Introduce students to Mary McLeod Bethune and her achievements with a time line activity. Working independently, have students use textbooks and the Internet to locate key dates in Bethune's life from her birth in 1875 to her death in 1955. Have students put together the time line and include any relevant photographs, like a portrait of Bethune, to print off.
Students will learn about the historical context of Bethune's life through researching the status of African American women. Begin by printing off and distributing a copy of the "Setting the Stage" article on the National Park Service's website. Read together as a class. Students will then produce a diary entry imagining that they are an African American woman in the late 19th or early 20th century. Angles students may want to consider in their diary entry are access to education and employment and how is life different for white women. Encourage students to use their imaginations and share the diary entry when completed with the rest of the class.
Use an activity to get students thinking critically about Bethune's political legacy. Start by dividing students into groups of five and have each group log onto the National Council For Negro Women website, an organization founded by Bethune in 1935. Students will then research the history of the National Council for Negro Women and use the information on the website to find out about its influence on society today. Each group should compile its findings in a short presentation of five minutes to the rest of the class.
Mary McLeod Bethune addressed the issues faced by African American women of her time, such as education and politics, and a reflective activity will encourage students to think about the issues that they face today. Divide the class into pairs and ask each pair to make a list of issues that might affect their own lives. Ideas include student rights, curriculum concerns or bullying in schools. Have each pair present their list to the rest of the class and have students select a few items for discussion, focusing on the problems posed by the issue and how they might be resolved.