boys will also benefit from these lessons and should be encouraged to participate.

Lessons are directed toward grades 9 through 12.
Subject areas: language arts, social studies, history, civics
View lesson plans >>


A collage of campaign buttons on a red background, promoting democracy and
displaying images from the films Iron Ladies of Liberia and Please Vote for
Me, as well as images from Vote Democracy campaign events.
Video Modules

VOTE DEMOCRACY!
PLEASE VOTE FOR ME and IRON LADIES OF LIBERIA offer thought-provoking perspectives on the changing nature of democracy across the globe. As the featured films in the VOTE DEMOCRACY! educator guide and video modules, students and teachers will find new ways to explore democracy abroad, elections, gender and media literacy through class discussions, activities and home work assignments.

Lessons are directed toward high school and college students.
Subject areas: language arts, social studies, history, civics
Find out more >>


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