Best African American History Apps and Websites

Treasure trove of lesson resources will benefit from adaptation

Bottom Line: For teachers with time to sift through and adapt materials, PBS LearningMedia has a lot to offer with some highly useful support materials.

Comprehensive site collects resources on authors and books in one place

Bottom Line: This rich database of literary resources is a must-bookmark for teachers looking to extend learning experiences with books and their authors.

Thought-provoking classroom resources support diversity education

Bottom Line: It's an invaluable teacher tool to help reduce prejudice and encourage tolerance in schools, as well as within society as a whole.

Dig into famed library's collection of research goodies

Bottom Line: The Library of Congress delivers the best of America's past and present, and with teacher support it could be a reliable research resource for students.

Powerful stories and media centralize African-American history

Bottom Line: While there aren't ready-to-go curricular materials, this modern, well-curated, and well-contextualized digital collection is sure to inspire compelling lessons.

Extensive humanities resource offers deep well of great content

Bottom Line: The National Endowment for the Humanities has put together an outstanding place for art, history, language, and literature.

Thorough but dry resource helps put historic events in context

Bottom Line: Although most information focuses specifically on Alabama, students gain a thorough understanding of key players, places, and events of the entire Civil Rights Movement.

Critically acclaimed documentaries repackaged meaningfully for classrooms

Bottom Line: Top-notch documentary clips offer opportunities to expand students' perspectives, but some lesson materials might be underwhelming.

Access U.S. history with treasure trove of docs, genealogy, and other resources

Bottom Line: NARA's website wasn't designed for kids, but they can definitely use it to research and learn about history, genealogy, and the U.S. population and government.

Engrossing images, audio reveal the untold stories of Jefferson's estate

Bottom Line: A great invitation to conversation for your history or social studies class, but be sure to build out your activities.

Organized digital library features piles of useful primary resources

Bottom Line: DPLA is at the top of the list of high-grade, online primary source collections if teachers make effective use of what's on offer.

A wealth of resources explore racism, prejudice, and anti-Semitism

Bottom Line: These valuable materials empower students to understand and address difficult ethical choices -- past and present.

Stellar history website, gateway to cool PD and scholarship

Bottom Line: In class, a good resource for U.S. history; beyond, a great website for free teacher PD and some great in-depth exploration of primary sources.

Well-curated art and history site inspires curious learning

Bottom Line: A beautifully presented one-stop shop for compellingly curated and contextualized art, history, and culture resources, but it's lacking educator supports.

Resources, lessons help teach a more inclusive version of U.S. history

Bottom Line: Free downloadable resources encourage critical thinking and active learning in search of a more accurate picture of American history.

High-quality, document-based lessons spark stellar historical inquiry

Bottom Line: A gold mine of cross-curricular literacy lessons that encourage sound, research-backed strategies for reading, analysis, and critical thinking.

Vast collection of primary source documents a solid starting point

Bottom Line: A great place to begin when you want to make history feel more real, but "begin" is the operative word; plan on creating your own scaffolding.

Deep, complex database is challenging but a peerless research tool

Bottom Line: This is a highly academic site for better and for worse; it's filled with deep, research-backed resources and primary sources but is intimidating without clear guidance.

Striking resources can add depth, rigor to lessons on slavery's legacy

Bottom Line: These high-level materials will add depth and context to lessons about slavery, but they need scaffolding to connect with students.