Evaluating the New Departure Strategy in the Fight for Women’s Suffrage

In this activity, students will evaluate the New Departure strategy of the women’s suffrage movement – the idea that the Constitution already guaranteed the right to vote for women, they just had to test it by voting – that was championed by the National Woman Suffrage Association. Students will analyze documents from Susan B. Anthony’s arrest and trial for voting in the 1872 election. They will answer questions as they work through the documents and evaluate the claim that the Fourteenth Amendment enfranchised women.

Women’s History in the United States

International Women’s Day has been commemorated across the world on March 8th since 1911 and every U.S. President has marked March as Women’s History Month since 1995. While the right to vote is a common topic of study in classrooms when examining women’s history, there are many more issues, perspectives, and accomplishments that require investigation across history, literature, and the arts to more fully appreciate and understand what women’s history in the U.S. encompasses. Our Teacher’s Guide provides compelling questions, lesson activities, resources for teaching about the intersection of place and history, and multimedia resources to integrate women’s perspectives and experiences throughout the school year.

19th Amendment: Women’s Right to Vote

In this learning module, students will trace the roots of the women’s rights movement, from early reform efforts in the 1800s to the ultimate decision to pursue voting rights. This unit explores the constitutional arguments over women’s suffrage, the historical context of the fight for suffrage over 70 years, and the tactics suffragists used to persuade state legislatures and the national government to recognize voting rights for women.

Women’s Suffrage and Equal Rights: Lesson Plans and Resources

On August 18, 1920, the 19th Amendment to the United State Constitution was ratified, thus granting women the right to vote. The ratification of this amendment was a result of the powerful, unwavering momentum of hundreds of women who first convened a women’s rights convention in Seneca Falls, New York. This collection provides free lessons that will help students learn more about this important time in history, highlighting important developments in not only Women’s Rights, but U.S. Civil Rights and other amendments to the Constitution.

Grades 7, 8, 9, 10, K, 11, 1, 12, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
Citizenship
Lesson Plans

Who Were the Foremothers of the Women’s Suffrage and Equality Movements?

This lesson looks at the women’s suffrage movement that grew out of the failing of the Continental Congress by “remembering the ladies” who are too often overlooked when teaching about the “foremothers” of the movements for suffrage and women’s equality in U.S. history. Grounded in the critical inquiry question “Who’s missing?” and in the interest of bringing more perspectives to whom the suffrage movement included, this resource will help to ensure that students learn about some of the lesser-known activists who, like Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott, and Susan B. Anthony, participated in the formative years of the women’s rights movement.

A Teacher’s Guide for Women’s History

The 116th U.S Congress that began its two-year session in January 2019 is historic for a few reasons. The Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, is not only the first woman to hold the position, but also is the first person to return to the Speaker’s office in the House since Sam Rayburn in 1955. On another historical note, 102 women were elected to the House of Representatives and 25 serve in the Senate — the most women ever elected to Congress. With next year marking one hundred years since ratification of the 19th Amendment, this Women’s History Month is about more than just looking back. In this resource, find a list of compelling questions, student activities, and resources and lesson ideas.

Grades 7-12
Citizenship
Modules (Teaching Unit)

Women’s Suffrage WebQuest

This WebQuest provides structure to a historical investigation of the Women’s Suffrage Movement by using the Historical Society of Pennsylvania’s primary sources. HSP’s online resources allow students and teachers to examine and analyze a variety of different historical documents including historical newspapers, books, pamphlets, manuscripts, photographs, maps, artwork, archived videos and audio records.

Grades 9-12
Citizenship
Primary Sources