Teacher Resources

Every day in America, almost 50,000 young people wake up in a jail cell. For too long, the education and juvenile justice systems have failed these students. We develop quality educational programs that inspire and engage students held in confinement.

Educational Initiatives

Curriculum min-units offering opportunities for students to engage in meaningful and relevant project-based learning.

Daily

Lessons

An 8-week set of daily lessons for remote teaching, covering core subjects as well as social-emotional learning.

Postsecondary

Guidance

Compilation of postsecondary options for college credits, tech credentials, and entry-level credentials available to JJ schools.

Book

Club

A monthly book club including a book lottery, discussion questions, student reflection journals, and more.

Educator

Networks

Monthly meet-up groups for Instructional Coaches, Technology Specialists, Art Teachers and more.

Tools & Lessons

Database

Database of free lessons and online tools vetted by BreakFree for use in JJ classrooms.

Creative

Writing

A 3-unit creative writing curriculum to engage students in the power and joy of writing poetry, fiction, and drama.

Teacher

Fellowship

Annual fellowship for JJ teachers to explore Educating Beyond Curriculum and build a mini-unit using BreakFree's framework.

Unbound

Readathon

An annual readathon held in February with a national competition, weekly challenges, author specials, and more.

Educational Initiatives

Our curriculum mini-units offer opportunities for students to engage in meaningful and relevant project-based learning. These units are intended to be used as core content or supplemental projects and include a national contest.

Learn more about our individual initiatives, access materials, and view past winners by clicking below.

2023-2024 School Year Calendar

AUG

UNCHARTED

math & geography

exploration

Math, Social Sciences

Subject area:

Students create a children's book explaining a math concept.

Product:

UNCHARTED

JAN

UNEXPLORED

math & geography exploration

Math

Subject area:

Students create a

spacesuit design and

build it.

Product:

UNEXPLORED

SEP

UNEARTH

atmosphere & earth layers exploration

Science

Subject area:

Students create a 3D model of the atmosphere or earth layers

Product:

UNEARTH

FEB

UNVEILED

women in history exploration

Social Sciences

Subject area:

Students select a woman in history and create an exhibit for a living museum.

Product:

UNVEILED

OCT

UNSUNG

music & songwriting competition

ELA, Social Sciences, Math

Subject area:

Students write song lyrics and compose the accompanying music

Product:

UNSUNG

MAR

UNLEASHED

rollercoaster

experiment

Science

Subject area:

Students create a paper rollercoaster and experiment with track length and speed.

Product:

UNLEASHED

NOV

UNHEARD

speechwriting competition

ELA, Social Sciences

Subject area:

Students write and perform an original speech based on a prompt.

Product:

UNHEARD

APR

WORDS UNLOCKED

poetry

competition

ELA

Subject area:

Students write and perform original poetry based on a prompt.

Product:

WORDS UNLOCKED

DEC

UNCONSTRUCT

design thinking challenge

ELA, Social Sciences

Subject area:

Students create a solution design and build a prototype using cardboard

Product:

UNCONSTRUCT

MAY

UNKNOWN

cellular science

experiment

Science

Subject area:

Students perform a strawberry DNA experiment and create a 3D model of a cell.

Product:

UNKNOWN

Previous Initiatives

While BreakFree is not currently sponsoring the below initiatives, the content and resources remain free and available for teachers to use. Please note there is not a current competition associated with the below initiatives.

UNSPENT

financial literacy challenge

Math, Financial Literacy

Subject area:

Students play a game of life simulator and develop a personal budget.

Product:

UNSPENT

UNDIVIDED

civic engagement exploration

Social Sciences

Subject area:

Students participate in a mock city council meeting and design a shoe for a protest march

Product:

UNDIVIDED

UNCOVERED

journalism

challenge

ELA, Social Sciences

Subject area:

Students create a one minute documentary about climate equity

Product:

UNCOVERED

INVESTORS CLUB

stock market

challenge

Financial Literacy, Math

Subject area:

Students build and maintain an investment portfolio.

Product:

INVESTORS CLUB

Initiatives