Witness - history as told by the people who were there. Five days a week people who lived through moments of history will bring you a personal perspective on world events. Pretty cool resource.
Wonder what the Gettysburg Address might look like on Twitter? Check this out! Fun thing for U.S. History teachers and others just as a way of discussing the impact of social media.
"History students in the Perris Union High School District can do more than adorn their classroom walls with cool projects and posters. PUHSD students join larger communities of activists, historians, and journalists to make the world a better place." And they did it with Chromebooks!
I like the reflective process this teacher is using to improve her teaching literacy to her students. The methods she is practicing and refining are in contrast to the "one and done" reading approach she mentions students practicing outside of class. A favorite quote in the reflection: "In my class we explore the why--the story behind history. Pace carefully and read closely, and students will discover the why--especially when they can discuss the questions they've had time to think about." Instead of the teacher "teaching" content, the students explore that content and find meaning for themselves that is relevant and connective to other learning experiences.
If you use primary source documents in your classroom, the Library of Congress Teacher's Page is a site you should check out. A part of the Teacher's Page is the primary source center. The primary source center walks teachers through the process of locating documents on the Library of Congress' site. The primary source center also provides guides for using various types of primary sources including political cartoons, photographs, and oral histories. Check it out!
Critical Past is a collection of more than 57,000 historical videos and more than 7 million historical photos. All of the photos and videos are royalty free, archival stock footage. Most of the footage comes from U.S. Government Agency sources. All of the videos and photos can be viewed for free online and shared with others via url, Twitter, or Facebook. The videos and photos are also available to purchase for download.
These are some of the very best resources not just on Thanksgiving, but the settling of the American Colonies. The first three links provide text, activities, videos, etc. that will provide ample material for K-8, especially. The Crash Course video is more for older students.
"Animaps extends the My Maps feature of Google Maps by letting you create maps with markers that move, images and text that pop up on cue, and lines and shapes that change over time.
When you send your Animap to friends it appears like a video - they can play, pause, slow and speed up the action!"