by Katie Burton, Ph.D.
Education Coordinator, Connecticut Explored
Introduction
Students will learn about how women advocated for their right to vote leading to the the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution in 1920. The lesson plan uses the story "1920: Votes for Women" on Where I Live: Connecticut, an optional read-along video, and primary source documents to explore strategies for creating positive change. Activism by women of color is featured, including women who ran for office beginning in 1920.
Lesson Objective
and Materials
At the end of the lesson, students will
Be able to identify the importance of voting in a democratic society.
Be able to identify some of the prominent figures in the Connecticut women’s suffrage movement.
Be able to explain how Connecticut women’s suffrage activists advocated for the right to vote.
Recognize the impact of activism to produce change.
Students will be able to explain strategies for analyzing primary source documents.
Online article: “1920: Votes for Women!”
Handout: Primary source document analysis – included in the lesson plan PDF
Optional Video: Reading/presentation/discussion of “1920: Votes for Women!”: https://youtu.be/j3VJck2g29c
Grade Level
3 - 6
Essential Questions
Why is voting important?
Who were some of the women who advocated for voting rights for women in Connecticut?
How did Connecticut women advocate for voting rights?
What was the outcome of the suffrage movement, and why did it matter?
What can primary source documents tell us about the past?
How can people advocate for positive change today?
Lesson Activity & Procedures
Introduce the lesson. Explain that we live in a democracy where people elect their leaders by voting, and that today in Connecticut, voting is a right – meaning it is guaranteed – for all U.S. citizens 18 and older who are not currently incarcerated for a felony. Let students know that today you’ll be talking about a time in history when women were not allowed to vote, and about how there were many people who worked to change that. Ask students to take two minutes to free write in response to the question: “Why is voting for our leaders important?”
Ask students to share their answers. Identify a key element to the lesson: everyone should have a chance to share their opinion/beliefs.
Read online article “1920: Votes for Women!” or watch the video. Lead students in discussion of reading/video.
What strategies did suffragists use to advocate for voting rights?
Why might those strategies be effective?
Who were some women who were suffragists? What did they do?
What is the 19th Amendment? Why does it matter?
Have you ever given a speech, or made a poster, or gone to a march? Or seen any of those things on TV? What activist strategies do you think work well?
Analyze primary source document – small group/class discussion.
Distribute Handout; in small groups of three or four students, ask students to examine the “Suffrage Gains Convert” document (found in the handout and in “1920: Votes for Women!” online article) and analyze it according to the steps on handout.
Reassemble the class and have groups share back. Discuss answers as a class.
Wrap up by reminding students that voting is an important right in our United States democracy, and suffragists worked hard and took risks to make sure that women got that right. Finally, identify that many people, in history and today, use activism to address problems and effect positive change.
Additional Resources
Find stories about women's suffrage in Connecticut at https://www.ctexplored.org/100th-anniversary-of-womens-suffrage/
Word Wall
Suffrage (noun): the right to vote in political elections
Advocate (verb): publicly recommend or support
Activism (noun): vigorous action or involvement as a way to achieve social and/or
political change
Protest (noun): a public demonstration or organized effort to show disapproval about something
Primary source (noun): a material created during a certain time period that provides evidence about what life was like during that time
State Standards Alignment
Grade 3
INQ 3–5.9 Use evidence to develop claims in response to compelling questions.
INQ 3–5.15 Draw on disciplinary concepts to explain the challenges people have faced and opportunities they have created, in addressing local, regional, and global problems at various times and places.
INQ 3–5.16 Explain different strategies and approaches students and others could take in working alone and together to address local, regional, and global problems, and predict possible results of their actions.
HIST 3.2 Compare life in specific historical time periods to life today.
HIST 3.3 Generate questions about individuals who have shaped significant historical changes and continuities.
HIST 3.8 Infer the intended audience and purpose of a historical source from information within the source itself.
HIST 3.9 Generate questions about multiple historical sources and their relationships to particular historical events and developments.
CIV 3.2 Explain how a democracy relies on people’s responsible participation, and draw implications for how individuals should participate.
CIV 3.6 Explain how rules and laws change society and how people change rules and laws.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.2 Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.7 Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text (e.g., where, when, why, and how key events occur).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.3.2 Determine the main ideas and supporting details of a text read aloud or information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.
Grade 4
INQ 3–5.15 Draw on disciplinary concepts to explain the challenges people have faced and opportunities they have created, in addressing local, regional, and global problems at various times and places.
INQ 3–5.16 Explain different strategies and approaches students and others could take in working alone and together to address local, regional, and global problems, and predict possible results of their actions.
HIST 4.1 Explain connections among historical contexts and people’s perspectives at the time. HIST 4.2 Explain probable causes and effects of events and developments.
CIV 4.1 Illustrate historical and contemporary means of changing society.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4.1 Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4.2 Determine the main idea of a text and explain how it is supported by key details; summarize the text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4.3 Explain events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text, including what happened and why, based on specific information in the text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.4.2 Paraphrase portions of a text read aloud or information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.
