Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Students Investigating Primary Sources is a series of lessons designed through a collaboration with the National Archives, Pinellas County Public Schools, and Brevard Public Schools for 2nd grade through High School Students. Choose from topics including separation of power and women's right to vote. Each lesson correlates to National Standards and a PDF link to the original activity including vocabulary, handouts, and other necessary materials.

tag(s): branches of government (65), civil rights (209), constitution (96), primary sources (117), womens suffrage (52)

These Collection Stories look at the personal feelings and interpretation of the objects staff members have cataloged in the Museum. These stunning short stories focus on items from historical events and famous people. Click the Explorers tab from the top menu and select either Search the Collections or Stories. Example story categories are Our American Story, Five Things, Power of Place, and others. Use the search bar to find title like Dress for the Occasion; view the first day of school dress worn by Carlotta Walls as she entered Little Rock Central High School in 1957 as part of the Little Rock Nine's integration efforts. Other stories take a look at Muhammed Ali, Carl Lewis, The Wiz: The Super soul Musical 'Wizard of Oz,' and the watches that survived a brutal assassination of an NAACP leader and his wife (Moments Captured in Time). The Story Collections are updated constantly so be sure to click Learn and Explore from the top menu. The National Museum of African American History and Culture is part of The Smithsonian Institution. These stories reside on a Smithsonian URL site, so don't be confused when you get there.

tag(s): african american (115), black history (133), cross cultural understanding (173), cultures (180)

FreeSchool, a YouTube Channel, provides an extensive selection of educational videos and adds two new videos each week. Videos provide content in art, music, science, literature, and more. Browse through the site to find content or choose the playlists to find videos by specific topics. Most videos run less than 10 minutes in length making them perfect for use in many situations. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable.
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tag(s): angles (52), animals (294), biographies (94), fractions (160), grammar (137), literature (221), martin luther king (45), planets (113), punctuation (25), scientific method (48), space (222), states (124), weather (160)

This Museum of Modern Art site, though "plain Jane" looking, shares a plethora of history of all exhibitions at the museum from 1929 through the present. Browse through collections by date, or filter by type of exhibition including film series, performance programs, and others. Choose the link to Art and artists to find collections by specific artists. Of particular interest in this section are audio tours including some specifically for kids.

tag(s): 20th century (62), art history (102), artists (84)

Take charge of Fort McHenry during the Battle of Baltimore and save the fort from the British bombardment with this interactive. After an introduction to the situation, players prepare for battle and manage resources to save the fort. Your goal is to keep the American flag flying at all times. Registration isn't required; however, it allows players to save their game at the end of each round. Total time to complete is 35-45 minutes.

tag(s): battles (18), game based learning (205), war of 1812 (15)

Make the presidential election process personal. Run for U.S. president by playing this free interactive online game which is best played on a computer using most current browsers. In this lively, colorful simulation, students will experience being part of a campaign, including creating a candidate avatar, selecting either Democratic or Republican issues, participating in debates and developing a media campaign. Choose your level to start: elementary, middle, or high school and complete the easy-to-follow tasks which do involve some reading, especially the debates section. The "Campaign Manager" will lead you through the process ending with your final probability of winning. Loading the game may take a few moments. Sound begins immediately, but may be toggled off. Online assistance is available by clicking the Help button (a ?) in the top right corner at each step of the game. Also, the Back button in the top left corner allows easy do-overs of sections. Students may play without registering, but will access more content, compete with others and earn badges after logging in. You can have separate accounts for students and teachers, but must have email addresses. An automatic username is generated when registering. The easy to use Extension Pack for Teachers provides more activities and assessments. Registered teachers can message students and create classes to give students a virtual class code to join without needing an email. If students register, they can check their My iCivics accounts to see points and message members of their groups which can be controlled by the teacher.

tag(s): elections (82), presidents (135)

Go behind the scenes of the Getty Museum to learn about art-making techniques, conservation efforts, and more through shared videos. Scroll through the site to view playlists in different categories, be sure to find the lists created just for kids and teachers. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable.

tag(s): art history (102), artists (84), painting (54), photography (130), sculpture (18)

CyArk offers an online library of cultural heritage sites using 3D and digital technology. One of their main goals is to provide a resource for saving representations before losing them to the natural progression of time, disasters, or other unknown factors. View offerings by theme or project for 3D images, photographs, and in-depth information about the site. Within the theme link, use the timeline to view by period, or use the dropdown boxes to choose by culture or country. CyArk also includes many lesson plans based on principles used in creating the website.

tag(s): archeology (28), egypt (56), environment (252), erosion (15), graphic design (49), mayans (23), photography (130), romans (52), speech (69), virtual field trips (128)

GeoInquiries offers standards-based collections for teaching map-based concepts. Choose from several different content topics such as Earth Science, US History, and more. Locate the complete list of available collections on the left side of the homepage. After choosing a broad topic, select a specific activity, then click to open the PDF for easy access to content. In addition to the GeoInquiries, this site also includes several additional lengthier activities including all necessary teacher and student materials.

tag(s): agriculture (49), american revolution (82), civil war (139), climate change (99), cold war (30), demographics (13), earthquakes (46), landforms (39), maps (220), minerals (13), oceans (149), population (51), rocks (35), volcanoes (55), weather (160), world war 1 (77)

Discover, create, and share digital resources from the Smithsonian Museum, the National Zoo, and nine major research centers with this visually appealing site. Use the search feature to find digital resources including photos, recordings, videos, and text. Sign up to create your own collections, including those found on the site and your own resources. Also, click Discover and use the search bar to find topics already on the site your class is studying like dinosaurs, explorers, black history, volcanoes, etc. Add annotations and develop quizzes. Easily share your creations or curated collections using social networking links provided. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable.

tag(s): animals (294), architecture (75), art history (102), aviation (40), black history (133), civil war (139), dinosaurs (43), explorers (64), images (263), inventors and inventions (80), Learning Management Systems (20), oceans (149), scientists (67), shakespeare (99), Teacher Utilities (198), volcanoes (55)

Learn how two ordinary bicycle mechanics changed the world with this in-depth look at the life of Orville & Wilbur Wright. Follow the timeline beginning in 1630 to learn about the first American Wright, Samuel, as he arrived in Massachusetts with the Puritans. Continue learning about the Wright family's settlement in Ohio and their work with bicycles leading on up to their famous flight at Kitty Hawk in 1903. Be sure to check out the interactive experiments, classroom activities, and lesson plans linked near the bottom of the page.

tag(s): aviation (40), flight (34), wright brothers (16)

Stay up to date with current elections and learn about the electoral process with this all-inclusive site from PBS Learning. View a short video to explore the constitution and how the government gets its power from its citizens. Scroll down the page and launch the Electoral Decoder to explore 58 past presidential elections. Another feature is KQED Call for Change Youth Media Challenge, where middle and high school students share their ideas on issues that matter to them. Be sure to scroll down the page to explore other election categories like Voting Rights, The Party System, a Current Issues and Debate toolkit, and more.

tag(s): debate (42), elections (82), electoral college (22), presidents (135), speech (69)

This toolkit provides materials for teaching social studies topics through inquiry methods. Scroll to the bottom of the page, and begin by choosing from the three-grade level bands to view available materials correlated to Common Core Standards. Each grade includes one annotated inquiry labeled with an asterisk. It is suggested to teach these inquiries first as they contain many suggestions and tips for teaching inquiry-based lessons. All inquiries include links to download in Word or PDF format.

tag(s): assessment (147), commoncore (73), professional development (385)

TPS Teachers Network is a social networking site for social studies and history teachers. The Library of Congress funded this as part of their Teaching With Primary Sources Program. Create an account to begin using features on the site (email and password required). Once enrolled, options include participating in a chat, adding friends, and searching using keywords. Use the search from the top right menu after logging in on the main page to find specific information topics such as primary source sets or political cartoons. Create albums on the site, including primary and secondary sources, and videos to easily share with students or fellow teachers. Be sure to check out the Help section by clicking the question mark at on the top menu bar when you first get started for Quick Tips to all sections of the site.

tag(s): bookmarks (43), primary sources (117), professional development (385), social networking (61), Teacher Utilities (198)

This excellent resource includes articles on teaching primary sources to elementary students, classroom materials, and information on the latest research on this subject. You'll also find Primary Source Sets, a Primary Source Analysis Tool, and more.

tag(s): primary sources (117)

The Los Angeles Unified School District offers a large selection of resources for teaching history and social sciences aligned to Common Core Standards. Choose from elementary, middle, or high school to find curriculum maps and lessons. One very useful portion of the site includes lessons created in partnership with Reading Like a Historian, reviewed here, that engage students in the creation of historical knowledge. Both sites are a must-visit for anyone teaching Social Studies!

tag(s): assessment (147), commoncore (73), professional development (385)

This collection of primary sources from the Library of Congress is organized around key topics and themes in American History. View Primary Source Set titles in alphabetical order from Abraham Lincoln through Women's Suffrage. Choose any topic to view Teacher's Guides and analysis tools including graphic organizers for students. Sort information to find materials meeting Common Core Standards, State Standards, or national organization standards.

tag(s): 20th century (62), authors (107), black history (133), civil war (139), constitution (96), evaluating sources (29), hispanic (36), history day (39), immigration (68), jefferson (19), lincoln (66), new deal (5), primary sources (117), Research (87), segregation (18), thanksgiving (24), veterans (27), washington (28), westward expansion (39), womens suffrage (52), wright brothers (16)

Bring the world to your classroom with this excellent list of virtual field trips. At the time of this review, there were nearly 40 field trips available! Take a trip to the Eiffel Tower, the Taj Mahal, or Rome. Choose any of the titles to visit the home site for the virtual field trip. Some of the titles have several virtual tours listed, i.e. 7 Wonders Panorama. Share any link via social media, email, or by using the code to embed in a website or blog.

tag(s): africa (148), cultures (180), museums (52), rome (37), virtual field trips (128), white house (16)

Commemorate Black History Month with 20 lesson plans and resources covering a variety of topics including racial discrimination, civil rights, and discussions about race in current events. Scroll through the page to view topics and grade level suggestions. Content ranges from a history of discrimination through current events such as debating race through the Trayvon Martin shooting. Some lessons also contain Common Core correlations.

tag(s): black history (133), civil rights (209), cultures (180), martin luther king (45), racism (79), video (266)