Ida B. Wells: American Stories | Watch & Wonder Weekly Highlight

Thursday, March 21, 1 PM

For next week’s Watch & Wonder Highlight, we’re featuring the special Ida B. Wells: American Stories. After watching, dive deeper with resources about Civil Rights pioneer, Ida B. Wells, on PBS LearningMedia.

There are few historical figures whose life and work speak to the current moment more than Ida B. Wells, the 19th-century crusading investigative journalist, civil rights leader, and passionate suffragist. In the wake of her recent posthumous Pulitzer Prize citation, Chicago street naming, and the release of a revealing new biography by her great-granddaughter Michelle Duster, the hour-long documentary Ida B. Wells: American Stories tells her story as never before.

PBS LearningMedia

Ida B. Wells: A Lifetime of Activism | The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow

Grades 9-12
Learn how Ida B. Wells grew from school teacher to journalist to founding member of the NAACP in this video from The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow. As a young woman growing up during Reconstruction, Ida B. Wells experienced Jim Crow segregation when she was barred from travel on a train in the whites-only section. It was not until she observed the growing practice of violence toward African Americans that she began her crusade to stop lynching. 

In school or at home, take advantage of the Watch & Wonder broadcast schedule. Running each weekday from 1-3 PM, Watch & Wonder is great for classroom viewing, distance instruction, and families looking to spend some extra, quality time together. Featured programs are ideal for kids in grades 6-12, encouraging creativity with the arts, kick starting innovation through STEM, and expanding their horizons with stories from across the globe!

Each week, we’ll highlight a show from our Watch & Wonder block, and share a PBS LearningMedia resource — suitable for middle and high school students. Follow along on the Watch & Wonder Schedule page, or subscribe to our newsletter!