This season is all about reflecting on the past year, and 2024 was undoubtedly a standout year for Retro Report! Take a look below at this year’s highlights:
“Citizen Nation” and New Civics Resources
“Citizen Nation,” Retro Report’s four-episode docuseries, aired on PBS in October. The series is an inspiring coming-of-age story that follows teenagers from across the U.S. with diverse personal and political backgrounds as they come together to compete in the nation’s premier civics competition.
We published an array of free related civics resources for teachers. In our Civics Resource Center, teachers can access skills-based videos and additional civics-related collections and resources.
The Civic Engagement Challenge
The inaugural Civic Engagement Challenge with Civics Unplugged invited students from around the country to create essays and videos that model civil discourse and spotlight important civic issues that are important to them. More than 240 students from 35 states submitted entries. Judges awarded $500 to each of 11 winners. Take a look at our interactive map of entries here, and click the button below to learn more about the finalists and winners.
Popular Videos & Education Resources
In 2024, these videos and lesson plans were the most popular among educators:
- Dictators and Civil Wars: The Cold War in Latin America
- This 6-minute video explores how the Cold War was an ideological, and sometimes military, struggle between the United States and the Soviet Union. Through the related lesson plan and student activity, students will learn how the United States adopted a policy of containment, intervening in the politics of countries across the globe, including many countries in Latin America.
- The Minneapolis Bridge Collapse That Sounded the Alarm on U.S. Infrastructure
- This 10-minute video examines the collapse of the I-35W bridge in Minneapolis in 2007 that killed 13 people. The collapse led to a search for the cause and highlighted the need for bridge inspections and repairs. Teachers used this video and lesson to draw parallels to the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore in March 2024.
- The 1969 Occupation of Alcatraz Was A Catalyst for Indigenous Activism
- The 1969 occupation of Alcatraz sparked an activist movement that reversed federal policies aimed at erasing Native Americans’ cultural identity and reinforced tribal sovereignty. The related lesson is designed to introduce students to the occupation, placing the episode within the historical context of tribal relations with the federal government.
New Interactive Resources
Several new interactive maps were published this year and became favorites among Retro Report educators. Use these maps to explore various topics and primary sources: Indigenous Activism in the United States, The Red Record of Lynching and Pythons Observed in Florida.
Emmy Nominations
Retro Report received two News and Documentary Emmy nominations in 2024. “How Saba Kept Singing,” which traces the journey of Holocaust survivor David Wisnia as he returns to the Nazi concentration camp where he was imprisoned as a young man, was nominated as an Outstanding Recorded News Special. “How a 1968 Student Protest Fueled a Chicano Rights Movement,” on a massive protest by Mexican American high school students, was nominated as an Outstanding Soft Feature: Short Form.
Indigenous History Webinar Series
“Sovereignty and Self-Determination: Contemporary Indigenous Histories” was a top webinar this year. More than 180 people attended the series featuring Dr. Sasha Maria Suarez, an Indigenous history scholar at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Along with Retro Report’s Indigenous history short films , ready-to-use lessons and interactive resources. The webinar was sponsored in part by the Library of Congress Teaching With Primary Sources program, coordinated by Waynesburg University.
Looking for popular resources for spring classes? Check these out:
- The Cold War: Retro Report offers a wide variety of teaching resources. Check out an interactive map that explores the Cold War in Latin America, the Global Cold War Collection and the Cold War in Latin America Collection for short videos, lesson plans and student activities.
- Civics Resources: Browse the Civics Resource Center for skills-based civics videos and collections on topics like landmark Supreme Court rulings.
- Civil Rights Resources: Whether you are teaching about the rise in activism among African Americans, or movements in the Asian American, Latino/a or Indigenous communities, there are excellent films and lessons that will help students grapple with the struggle for equal rights.
- AP Collections for Exam Review: Retro Report has collections tailored specifically for AP Courses. Access collections with dozens of videos and resources for AP U.S. History, AP U.S. Government and Politics, AP Environmental Science and AP Psychology.
We are grateful for your continued support
Thank you to our teacher advisors for creating fantastic classroom resources, and for providing valuable feedback that informs our coverage. And thank you to all of the teachers in our education community. We are grateful for your support.
There’s a lot in store for you in 2025. Please register on our website for educator access to free lesson plans, student activities and more.
If you use Retro Report resources, please support us! Kindly consider a tax-deductible donation in support of our work. Will you help us amplify our efforts? Spread the word about Retro Report on platforms like Bluesky, Facebook, X and Instagram. Thanks to generous donors, every dollar you give will be matched, up to $50,000.
Happy holidays. Here’s to an exciting year ahead!
