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Classroom · Grades 5–12

Marian Anderson

When Anderson was barred from Constitution Hall, her 1939 concert at the Lincoln Memorial turned a national symbol into a public rebuke of segregation.

Lesson at a Glance

Grades
Grades 5–12
Time
One class period (20–40 minutes)
Standards
NCSS Themes 10 (Civic Ideals and Practices) and 1 (Culture); C3 D2.His.1.6-8, D2.Civ.10.9-12
Reading
Marian Anderson (profile)

Big Idea

When Anderson was barred from Constitution Hall, her 1939 concert at the Lincoln Memorial turned a national symbol into a public rebuke of segregation.

Before Class

Students read the profile of Marian Anderson, including the Key Dates and Sources.

Discussion Questions

  1. Why do you think organizers chose the Lincoln Memorial as the site for Anderson’s concert? What did the location communicate that another venue could not?
  2. Anderson opened with “America” (“My Country, ’Tis of Thee”). Why might that song have carried special meaning in that setting?
  3. Anderson preferred to let her singing make the argument, a stance some saw as too cautious and others as a strategy of dignity. How would you evaluate her approach?
  4. Anderson built her reputation in Europe before many American halls would book her. What does that pattern suggest about how segregation shaped the careers of Black artists?

Activity

Students read a selection of the 1939 letters and statements from the DAR Archives about the Constitution Hall refusal. In small groups they identify each document’s author, audience, and argument, and place the documents on a timeline alongside the events in the profile, from Howard University’s request to the Easter Sunday concert. The class then discusses how the Lincoln Memorial, and the memory of emancipation it represents, gave the concert a meaning beyond music. Students finish by writing a short newspaper headline and lead sentence for 10 April 1939 (30–40 minutes).

Primary Sources

Cite this page
MLA
“Classroom lesson: Marian Anderson.” Black-History.com, 30 Sept. 2026, https://black-history.com/classroom/marian-anderson/.
APA
Black-History.com Editors. (2026, September 30). Classroom lesson: Marian Anderson. Black-History.com. https://black-history.com/classroom/marian-anderson/
Chicago
Black-History.com Editors. “Classroom lesson: Marian Anderson.” Black-History.com. September 30, 2026. https://black-history.com/classroom/marian-anderson/.
Editorial Note

By the Black-History.com editors. Last reviewed 30 September 2026. To suggest a primary source or a correction, write to editors@black-history.com or use our corrections form.

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