Changing Laws: Politics of the Civil Rights Era invites middle graders to explore the key legislative and judicial victories of the Civil Rights era, including Brown v. the Board of Education, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Fair Housing Act of 1968. Plus, as racial tensions ripped the country apart, presidents from Eisenhower through Nixon worked to uphold the U.S. Constitution, sometimes willingly and sometimes reluctantly. Hands-on projects and research activities alongside essential questions, links to online resources, and text-to-world connections promote a profound understanding of history and offer opportunities for social-emotional learning.

Judy Dodge Cummings has taught American history for 25 years. She has a BA in Broadfield Social Studies and an MFA in Creative Writing for Children and Teens. She is the author of Immigration Nation: The American Identity in the Twenty-First Century; The Underground Railroad: Navigate the Journey from Slavery to Freedom with 20 Projects; and The Civil War: The Struggle that Divided America from Nomad Press. Judy lives in Reedsburg, Wisconsin.