In order to fully understand the importance of Twelve Years a Slave, it will be important for students to have a strong base knowledge of U.S. history in the lead-up to the Civil War in particular, and black history in the United States more generally. Encourage students to use internet resources to carry out research, both for longer term projects and to fill in their general knowledge where they are less versed in U.S. history.
Several of the classroom activities involve technology: there are projects designed to reflect contemporary media consumption and several projects that will be significantly aided by access to internet resources for research. If the technology is available,...