The Delaware Historical Society is recruiting teachers for a pilot program.
'Liberty in Our Grasp' is creating a lesson plans for teachers to use to offer a clearer view of the history of slavery in the First State.
“We’re working with representatives from The Hard History Project. And we are creating a database of scanned collections items that teachers will then be able to use in the classroom. And the collection is going to focus on our slavery collections (from 1759-1864),”said Rebecca Fay, the Delaware Historical Society’s directorof education. "
Fay says there is a need for this type of lesson plan in Delaware, and notes many teachers are telling her that students are asking to be taught about enslavement in Delaware, “There’s absolutely a need (for this kind of lesson plan); but there’s also a demand. People are asking for this kind of history, with current events and everything going on in the world today - this kind of history is in high demand. People want to know about this history, not only in Delaware,but nationwide.”
Fay says the program is modeled after a similar project at Cornell University called Freedom on the Move.
Fay says they’re recruiting a diverse group of teachers to work with its staff and The Hard History Project. They’ll use scanned materials from the Historical Society’s collection to develop new classroom strategies for teaching about enslavement in the First State.
Six teachers will be in the pilot group: two 3rd-5th grade teachers, two in 6th-8th grade and two in high school. Each will be paid a $1,000 stipend.
The deadline for applications is Thursday, April 15.
The project kicks off May 25, with the hope of having lesson plans ready this fall.
