MISSION

To disseminate knowledge about the era of slavery, especially at the elementary and middle grade levels, by offering educators superior professional development and excellent, ready-to-use instructional materials.* CFI’s original approach to teaching slavery focuses on the lives of ten enslaved and free African American craftspeople, entrepreneurs and activists. Each “crafted a path to freedom” for themselves and others by taking action and using their work activities and their spoken or written words as weapons of resistance.

*The Crafting Freedom Materials website (www.craftingfreedom.org) is a free, extensive digital collection of printable materials, media and embedded teacher training made possible by a generous grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). It was researched and developed over three years (2007-2010). The lessons and instructional activities it contains were created by teachers, historians and instructional designers.