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Asian American and Pacific Islander studies resources for the classroom

All chapters of Foundations and Futures include lesson plans and curricular tools that are designed for high school students and grounded in ethnic studies pedagogy. Feel free to search our repository of primary sources and material that helps bring Asian American and Pacific Islander histories and experiences into the classroom.  

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  • Nancy Abouke, dressed in a weightlifting uniform, claps her chalk-filled hands in front of a deadlift bar. Clouds of chalk float above her hands.

    Image

    Nancy Abouke

    Nancy Abouke was one of two athletes to represent the country of Nauru in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and was ranked tenth in the world in her class.

    Featured in:

    Pacific Islanders, Module 5
    View multimedia
  • Shot putter Valerie Adams, with a towel around her neck, waves to the audience as she holds a New Zealand flag over her head at an Olympic stadium.

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    Valerie Adams

    Dame Valerie Adams is a celebrated Tongan shot putter from Aotearoa New Zealand who has won multiple Olympic and World Championship medals before retiring from competition in 2022. Pictured: Dame Valerie Adams celebrating her 2008 Beijing Olympics gold medal win.

    Featured in:

    Pacific Islanders, Module 5
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  • Black Ferns Sevens team pose as winners of the HSBC Paris Sevens tournament. Six women kneel in front of six others with gold medals and a trophy.

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    The Black Ferns Seven

    The Black Ferns Seven, of Aotearoa New Zealand’s national women’s rugby union team, celebrate winning the 2018 France Women’s Sevens in Paris.

    Featured in:

    Pacific Islanders, Module 5
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  • Australian footballer Jordan Mailata, dressed in an Eagles jacket and cap, sits in front of a NFL microphone for a media conference.

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    Jordan Mailata

    Former rugby player Jordan Mailata has played offensive tackle for the National Football League’s Philadelphia Eagles since 2018. His team won Super Bowl LIX against the Kansas City Chiefs on February 9, 2025.

    Featured in:

    Pacific Islanders, Module 5
    View multimedia
  • Movie poster for the film Patu. A stylized film strip laid diagonally with images from anti-Apartheid protests is displayed inside the title letters.

    Text

    Patu Poster

    Patu is a documentary directed by filmmaker Merata Mita (Māori), which focuses on the anti-Apartheid protests that took place in New Zealand during a 1981 South African rugby tour.

    Featured in:

    Pacific Islanders, Module 5
    View multimedia
  • Māori filmmaker Merata Mita, wearing a strapless dress, sits before a flatbed editing machine.

    Image

    Merata Mita

    Merata Mita (1942–2010) was the first Māori woman to write and direct a narrative feature film. In 2016, Sundance Institute created the Merata Mita Fellowship in her honor to support Indigenous women-identified artists. Pictured: Mita working on a flatbed editing machine.

    Featured in:

    Pacific Islanders, Module 5
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  • Māori filmmaker Taika Waititi raises his arm to direct Chris Hemsworth, who stands beside him in his Thor costume. Crew stand behind them on set.

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    Director Taika Waititi on Set

    Māori filmmaker Taika Waititi (left) directing Chris Hemsworth (right) on the set of Thor: Ragnarok (2017). In 2020, Waititi received the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for Jojo Rabbit.

    Featured in:

    Pacific Islanders, Module 5
    View multimedia
  • Actor Dwayne Johnson, dressed in a suit, vest and unbuttoned collared shirt, poses with Ata Johnson, dressed in a sparkly long sleeved dress.

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    Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Ata Johnson

    Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson (right) is a Samoan former wrestler and was reported by business magazine, Forbes, as the highest-paid actor in the US in 2020. His mother, Ata Johnson (left), accompanies him to the 2019 Hobbs & Shaw premiere in Hollywood, California.

    Featured in:

    Pacific Islanders, Module 5
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  • Merchandise listing for a Maui costume for kids. A child models the costume, which is a grass skirt and a skin-colored bodysuit showing his tattoos.

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    Maui Character Costume

    While Disney’s Moana film was successful in the box office, there has been much dialogue surrounding the power and impact of storytelling, distribution, marketing, and profit, like this skin suit costume for sale.

    Featured in:

    Pacific Islanders, Module 5
    View multimedia
  • Illustrated poster for MGM's Mutiny on the Bounty. Multiple images of the cast in costume and accompanying text promotes the movie.

    Text

    Mutiny on the Bounty Poster

    Mutiny on the Bounty has multiple film adaptations centering a story of British royal navy officers in Tahiti in the late 1700s.

    Featured in:

    Pacific Islanders, Module 5
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  • Two women in headscarves sit in second row during community forum. Unfocused in the foreground, a man in blue jacket sits in front of them.

    Module

    Module 4: Challenges: Pakistani Americans and the Aftermath of 9/11

    Uzma Quraishi

    Chapter:

    Pakistani Americans
    View module
  • Young volunteers, all wearing "Proud Pakistani-American And I Vote" shirts, stand next to an American flag inside an office and smile for photo.

    Module

    Module 5: Advocacy: Pakistani American Community Power

    Uzma Quraishi

    Chapter:

    Pakistani Americans
    View module
  • A chef in a red chef coat and black apron holds a giant steaming bowl of crawfish.

    Chapter

    Chapter Overview: Where We Live: Asian American and Pacific Islander Communities

    Thao Ha, Tarry Hum, ‘Inoke Hafoka, Louise Cainkar, and Zohra Saed

    View chapter
  • Outdoor strip mall with "Vietnamtown Center" sign on exterior wall and signs for businesses below. Flagpole on either side fly South Vietnamese flags.

    Chapter

    Module 1: Vietnamese Americans in the Texas Gulf

    Thao Ha

    View chapter
  • A group of women gather in New York City street with one arm raised above their heads. They stand with signs, including one reading "Adhikaar."

    Module

    Module 2: New Immigrant Communities of Queens, New York City

    Tarry Hum

    Chapter:

    Where We Live: Asian American and Pacific Islander Communities
    View module
  • Brightly colored graphic advertising the Friendly Islands Tongan Festival. Photo of drummer with drumstick raised to strike appears beside text.

    Module

    Module 3: Tongan Community in Salt Lake City, Utah

    ʻInoke Hafoka

    Chapter:

    Asian American and Pacific Islander Places and Spaces
    View module
  • The cast of Crazy Rich Asians stand in a row on stage. Behind them, a large screen displays the film's key art.

    Chapter

    Chapter Overview: Asian American Popular Culture

    Jeff Yang

    View chapter
  • An illustrated movie poster for The Crimson Kimono. Against a light backdrop, a white woman and a Japanese man kiss. The movie title appears below.

    Module

    Module 1: An Introduction to Asian American Popular Culture

    Jeff Yang

    Chapter:

    Asian American Popular Culture
    View module
  • Bruce Lee, a Hong Kong-born American martial artist and actor, poses shirtless in fighting stance with arms raised in front of his chest.

    Module

    Module 2: Asian Americans and the Moving Image, Part 1: Film and Television

    Jeff Yang

    Chapter:

    Asian American Popular Culture
    View module
Foundations and Futures Logo

The Asian American Studies Center acknowledges the Gabrielino/Tongva peoples as the traditional land caretakers of Tovaangar (Los Angeles basin, So. Channel Islands) and pay our respects to the honuukvetam (ancestors), ‘ahiihirom (elders), and ‘eyoohiinkem (relatives/relations) past, present, and emerging.

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