Teacher Resources

7th-8th

Social Studies

Students will analyze the political process in Arkansas and examine rights and responsibilities of citizenship in Arkansas to determine who is eligible to vote, who is ineligible and why, and when women in Arkansas achieved the right to vote.

Arkansas, A Feminine Perspective*

History has traditionally been written and told from a male perspective. As gender and ethnic awareness has gradually influenced the study of history, research and writing from feminine perspectives have increased. In Arkansas's history women were not merely passive bystanders; they often took active roles in spite of lingering stereotypes. This lesson will alert students to the importance of women in the history of Arkansas. Students will be introduced to the struggle for women's rights in the U.S. first by reading a quote from Carrie Chapman Catt. They will then study and discuss gender attitudes and the roles of women in Arkansas from colonial times to the present. Finally, students will research specific Arkansas women and their contributions to our state’s history.

9th-12th

Social Studies

Arkansas Women's Suffrage (9-12)

Students will learn how women in Arkansas and the United States fought for equal rights by investigating the social, economic, and technological effects of World War I on women's suffrage.

Image of Ysobel the Suffragette political cartoon entitled "It's no trouble at all for her to make converts" by T.E. Powers, Arkansas Gazette, February 07, 1911. Copyright, 1911, by the New York Evening Journal Publishing Co.

Image of Ysobel the Suffragette political cartoon entitled "Her Cooking Answers all of John's Arguments" by T.E. Powers, Arkansas Gazette, February 07, 1911. Copyright, 1911, by the New York Evening Journal Publishing Co.

Image of Ysobel the Suffragette political cartoon by T.E. Powers, Arkansas Gazette, March 5, 1911. Copyright, 1911, by the New York Evening Journal Publishing Co.

Image of Ysobel the Suffragette political cartoon entitled "She wins the husband of an "Anti" over the cause," by T.E. Powers, Arkansas Gazette, March 6, 1911. Copyright, 1911, by the New York Evening Journal Publishing Co.

Votes for Women*

Students will analyze primary and secondary source information to learn about the struggles of women during the Women’s Suffrage Movement. Students will take this information and hold a rally to express their informed opinion on the subject. Students will place information within a graphic organizer or timeline to fully understand the steps towards accomplishing the 19th Amendment.

Civics and US Government

Ratification of the 19th Amendment

Students will examine the amendments to the US Constitution in order to determine how the roles of citizens and non-citizens changed over time. Students will learn what factors led to the ratification of the 19th Amendment in Arkansas and the United States.

About the Author

Kristin Dutcher Mann, Ph.D., is Professor of History and Social Studies Education Coordinator at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. A former high school teacher, she is on the Board of the Arkansas Council for the Social Studies, and has spearheaded the development of curriculum for other local and state history initiatives, including the Life Interrupted project.

*Courtesy Butler Center Lesson Plans.