United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Teacher Fellowship

Applications are now being accepted for the 2011-2012 Museum Teacher Fellowship at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum from teachers in grades 7 through 12. Those chosen must show evidence of extensive knowledge of Holocaust history, successful teaching experience, and participation in community and professional organizations.

Teaching Fellows help promote the Museum’s efforts to ensure quality Holocaust education in secondary schools by participating in a variety of activities.

For more information and application material, visit
http://www.ushmm.org/education/foreducators/prodev/teacherfellowship/. The application deadline is February 11, 2011.

Making Ohio Memory Better

Hi Everyone,

I hope you are having a wonderful holiday season and staying warm!

You may remember me mentioning that we are working on our Ohio Memory website. The Ohio Historical Society is looking for some feedback on the functionality of our Ohio Memory search engine. As the digital collection has grown we are trying to find ways to make it increasingly user friendly. We especially value the opinions of teachers as we want our resources to be accessible for the classroom.

Please take a few minutes to complete the survey at the link below. In order to answer the questions you will have to complete a search using a new test home page for Ohio Memory. You can only access this page using the link provided in the survey directions. The survey will be available until December 31^st, 2010. If you have any questions please contact me at muline-olmstead@ohiohistory.org.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/QXMVLXW

Thank you so much and we look forward to your feedback.

Help make history come alive for Ohio's 4th-12th grade students

National History Day in Ohio is in the race to receive $50,000 from the Pepsi Refresh Project. Show your support for the program and Ohio students by voting everyday in December. Go here to vote.

Funding from the Pepsi Refresh Project will help to expand the program into more urban and rural schools. The grant will be used to provide financial assitance to low-income students; program materials & field trips to historic sites; teacher training & support materials.

Library of Congress Teachers

Starting today, you can search for classroom materials from the Library of Congress using state academic content standards. Of course, I has to test it out. I searched Ohio, grade 10, social studies, and found some great primary source sets and lesson plans for Industrialization.

Give it a try: http://www.loc.gov/teachers/.

Great Webinar

I finally got on after having to look up my password, because I haven't used the blog in a while (Sorry Kristina!!). The first webinar was great! I mentioned the PBS series "New York" - the web companion to the series can be found here - and a nice inexpensive tip to getting a hold of it is to visit your local library. I know the Clark County library has a copy.

BCHE Webinar this Thursday!!!

Hey Back to History members,

In anticipation of our first webinar here is information about another webinar this week. This will give you a sample of what you can expect with your BCHE memberships this year. Check it out - especially if you teach about Native Americans.

The first Buckeye Council for History Education webinar begins Thursday, November 18!

American Indians in the 20th Century
Thursday, November 18, 2010
6:00PM – 8:30PM

Dr. Daniel Cobb
Associate Professor
Department of American Studies
Convener, American Indian Studies
University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill

Webinar schedule:
6:00PM-7:30PM: Content Session
7:30-8:00PM: Primary source activity
8:00PM-8:30PM: Classroom Applications

This first webinar in the series is FREE!

To register, please click here.

The rest of the webinars in the series will be FREE for BCHE members and $20 for non-members. If you would like to become a member of BCHE please click here.

All participants will receive a CD with primary sources from the Ohio Historical Society related to the webinar topic.

Never participated in a webinar before? It's easy! All you need is a computer and internet connection.

Looking for Historic American Newspapers?

Check out Chronicling America, a site that allows you to search and view newspaper pages from 1860-1922 and find information about American newspapers published between 1690-present. Happy hunting.

Veterans Day

I just finished listening to "Coming Home: A History of War Veterans" on BackStory. Through interviews with historians and veterans from various conflicts, the episode focuses on the experiences of soldiers through three centuries of American history. There is also a list of resources from census records to soldier letters available for classroom use.

Please share your thoughts on how you commemorate Veterans Day with your students.

Call for Lesson Plans

The Society of Historians of American Foreign Relations (SHAFR) is looking for contributors to a new series of lesson plans for secondary teachers. Topics for lesson plans include The Louisiana Purchase, War of 1812: Another War for Independence?, Slavery and Civil War Diplomacy, The Marshall Plan, and FDR and Great Britain in the 1930s.

To be considered as a contributing editor for one or more of the topics, please submit a one paragraph summary of how you would approach the topic and a brief C.V. to SHAFR. For more information and submittal details, visit http://www.shafr.org/teaching/secondary-education/.

took pre-test

I took the pre-test and had about 18 minutes left in the 50 minute time period allotted.

Back to History is back!

For 2010/2011 Back to History will be offering on-line courses (webinars) with curriculum based on academic content standards for grades 9-12. Webinars are interactive sessions that will feature engaging content-focused presentations from Ohio State's history faculty, primary source presentations with a project curator, and a guided discussion of taking content and primary sources into the classroom.

Please apply by September 17, 2010. Preference will be given to applicants teaching high school; however, any social studies teacher is welcome to apply. Applications, webinar dates, and additional information can be found here.

What would Woody say?

Find out by listening to an interview with University of Richmond historian Woody Holton, who discusses Abigail Adams and the role of women in the creation of the American republic. Guest host Ed Lentz speaks to Professor Holton on the June 16, 2010 All Sides with Ann Fisher on WOSU radio.

The Massachusetts Historical Society's Adams Family Papers contains over 1,100 digitized letters written between John and Abigail Adams beginning in 1762.

Civil War Book Recommendations

Anthony Gibbs mentioned yesterday following his presentation "Fighting for Freedom: The Story of the United States Colored Troops" (USCT) that he uses Blood, Tears and Glory: How Ohioans Won the Civil War by James Bissland and The Negro in the Civil War by Benjamin Quarles for his research. Check them out. Also, Justin mentioned This Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War by Drew Gilpin Faust during his presentation on traveling trunks.

Searching and Finding

Happy first day of Summer Institute 2010! Here are some additional websites that might help you in searching for materials:

Smithsonian Institution Libraries - has digital collections but also this fantastic search engine that contains a database of online exhibitions most of which have digitized primary sources. Also search the general Smithsonian Institution. There are a lot of museums and each has a rich collection.

The Library of Congress is always a fantastic source. In addition to the American Memory there are several other digital collections on this main page.

The National Archives has a variety of digital sources. I found this site especially helpful in making the Cold War primary source activity - but they have much more.

If you have a Revolutionary War topic check out the historical societies and universities in states that are former colonies - Maine Memory Network, Virginia University, Virginia Historical Society are sites I have used in the past.

For all topics check out universities and college libraries. You often don't have to be a student or faculty to access their digital collections. Look for key terms like "Digital Collections", "Special Collections", "Online Exhibitions".

When searching start with more general terms and try synonyms. For example, if you can't find anything searching for WWII try searching World War II. Be patient and creative with searches. You might not find what you want right away and you might find something else useful while you search. Remember - you don't have to present on every aspect of a topic. Narrow your topic and what you plan to present. It will make the process easier if you stay focused.

Ohio Chautauqua

Do not miss the opportunity to be educated and entertained by the Ohio Chautauqua troupe as they explore the lives of individuals who helped shape the 1930s. The scholars will assume the roles of W.C. Fields, Margaret Mitchell, Paul Robeson, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Orson Wells for evening performances under the chautauqua tent. My favorite part is when they field questions from the audience while still in character. Each scholar also presents daytime workshops for children and adults.

Ohio Chautauqua: The 1930s will be in Marysville from July 27-31 and travel to three other Ohio communities throughout the summer. More information is available from the Ohio Humanities Council.

Hope you had a lovely 3-day weekend...

In the spirit of Memorial Day and in anticipation of the upcoming Summer Institute I thought I would share some websites I have come across while putting together the primary source activities and CD. These websites remind us of the importance of honoring our veterans and also have a little something for each of the project topics.

The Price of Freedom: Americans at War, Smithsonian National Museum of American History
Battle Lines: Letters from American Wars, Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
Veteran's History Project, Library of Congress

I hope you all find something exciting and useful!

American Revolution: Experience of Women

Hey high school teachers. I have a question regarding the American Revolutionary War. As I have began my research for our summer institute, I began to wonder how our subject is taught today. I am a third grade teacher so I do not touch anything close to the American Rev. War. Our topic is the effects of women in the war. I do not remember learning anything about this when I went to school, but I am hoping this has changed. Is women in the American Rev. War mentioned in your curriculum or is it an area that is still neglected. I was just curious after doing some light research.

Teaching Military History

In addition to operational history, military history includes the study of foreign policy, immigration legislation, the role of minorities, economics, and more. The Foreign Policy Research Institute programs on teaching military history provides streaming video and audio of speakers from a variety of events from America in the Civil War Era to The Cold War Revisited and associated classroom lessons. Visit the site here.

Making a Difference Lesson

I found a great lesson plan on the ODE website. It is called "Making a Difference" for second grade for the following benchmark: recognizing that the actions of individuals make a difference and relate the stories of people from diverse backgrounds who have contributed to the heritage of the US. Basically the student chooses someone to research and looks for what that individual has accomplished and his/her leadership qualitites, etc. The plan has several activities students can complete and it includes a rubic for assessment, differentiation ideas, and extension activities. I thought Mandy's lesson [May seminar] using the quotes would also be great with this lesson. I would probably have students give presentations about their person of interest, which could be explorers or inventors, or scientists. Then after all the presentations, the class could do the quote activity and see if they select the right person with the right quotes!

America: The Story of Us

Hey B2H'ers! This obviously is my first time posting. Actually, I have tried a couple of times, but failed.
I would like to blog @ The History Channel's "America, The Story of Us". I dvr'd the first few 2hour episodes with trepidation. I had a feeling it was going to be another boooooring history show, or one that was pure fluff. Boy, was I wrong! I have totally become interested and impressed with this 12 episode series. I think it is very well done! New episodes are presented in 2 hour blocks with repeats shown in one hour increments.

It would seem to appeal to a serious history buff as well as those just casually into history. I hope students would really enjoy it in addition to learning. I believe they will not be bored! Check it out! Also, if your principal registers on the History Channel website...your school can get the whole dvd set for free!

Puritan versus Pilgrim

Some clarification of our discussion during the primary source activity. In general, the term Puritan refers to a varied group of religious reformers. Specifically, these reformers were the separating Puritans (known to us as Pilgrims) who founded the Plymouth Colony and the non-separating Puritans who wished to reform the Church of England and who settled Massachusetts Bay. In other words, the Pilgrims of Plymouth were Puritans, but the Puritans of Massachusetts Bay and in many other New England communities were not Pilgrims since they did not wish to separate from the Church of England.

I recommend Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War by Nathaniel Philbrick for a frank, eloquent description of Pilgrim settlement. For a more humorously discussion of the Pilgrim mythology , check out the prologue and chapter 13 of Tony Horwitz's A Voyage Long and Strange: Rediscovering the New World.

Some essential questions to build off of the discussion of Puritan Ideology:

1. Do we really have a separation of church and state in the United States?
2. How important was "freedom" to 17th century colonists?
3. How did having a religious centered government affect the rights of people like Roger Williams, Mary Dyer and Anne Hutchinson and what effect did this have on the Massachusetts Bay colony?
4. What is your (or any individual's) responsibility to the community, and what is the community's responsibility to you and other individuals.
5. What is the relationship between freedom and responsibility?
6. Were the Puritans Puritanical?
7. Why would the 17th century Puritans accept the doctrine of predestination?
8. How successful was the "city upon a hill" model?

BTH Reflections

It's been another great year in our Back to History Class! I would like to share my Top Ten moments. 10. That some hunter-gatherers that tried agriculture went back to being hunter-gatherers (actually, this was from last year!) 9. John Glenn's dad was out of a job for 6 years, and his mom was really good at doing more with less. 8. That even into the 1950's, history books taught that slaves needed the security of having masters (Rucker) (how could people be so stupid!) 7. That after a year of trying to get my at-risk kids interested in primary sources, and history in general, the movie "Kitt Kittredge: An American Girl" was the hook that got them! They wrote great responses to: What effects did the Great Depression have on families? 6. "Celebration" means "who knows?" when you are talking about mounds (Lepper). 5. Political cartoons are great. 4. Enslaved women carried out the day-to-day resistance.(Rucker) 3. The Hull House Association is still helping people in Chicago, today. 2. John Parker always carried a gun, and probably owed his life to his dog. 1. My students telling me to "calm down," when I am talking to them about our history. Thanks!

Good Books for WWII and Iraq

Hi, this is my first blog (ever!) I picked up a book at the library to possibly use to support our US History Class. It was Ryan Smithson's autobiographical Ghosts of War: The True Story of a 19-Year-old GI. I kept it around, hoping we would get past WWII. Although I am still not sure I will get to use it this year, it was a great book! It is an easy read (I read it while sitting in my car during lunch periods), but details Ryan's journey from deciding to enlist to his readjustment at the end of his deployment. I don't really have any students that talk about enlisting, but this would be an excellent way to get a picture of what happens. It is mild enough for probably 5th grade or up, but should be previewed to see if it is fitting for a particular audience. It would be a good starting point for discussion of patriotism, effects on family, living in fear, etc.

The other book I reread (after 42 years!) was John Hersey's Hiroshima. It's still a great book for use during study of WWII. We just finished reading about the German surrender, so next week, I hope to use this as part of our study of the Pacific theatre.

Puritan Ideology

Passages from the sermon that would have influenced Morgan to believe Winthrop's Modell has been referred to as primarily "an appeal for subjection to authority" are: first to hold conformity with rest of his world, being delighted to show forth the glory of his wisdom in the variety and difference of the creatures; secondly that he might have the more occasion to manifest the work of his Spirit: first upon the wicked in [Page 34] moderating and restraining them; thirdly, that every man might have need of others, and from hence they might be all Knitt more ready together in the Bonds of brotherly affection.
Subjection to authority was necessary because the "Puritans thus found it necessary, almost at once, to begin to delineate the lines between the freedom of the individual to follow his own dreams and the responsibility of the society for maintaining order" (Oscar Habdlin, p. X). In other words the power at be did not want to see the little people take a stand become rulers of their own destiny.
Winthrop would have delivered this sermon on board The Arabella as opposed to during church service once they arrived on shore because the text was not written by a dramatist or an ecclesiastic. It was transcribed by an administrator. The exhortation was a deed of guidance. We must keep in mind these people were on a ship in the middle of nowhere. Once they reached dry land the individuals could possibly go in any direction their hearts desired. Winthrop's religious speech was a decree for allegiance and observation. He wanted to make sure no one was acting or communicating something that challenged the establishment or the religious denomination.
According to my interpretations of the reading material by Edmund S. Morgan and John Winthrop, the Puritan Society was deemed by many as an admirable political enterprise. There are people in this nation that judged the Puritans as moral genealogists, philosophical and spiritual. Many of the people were extremely cultivated, profoundly doctrinated, and astonishingly energetic. The quirkiness of three famous Puritans-Anne Hutchinson, Roger Williams, and John Winthrop has been exposed. Surprisingly, there is a positive note to this discussion. The Hutchinson River in New York is named after Anne Hutchinson, and a primary thoroughfare is named after the river. Roger Williams was an arcgitect in Rhode Island and creator of the First Amendment. John Winthrop was governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Senator John Kerry is a Winthrop progeny. Harriet Beecher Stowe, the author of Uncle Tom's Cabin was a puritan offspring and a nineteenth-century abolitionist. I truly enjoyed the reading materials on the Puritan Ideology. Many of the people during that era were more than energetic-they were downright pugnacious!

Kent State Shootings Audio Recording

On May 9, 2010, the Cleveland Plain Dealer ran a story on the front page titled,"New analysis of 40-year-old recording of Kent State shootings reveals that Ohio Guard was given an order to prepare to fire." Media outlets across the country ran similar pieces in the past few days.

A 30-minute reel-to-reel tape made by a Kent State student whose dorm room overlooked the campus commons was enhanced and evaluated by forensic audio experts. Their analysis indicates that an unidentified voice shouts "Guard" followed by "All right, prepare to fire." Does this prove that the Ohio National Guardsmen who fired into the crowd of protesters were given orders? Does this change our understanding of the events of May 4, 1970? How might this change the way you teach this period of American history?

Visit the "It Happened in Ohio: The Kent State Shootings" Ohio Pix Gallery and the Kent State University Libraries' May 4 Collection.

My history lesson at the Boston Marathon

On April 19, 2010 I ran in the 114th Boston Marathon. It is the oldest and most prestigious marathon in the world. One reason is that in order to run Boston you need to qualify. To qualify for Boston women 18-34 years old need to run a qualifying marathon in 3:40:59 and men 18-34 need to run a 3:10:59. I qualified at Columbus running a 3:11:36. I learned in my preparation for Boston that women were not allowed to run the Boston Marathon until 1972. The first woman, Kathrine Switzer, ran Boston wearing a bib number in 1967 by registering using her initials K.V. Switzer. The race director was unsuccessful in trying to rip her bib number off and forcing her off the course at mile 5 and she was the first woman to cross the finish line wearing a bib number. I got to meet her at the Expo, have my picture taken with her and have her autograph a copy of her book. This meant a lot to me because if it were not for her courage and determination in 1967 it may not have been possible for me and other women to run the Boston Marathon. Also, the Boston Marathon is held every year on Patriot's Day, the third Monday in April. Patriot's Day is a holiday in recognition of Paul Revere's ride. Schools and many businesses are closed. While in Boston I was able to take a walking tour of the "Freedom Trail". I saw the spot where the Boston Massacre took place, where they first read the Declaration of Independence, The Old State House and many other historical sites. Running the Boston Marathon made me feel special to be a part of something that not everyone gets the opportunity to do and an event that is so rich in history. It is something I will remember forever. Also, history was made at the 114th Boston Marathon when a new course record was set for the men and I get to say that I ran in the footsteps of the elite runner that set a new course record. I crossed the finish line in 3 hours and 15 minutes with a wonderful feeling of accomplishment, pride and being a part of history.

National History Education Clearinghouse

The National History Education Clearinghouse recently completed a major redesign of the website. The NHEC is the single destination for K-12 American history content, teaching methods, and current research, funded by the U.S. Department of Education. New features make the site more user friendly. You will find plenty of online primary sources and multimedia, videos of teachers in action, helpful guides to teaching with technology or historic sites, Teaching American History project spotlights and lessons learned, and much more.

Market Day

As the year draws to a close and I can introduce some more involved projects into my social studies classroom, I would like to share a project that several teachers in our building participate in. The project is used as a culminating activity with our economics unit. While learning essential economics material such as supply and demand, the factors of production, and scarcity, the students spend time at home creating a business with a partner. Their goal is to create and produce an individually packaged, homemade product to sell to the rest of the class as well as to students from other classes.

Students earn "money" for good behavior, homework, good citizenship, etc. in the weeks leading up to the fair. They can then use their money to purchase items from other students that they like or need. Each classroom sets up a store where a desk is transformed into a point of sale. We invite other staff members and administrators to shop at the stores as well. A good time is had by all while the students are learning about the buying and selling of goods in a hands on fashion!

Bring History Back to your Students

Last summer I was fortunate enough to attend a National Endowment for the Humanities grant program at the Henry Ford. I traveled to Detroit for the week and was immersed in American History while visiting the sites at Greenfield Village, The Henry Ford Museum, and The Rouge Plant. While I had previously visited these sites as a child, I found an immense appreciation for the passion for education that Henry Ford had as I visited the sites again as a teacher. Many people are not aware that Henry Ford spent millions of dollars hand-plucking the artifacts and buildings included in his museums from all across America in an effort to preserve American culture and share it with future generations. The entire visit I couldn't help but think to myself how perfect these sites would be to teach my children American History and show them firsthand what life was like in different time periods. I fully realize that this aspiration is completely in vain, as we can hardly gain permission to travel an hour away from school, let alone three, and I know that many of you face the same dilemma that I do. However, I do encourage you, as summer approaches, to plan a weekend trip to The Henry Ford and take photos for your students. I cannot tell you how many times I have referenced a photo with my students this year. I have been able to bring my students closer to everything from plantation life (Susqhehanna) to the colonial time period (Daggert Farm). Not only are they able to see these things, but they are much more intrigued by my personal stories and pictures from the trip. Along with being an educational resource, The Henry Ford truly is an enjoyable trip, especially if you have never visited before. More information is available at: http://www.thehenryford.org/. I hope you love it as much as I do!

Field Trip Photographs

While I am not known for my skills as a photographer, I have done my best to document field trips and seminars. Some of the photographs may be useful to take your students on virtual field trips of historic sites. Photos from the Back to History program are available here. Please send your photos to Kristina if you would like to have them posted on this site.

Mine Safety & Health Administration Digital Library

A useful resource for studying local and state industry, geography, and even current events, the MSHA Digital Library contains mining photographs, video, and documents from 1901-present. Users can search for material by subject or time period.

Vote for the Next Ohioan for National Statuary Hall

Have you done units on Ohio inventors, abolition, the suffrage movement, the Civil War, the individual in history, civil rights, or maybe 20th century science and technology? If so, you have encountered individuals whom could soon be memorialized as one of Ohio’s two representatives in Statuary Hall at the U.S. Capitol. You and your students can vote for your favorite. Ballots can be mailed to the Ohio Historical Society or dropped off at a historic site such as Newark Earthworks. Ballot and list of ten finalist are available here.

States' Rights

Attorneys general from 13 states filed a lawsuit against the federal government. The lawsuit claims that the health care bill signed by President Obama on March 23 contains a provision that is unconstitutional. The proponents of the lawsuit are citing the 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which reserves powers of the states and people. Henry McMaster, South Carolina's Attorney General, sees the provision - mandating that all citizens and legal residents purchase qualifying health care coverage - as an attack on the sovereignty of the states and the liberty of the people.

The battle of states' rights is not novel. In the late 18th century, Anti-Federalists supported self-government of states and feared that the authority of a strong central government would lead to the loss of individual and states rights. In the Antibellum period, southern states lost power in Congress because their population was not increasing as rapidly as the north's. The southern states sought to assert their individual power and break free from federal authority, ultimately leading to secession. Issues of states' rights continued into the 20th century with the passage of the 17th Amendment.

The current debate over states' rights can be used to connect with historic debates over states' rights, whether you are studying the founding of the U.S. government, New Deal legislation, or racial segregation.

Women's History Month

March is Women's History Month, and this would make it a great opportunity to discuss the life and accomplishments of Jane Addams with your class. The book that Kristina gave to us is a very informative and easy to read edition. The book tells the story of Jane Addams in an interesting and engaging way, not just narrating the events that took place in Jane Addams’ life but also capturing the personality of the lady who had a profound effect on the people and events of her times. Readers will be left wondering how it is that they did not know more about this extraordinary woman who did so much, who gave so much of herself, and who had so much hope for the future.

Puritan Ideology

Do you think the Puritan Colonies of the seventeenth century were a dull and boring place? Think again!!!!!
Joanna

History Day!!!!!!!!

First of all I just want to add my two cents on the outstanding job Mr.Rucker did on his presentation at our last seminar. He was so enthusiastic and knowledgable. It was super.
Today is our History Day competition at Triad Middles School. If your school does not participate in History Day really consider adding it to your schedule. The students really benefit from the experience and you will be amazed at their creativity. We had one young man who moved from Columbus to our school in October. He had been attending a charter school for children with extreme ADHD and was not having a very positive time at school. His reading level is around the 2nd to 3rd grade. He took the instructions and rubrics home, picked a topic, and worked diligently on his exhibit, getting finished 3 days before anyone else. We are presenting him with the Principals Award for outstanding effort. These kinds of results make all the work worth it!

Have a great day!
Amanda Goodwin

Great Speaker

I'm really new at this blogging thing, but here goes nothing. I wanted you to know that I thought that Dr. Rucker was an outstanding speaker. It was quite evident that he is passionate about his chosen field. I thought he was a much better speaker than he is an author. I found his writing to be informative and thought provoking, but very collegial.

Ron Wood

More Resources on PBS

Seems I have had a little more time to sit and watch tv lately..... another perk of snow days! I was reminded again of what a good resource PBS can be for teaching history. I watched a couple of worthwhile programs.

Ironically, after our discussion in class on Saturday about recent advances in DNA testing and its use in geneology, and specifically Henry Louis Gates's work with it, I saw the first segment of a Gates program called "Faces of America". In this program, Gates has done research on the immigrant families of well-known Americans, among them Kristi Yamaguchi, Dr. Oz, Yo Yo Ma, director Mike Nichols, and others. The stories he uncovers for these people are fascinating in themselves. But what I found the most intriguing is the insight he gave them into some of the ironies of their ancestors' lives. For instance, Krisiti Yamaguchi's Japanese American grandfather was a decorated soldier serving in the US army in World War II while his wife was being held in a "relocation center" in Arizona. Mikes Nichols's grandfather served in the German army in World War I, then immigrated to the US to escape persecution of the Jews. His sons then went back to Germany as US soldiers in World War II.
This series could be a valuable resource for use with older students when studying immigration or World War II.

A second program I saw was part of the series called "Independent Lens". These programs usually highlight more contemporary subjects through documentaries done by filmmakers who are not in the mainstream. But last week's segment was about the 1960 non-violent protest started by 4 African American students at the Woolworth store in Greensboro, North Carolina. It was a very well done documentary which did a fantastic job of showing the determination of the 4 young men who started the protest as well as the many other students and local citizens who joined them.

I don't know if PBS lends DVDs of these programs as they do of some of their "educational" series, but it would be worth asking!

Summer Reading for High School

Greetings! This past year my school (Triad) implemented a district wide summer reading program for every grade level in the district, I was asked to find a book for the 10th grade as part of my American Studies course. While I debated a few books including The Jungle by Upton Sinclair, I chose a relatively easy read with Uprising by Margaret Peterson Haddix. Uprising examines industrialization in the United States specifically dealing with the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire. Industrialization is the first major topic discussed in class. While this book is historical fiction, it does an excellent job of examining the time period, as well as the many struggles and triumphs noticed during industrialization. My primary concerns related to the book included it being fiction and the story being based around three girls. While I believe it was positive for students to read a book from a female perspective, I also dealt with some concerns from parents that their child was unable to relate. Does anyone have suggestions for books related to industrialization that 10th grade students can read during the summer? Overall, I believe using Uprising was a success, but I also believe it could be improved.

Another great website for all subjects!

I really appreciate the provided link to http://www.thinkfinity.org/home provided by Cheryl, thanks it looks like a very useful site!! I also wanted to share a site that has provided many helpful resources including powerpoints, interactive activity links and even very clever free clipart that I use on almost all my handouts!! It's called Pete's Powerpoint Station
www.pppst.com and it has a wide range of subjects.

"History without Reading"

Kristina,
In the essay the author talks about the fact that "we have jobs to do." That being, "it's to teach students to think like historians." I know I certainly want that for my students. He also mentions that we want "them to become independent minded people" which of course, is true but hard to measure with my 10 year olds. Oh, I know he meant ultimately. I think he is spot on. I also agree that it is time for"education" to catch up with technology (certainly in the elementary school) and turn our bland "cold type" into a much, much warmer type. Scoot over "technophobic traditionalists." It's time for you to conform or retire! I agree that we can't afford to keep "ducking our heads in the sand." As educators we must push our administrators and publishers for the necessary technology and training to help our students master the skills they need to succeed in this ever changing world of technology, academic, and social challenges.

ldils

OTHER POWERS (Suffage)

I found a wonderful book about woman's rights movement. It is called Other Powers:The Age of Suffrage, Spiritualism, and the Scandalous Victoria Woodhall by Barbara Goldsmith. This book is easy to read - it actually reads like a novel. In it you will find so many of the people mentioned in our last seminar. It is amazing how many of these famous women were connected and how their stories intertwine. Victoria Woodhull had an interesting life and it makes for an interesting read. After our last seminar, I found myself lacking in knowledge about these women. The Clark County library system has several books you could read, even picture and juvenile books for your students. Monica K.

Great Book for the American Revolution

The first year I was in the Back to History program we were given the book, Storytellers History, The American Revolution by Steve Sheinken. I have been reading it aloud to my students and they love it. They are actually disappointed when I stop and ask for more. It makes the American Revolution understandable and the stories about the people involved are great. It also uses excerpts from primary sources.

Great Website for Research

I recently attend the Conference for Ohio Middle Grade Teachers in Columbus. At one of the workshops, the instructor gave us several excellent website sources. One of them was www.thinkfinity.com. This is an awsome site. It is very user friendly and connects the user to multiple resources. I highly recommend this site for finding primary sources, lessons, or just background information on a particular subject. The content found is suitable for many abilities, interests and learning styles.

Response to article on history without reading

An essay titled "History without Reading" is running in the current weekly edition of the History News Network. The author is advocating "a history not of telling, but of showing ..." and draws interesting conclusions on the assumptions teachers make about how students study/learn history and the realities of 21st century students. (Cullen, 2010). What are your thoughts on Cullen's argument on how to prepare students for studying history?

Westward Expansion

Westward Expansion/U.S. Growth/Immigration always seems to be my weakest unit year after year (4 years now). I think this has always been the case because of the OAT and the need to rush to get through all of the content in time. No matter how well I've mapped out my year, something stands in the way of me having the necessary amount of time to really get into the unit the way i'd like. With no OAT this year I feel a sigh of relief that I can spend a lot more time on the unit and actually cover everything with a greater detail. There are so many levels to this unit, and I feel like it could be one that is stuffed full of hands on/group activities.

Last year I took all of the resources I had and created an organized unit that covered all of the standards/benchmarks that fall under the catagory of westward growth/immigration. It turned out be very beneficial and did the job, but it was still rushed and not nearly a indepth as i'd have wished. My hope is that some of you history teachers out there have some great resources that you'd happily let me know about so that I can expand my unit. I'm looking for anythng (reference books, teacher books, children books, websites/links and videos) that I could use to add to this unit. This is for a 5th grade unit and we cover: Growth westward following the American Revolution, transportation/communication/inventions/, Ohio Growth (good time to review) and Immigration.

Benefits of Experiencing History

I have always tried to incorporate hands on activities for students in all the lessons I do. Obviously, some lessons are easier than others to accomplish this. Social Studies was always harder for me to think of activities as well.

This is my third year teaching. This year, a new teacher came to my school who has similar teaching philosophies as I do. She also teaches Social Studies. At the start of the school year we talked about how we both wanted to do more hands on activities during our lessons. We spent a lot of time planning out our daily instruction with an emphasis on having the students get up out of their seats.

This last unit we both saw the benefits of teaching this way. We just completed a unit on the French and Indian War. During the unit one of our classes were French, while the other class was British. We then had a "war" with each other. We did not actually fight but we did send letters and leaders to each other's forts to try and convince them to stop the war. We then had to try and convince Native Americans to join our side. The Native Americans were the office staff, custodians, and other teachers.

The students were very excited each day for Social Studies. I had not experienced that in my previous two years. Each day the students asked what we were going to be doing that day, even before class started. When we tested the students we were worried that they were not going to remember details about the war. However, the students did very well on the paper and pencil test. We also received praise from parents. One parent emailed, "My daughter will not stop talking about the French and Indian War. She cannot wait to find out what happens next."

I hope to continue this the rest of the year. I know not every unit can go this well. Hopefully, we have not set the bar too high!