Oklahoma Academic Standard 6. The student will investigate how post-war social, political, and economic events continued to transform the state of Oklahoma from the 1950s through the present.

Objective 6.7  Analyze the causes and effects of the domestic terrorist attack on the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City including the responses of Oklahomans to the act, concept of the “Oklahoma Standard” and the creation of the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum.

In a Nutshell

The Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 was the most significant and devastating act of domestic terrorism to occur on American soil prior to 9/11. It is important for students to analyze the justifications used by the perpetrators and to understand how the attack on the Murrah building heightened security nationwide. This objective focuses not only on the attack but on the resilience of Oklahoma’s citizens, which is now known as the “Oklahoma Standard.”   

Teacher Action 

Student Action 

• Facilitate student engagement in a range of deliberative and democratic processes to develop strategies to address authentic, real-world problems in the community and out-of-school contexts such as the rise in anti-government sentiment used by perpetrators to justify to attack on innocent citizens.

• Provide opportunities for students to develop, investigate, and evaluate plausible answers to essential questions that reflect enduring understanding across time and disciplines.

• Evaluate the impact of civic virtues, democratic principles, constitutional rights, and human rights on addressing issues and problems in society using the examples of Oklahomans exhibiting the “Oklahoma Standard.”

•  Analyze the role of informed and responsible citizens in their political systems and provide examples of civic participation from the experiences of the Murrah terrorist attack.  

Key Concepts 

Misconceptions 

• domestic terrorism, Timothy McVeigh, Terry Nichols, militia movement, anti-government ideology

• trial and consequences of perpetrators 

• Oklahoma City Bombing Memorial, remembrance traditions

• The “Oklahoma Standard”, first-responders, community volunteers 

• Some students may have limited knowledge of the impact of the Murrah bombing on the city and the nation, including the motives behind the attack, the people and groups involved, and the uniqueness of civic response to such a disaster. 

Instructional Resources