What Is Racial Literacy?
Racial literacy is the ability to read and discuss how race and racism shape history, institutions, and everyday life. This collection gathers more than 100 free resources that help grades 6-12 teachers build that skill with students, from ready-to-teach lesson plans to on-demand professional development webinars. Most resources connect to English language arts, social studies, and advisory settings, and each lists a recommended grade band.
Secondary students are already forming views about identity, fairness, and belonging. Racial literacy gives them the vocabulary and evidence to examine those views and to discuss race with accuracy rather than avoidance. For educators, that means clear lesson structure, primary sources, discussion prompts, and facilitation support that keep these conversations grounded.
Why Racial Literacy Belongs in Secondary Classrooms
Approaches like these have a growing research base. A Stanford study of San Francisco's ethnic studies program found that ninth-graders assigned to the course improved their attendance by 21 percentage points, their GPA by 1.4 grade points, and their credits earned by 23, and a 2021 follow-up study found that assignment to ethnic studies substantially increased high school graduation, attendance, and the probability of enrolling in college. A larger 2026 district study found gains in GPA and a roughly 27% reduction in course failures, with the strongest results for Black, Latinx, and academically vulnerable students. The resources here reflect the same culturally responsive approach those studies examined.
What You'll Find in This Collection
The resources are organized into themed sections that move from background knowledge to classroom application:
- Lesson plans on race, privilege, identity, and systemic inequality for grades 6-12
- Free webinars and book club conversations with authors and scholars, including Jason Reynolds, Jonathan Kozol, and Henry Louis Gates Jr.
- Blogs and articles on Black language, Black cuisine, and the history of Muslims in America
- Media and film-based lessons that build critical thinking and counter bias
- Current-events resources that connect racial literacy to the news students already follow
Looking for more? Pair this collection with Teaching about Race and Racism, Black History Lesson Plans and Resources, or Social Justice Lesson Plans for K-12 Classrooms.
