Instructional Support for Teachers

 

Welcome!

The Barbara Johns Story: Fighting for Equality in America’s Public Schools is an interactive documentary website that brings to life the powerful events of the 1951 Moton Student Strike in Farmville, Virginia—an extraordinary moment of student-led protest against unequal public schools.

More than a history lesson, this site is both an interactive documentary and an inquiry-based learning experience grounded in the Inquiry Design Model (IDM) by C3 Teachers. At its core is a compelling question that invites students to consider the power of informed civic action: How can you seize your moment to make change?

Central to the experience is a powerful collection of first-person interviews with Farmville residents and Moton Student Strikers, offering students the opportunity to hear directly from those who shaped this pivotal moment in the civil rights movement.

Aligned with the C3 Framework and compatible with various state social studies standards, the site supports inquiry-driven instruction and encourages rich classroom conversations about civil rights, youth activism, and civic responsibility. Designed for middle and high school classrooms, homeschool settings, and flexible learning environments, The Barbara Johns Story extends far beyond Virginia—resonating with students across the country.

 

Website Chapters and Supporting Questions 

The site is structured around three multimedia chapters, each anchored by a supporting question in the overall inquiry:

• Chapter 1: Introduction – Who was Barbara Johns, and what was school like for her?
• Chapter 2: Barbara’s World – What led Barbara Johns to take action?
• Chapter 3: Protest! – How did Barbara Johns “seize her moment” and make change?

Chapters weave together short videos, primary source documents, archival photographs, illustrations, and narrative text to create a rich and layered learning experience. Every chapter includes at least one interactive digital activity as well as multiple classroom activities that can be downloaded for individual or group use. These resources are designed for flexible implementation—whether as part of a teacher-guided lesson or for student-led exploration. Please see the inquiry design model below and also in the downloadable Teacher’s Guide, which includes links to the activities in this website and more information.

 

Flexible Use: Teacher-Guided, Student-Directed, or Both

The Barbara Johns Story is built to adapt to your classroom. Whether you’re leading a whole-class inquiry, designing an independent project, or blending both approaches, the site’s modular format gives you options. Chapters and topics can be taught sequentially or used individually to supplement existing curriculum. Teachers can guide students through the experience, assign portions for self-directed learning, or customize how and when to integrate specific activities.

 

Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy

This site includes historical content related to racial injustice in Virginia, including images and references to Jim Crow segregation and acts of racial terror such as cross burnings by the Ku Klux Klan. These materials are presented with care and intention—not to sensationalize, but to confront the realities of America’s past and to center the lived experiences of those directly impacted by these injustices.

As educators, we believe it is our responsibility to teach this history truthfully while affirming the dignity, resilience, and agency of Black Americans whose voices have too often been silenced. Our goal is to model a culturally sustaining curriculum that highlights the courage, leadership, and empowerment of young people—particularly the students of R.R. Moton High School—who ignited a 13-year struggle to desegregate and equalize public education in Prince Edward County, Virginia.

We encourage teachers who use this site to adopt this same lens of cultural responsiveness and historical truth-telling in their classrooms. While some of the content may be emotionally difficult, it is also deeply empowering. This story is not only about injustice—it is about the capacity of young people to lead change and shape the future.

 

Additional Resources for Teaching and Learning

To support meaningful instruction and extend student learning, the site includes a range of curated resources, both on this website and from trusted external sources:

 

On This Website:

• Moton Museum: Learn more about the museum that preserves the legacy of R.R. Moton High School and the 1951 Student Strike.
• Bibliography: Explore a curated list of scholarly and multimedia sources that informed the documentary and educational materials.
• About this Website: Discover the people, partnerships, and purpose behind the creation of The Barbara Johns Story interactive documentary.

 

Related Links:

• Moton School Story: Children of Courage (digital exhibit)
• Moton Museum History Timeline
• Farmville: An American Story (film)
• Encyclopedia Virginia: Barbara Johns
• Teaching Hard History – Learning for Justice

 

The Inquiry Design Model (IDM) 

This inquiry leads students through an investigation of youth-led social change through the story of Barbara Johns and R.R. Moton High School in Farmville, Virginia. We created the Teacher’s Guide inspired by the Inquiry Design Model blueprint (IDM; Grant, Swan, & Lee, 2017), but those familiar with the IDM will notice that we have adapted the blueprint to be used as a structure for all student learning activities throughout The Barbara Johns Story interactive documentary website.

 

Note: This inquiry is expected to take four or five 50-minute class periods. The inquiry time frame could expand if teachers think their students need additional instructional experiences (e.g., supporting questions, formative performance tasks, featured sources, writing scaffolds, etc). Teachers are encouraged to adapt the inquiry to meet the needs and interests of their students.