Gathering resources to teach the events and aftermath of 9/11 can be daunting. Below is some background text as well as a few resources. If you have any reources you would like to add, please post them in the comment section below or email them to me, peyer@socsd.org. The main resources featured below were shared by a member of our community, Vincent Lupi, who works for the 9/11 Memorial and Museum.

Background for students

Thirteen years ago on the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, members of the Islamic extremist group al-Qaeda hijacked four planes in a coordinated terrorist attack. Two planes crashed into the Twin Towers in downtown New York City, a third plane flew into the Pentagon building in Washington, D.C., and the final plane was brought down by passengers, who had become aware of the other attacks, in a field in Pennsylvania. 2,977 people died in the attacks, including civilians, military personnel in the Pentagon and the emergency fire fighters, police and medical workers who arrived at the scene.

In response to the attacks, President George W. Bush announced that any nation that supported terrorism or was found to be harboring terrorists would be considered an enemy of the United States. At that time, the government of Afghanistan was ruled by the Taliban, an extremist Muslim political movement, who refused to shut down known terrorist training camps or give up suspected terrorists to the United States. Within a month, the United States invaded Afghanistan and began a war against al-Qaeda, its leader Osama bin Laden and the Taliban government who protected them. U.S. special forces found and killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan in the spring of 2011.

The attack had a profound impact on he United States and the rest of the world. The U.S. Congress designated Sept. 11 as “Patriot Day” to remember and honor those who died. On this day, flags are set to half-staff and many observe a moment of silence at 8:46 am, the time when the first plane hit the Twin Towers. “PBS News Hour.” PBS News Hour, PBS, 11 Sept. 2014, www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/2014/09/911-anniversary-in-the-classroom/. Accessed 2 Sept. 2019.


Join students and teachers from around the world to commemorate the 18th anniversary of 9/11 by registering for the 9/11 Memorial & Museum’s FREE Anniversary in the Schools webinar. Connect with Museum staff and guest speakers to hear first-person stories about the attacks and recognize the importance of commemoration during this 35-minute program.

TZHS is registered for 50 students. Please let me know if you would like to join me in the library commons any time after 8 a.m. to view the program on demand. The webinar will be interpreted in American Sign Language and captioned. An audio description will also be available. 

9/11 Timeline Explore web-based interactive timelines chronicling the events of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, September 11, 2001 and the nine-month recovery effort at ground zero. The timelines use images, audio and video as well as first-person accounts that are part of the National September 11 Memorial & Museum’s permanent collection.
Choose a Timeline Three interactive timelines that chronicle both the attacks and the Ground Zero recovery. Note: Both timelines incorporate videos and images from the attacks, so please view them first before sharing them with students who may be upset by the content.
FAQ About 9/11 Fast facts to learn more about September 11th.
Teaching Tolerance Teaching Tolerance provides free resources to educators—teachers, administrators, counselors and other practitioners—who work with children from kindergarten through high school. 

 

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