Page 4 - 1619 Project Curriculum

Questions to Consider After Exploring The 1619 Project:
Connecting to content:

1. What lines/images/moments stuck out to you, and why?

2. What surprised you? What do you want to know more about?

3. How do the authors connect mechanisms established to support slavery with modern
day practices in law, politics, business, culture and other aspects of American society?
4. How do the stories presented in The 1619 Project compare to the stories you grew up

hearing about the origins of slavery and its modern day impacts?
5. How does the origin story of the U.S. change if we mark the beginning of U.S. history

in 1619 instead of 1776?
6. What is national memory? How do we create it? How can we change it?

Connecting to structure:

1. What emotions do you feel when reading the pieces? What language most stuck out to
you from the project, and why?
2. How do the authors integrate research, primary source documents, testimonials from
experts and personal narratives into their pieces?

3. How do the pieces in The 1619 Project connect to each other? Where do you see
parallels and reflections?

4. Why do you think the work by the writers and artists featured in this issue were included
in The New York Times Magazine, a national news publication?

5. What is the role of journalism in shaping national memory?
Extension Activities and Lesson Plans:

For more ideas on how to support students’ explorations of this issue, click on the links below:

• Lesson Plan: Exploring “The Idea of America” by Nikole Hannah-Jones
• Activities to Extend Student Engagement with The 1619 Project

Educator Notes:

The questions and guides above can be used by students on their own, in small groups, or with

their entire class. For more ways to connect The 1619 Project to your classes, click here.

Common Core Standards:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.1
Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it;
cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the
text.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.2
Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key
supporting details and ideas.