Amount of background information varies by song information for some songs includes links to other sites with information about the culture from which the song originated.
This site could be used to help students get a sense of the atmosphere of various periods of American history and to provide soundtracks for presentations about particular periods.
This is the front page of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. This website is a lot more than just the site for an art museum. Inside, you can find information about current exhibits, collections, upcoming events, teacher resources, and much more. Over the next few months there are also some special events for high school teachers, including one on October 16th titled "Teaching History through Art." I think it is easy, in most high schools, to forget the importance of art in our society and how it can give a glimpse of our cultural history.
Art can define elements of our history. I would probably be better able to answer this question if I could attend the seminar on October 16th. Taking a look at a few of the featured exhibitions on the main page of the site, we can already make some history connections. Consider the current Norman Rockwell exhibition. Rockwell provides excellent visualizations of idealized, traditional American society in a broad period, roughly 1913 to shortly before his death in 1978. Rockwell paintings could be used in any kind of lesson plan dealing with either of the World Wars, the Boy Scouts, or the rise of middle-class America in the 1950s. Another lead exhibit on the page is titled The Pond, by an artist whose name currently escapes me. Taking a look at the photos of a pond somewhere in Maryland in the 1980s, the pictures tell a story of forgotten parts of the American wild that are surrounded by urbanization and industry.
This website uses research sources gathered by the BBC.
I would use this website to create a family tree - it makes the process interesting and creates an interest in history by making it relatable.
This is valuable to social studies teachers, because if this was employed in the classroom it would help students build research skills in a way that interests them.
This BBC page assists the user in creating a family tree with additional historical research (such as military history, working conditions, and migration)
Social Studies Menu: General Sites | Current Events |
Geography | Government | History - General |
History - United States | History - Pennsylvania | History - World
This web site has lesson plans that can be used in classrooms from K-12th grades. There are a variety of links that will take you directly to lessons plans that involve history, geography, government and current events.
DC voting rights are the PERFECT way to get DC students engaged with politics and government. As one student told me, "nothing gets students motivated like being pissed off."
One of the teachers that I'm working with has folks from DC Vote come into her classroom and teach about the history of DC voting rights (the 23rd amendment and all) and then has students do a project on it. It gets them heated and it's critically important for them to know about - more than just a license plate!
Also, you might consider using Sweet Honey in the Rock's "No Taxation Without Representation" which outlines the entire history of DC voting rights and potential avenues for action in song. ;-) As they were a crucial part of the civil rights movement this might be a nice tie in of history and current events.
From the website:
"Founded in 1998, DC Vote is an educational and advocacy organization dedicated to securing full voting representation in Congress and full democracy for the more than half a million residents of the District of Columbia. DC residents pay full federal taxes, fight and die in wars and serve on juries yet are denied voting representation in the House and the Senate. DC Vote is working to end this injustice."
This website has a lot of Russian history resources - I know I didn't cover a lot of Russian history in school, and it's a topic that I could use a little help in. Primary resources are also available.
This website relies on Smithsonian reference information, mostly online exhibits. This means the information is reputable. It's also organized in an incredibly efficient way.
I think I would love to keep this site bookmarked, and check it out as I progress through a curriculum. It's so easy to use - pick your period, quickly scroll through to see if anything is interesting to you.
This is valuable to Social Studies teachers who are looking to incorporate online materials without spending a ton of time looking for them.
Smithsonian's History Explorer provides a multitute of resources for teachers including lessons, activities, interactive activities, examples of artifacts, and professional development opportunities for educators. One can easily search for desired resources by selecting the grade level, type of resource desired, and the time period. A variety of American History related subjects are displayed and from that list, one can select the desired resource.
Each of the links here are very useful and technically more user-friendly; however I continue to bookmark this page because it has provided such a simple, straight-forward and extensive collection of links.
In looking for primary sources and documents for lesson plans, I have noticed that most of the search results center on U.S. history and its related documents. I wanted to find a website that might provide links to a broader collection of documents on world history. This website has links to European historical documents, broken down by country as well as time period. Each link leads to a collection of other links where one can search for primary documents. It's admittedly a bit curious that this website is the product of an employee of Brigham Young University; I cannot tell if this bears any reflection on websites that are linked here, but the collection is extensive.
This website deals with the History of Jim Crow and has many valuable resources for teachers.
The History and Geography sections of this website are quite rich in information and I think well-organized and easy to use. The website provides the in-depth essays and/or other materials to be used in the lessons. The American Literature section provides some interesting unit and lesson plans for well-known books such as A Raisin in the Sun and To Kill a Mockingbird.
The Teacher Resources section provides a variety of lessons… some involve images, music, literature, simulations, etc. Quite a few seem to incorporate the PBS series The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow. Overall, I am very impressed with this website. My favorite book is To Kill a Mockingbird and I think the Unit on this book is interesting in the way they link it to an integrated literature/social studies unit on the case of the Scottsboro Boys and life in the 1930s.
This is another privately-run site. The chief qualification for the two men operating the site is that "both have lived in Ireland for their whole lives." This should be considered when using this site.
The demographic section is interesting; it has a map showing where most of the potato farming took place. I didn't realize it was concentrated chiefly in the western part of Ireland.
One more interesting website with lots of resources on the history of Ireland and its people; this specific site I've tagged is yet again regarding the potato blight. It some more images that could be used in the classroom.
Yesterday I had to prepare and deliver a lesson on archaeology to our grade 7 classes (Ancient World History) for my practicum. I actually used this site in my preparation. Under "Outreach and Education," there is a section called Archaeology 101 where you can get basic information on archaeology. There is also a glossary, a list of books and a list movies. They have an archive of well developed lesson plans too. However, I found another lesson plan that I modified and used that was a smash with the kids……even to toughest, roughest, hardest to reach students were engaged. If anyone wants a copy of it let me know and I can post it on our Wiki. Anyway, since archaeology applies to almost all of history, this site is quite useful.
The National Portrait Gallery is one of the Smithsonian Museums in the DC area. The great thing about NPG is that it has resources available online for teachers. There are a variety of school programs and teacher programs but the best offerings are the online exhibitions. It is like having the gallery right there in your classroom. Some of those exhibits include George Washington: A national Treasure, Presidents in Waiting, and A Brush with History. The online exhibits are usable in the classroom directly from a computer or lap top. For example, the George Washington online exhibit begins with a famous portrait accompanied by an audio explanation of the portrait and the symbolic and historical items found within the portrait. Using the portrait as a starting point provides students with a visual association of that person and the historical events surrounding that person. There is also a link to biographical information about Washington and his role in our country's history. The Teacher's Guide associated with the George Washington exhibit includes lesson plans, activities and other teaching ideas; all printable and useable in class.
NPG also offers two publications both of which are available on line. "The Patriot Papers," designed for students, features various historical events in an interesting and engaging fashion. For example, there is a "Special Edition on Slavery" featuring information on slavery and the key players involved. One of the articles in this publication is "A Chat with Harried: 1869" and also includes her portrait. The second publication, NPG in your Classroom, provides information to teachers on how to integrate NPG into classroom lessons.
There are many more valuable tools on this site such as a "Reading Portraiture Guide for Educators."
Check out the site….it is awesome!!!
This section offers overviews of the Indian Ocean and the uses of it in different eras. This section is more helpful than the maps which, although visually appealing, are more confusing than helpful.
This section is the one most applicable to teaching as it offers actually full lesson plans, including a deeper description for the teacher of what the lesson plans hope to accomplish. They also plan out how you might use their information to make a one year or two year course with it. Very thorough and very helpful for world history teachers.
By clicking the items, you get more information about the person, place or idea as keyed on the map. Nevertheless, the map is crowded and confusing for someone not already familiar with the material.
A reference site based on the study of the history, geography and cultures of the Indian Ocean and the peoples who used it. Has an interactive map divided into different historical periods and offers lesson plans for teachers.
This is a highly useful source, a derivative of the Internet History Sourcebook series, which focuses on African history. It is particularly helpful as it's full of difficult to locate sources for periods that are often dependent on oral histories and secondary sources.
The levels on this game are a little tricky-- I would try the game first to determine which level is best for your students. Even though I know where all the states are, it requires you to be very precise.
I don't like that this is all the way at the bottom. If you use this in the classroom as an interactive learning game, make sure you scroll down the page so you can see the state facts. The game is a little bare without the extra information.
This site is, overall, a little boring but it does what it's supposed to do. Sometimes getting students interested in geography is tricky but this game could increase student interest. Students will select a level, then drag and drop the states to their correct location on the map. There could be a little more information about each state (just to increase the amount of learning) but this is generally a good, basic, online learning game.
Organization of American Historians, the largest learned society devoted to the study of American History. Publisher of the Journal of American History, the OAH Newsletter, the OAH Magazine of History and Talking History Radio Program
This website relies on information from Encarta, a reputable source.
When I was in high school I had a few history teachers who would write a "This Day in History" on the board every day. Since it was part of our routine, as students, we paid close attention to it, and would complain when it wasn't there. We were developing an interest in history without even realizing it!
I think its a great resource for teachers to use to capture interest, or even include historical information not mentioned in the curriculum.
This website is very useful for social studies teachers, especially those teaching history, because it helps teachers design valuable lesson plans with accurate information.
One of the suggested activities asks students to identify the specific role each branch of government played in the Watergate affair. Another activity asks students to apply specific sections of the Constitution and determine the role particular constitutional powers and rights played in the Watergate affair.
This site provides history teachers with information for helping with their classes. This part of the site includes lesson plans with this one specifically on "Watergate and the Constitution."