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Archive: July 2012 (7 Posts)

One woman watches as another examines with a magnifying glass an ornate, decorative image on a printed page

Bringing Music and Primary Sources Together: A Teaching with Primary Sources Round Up

Posted by: Cheryl Lederle

Popular songs often carry political or social messages or commentary on the events of the day. Music offers teachers a lens to explore the culture of a time and to help students understand issues of importance during that period in history. The Library of Congress archives a vast repository of sheet music and song sheets, and many of these rich primary sources are available online. Several Teaching with the Library of Congress blog entries point to music-related primary sources and ways to use them with students.

One woman watches as another examines with a magnifying glass an ornate, decorative image on a printed page

Supporting Writing with Images

Posted by: Cheryl Lederle

Teachers agree that ease and fluency in writing come with frequent practice for a variety of purposes, whether making personal connections, analyzing information or constructing an answer to a document-based question. One way to incorporate more writing in the classroom is to create assignments using high-impact primary source images from the Library of Congress. Their real-world authenticity can rivet students’ attention, spark inquiry and draw them into a writing topic or task.

One woman watches as another examines with a magnifying glass an ornate, decorative image on a printed page

Sharing Summer Teacher Institute Discoveries

Posted by: Danna Bell

In his June 1st post celebrating the beginning of the Teaching with the Library of Congress blog's second year of publication, Stephen Wesson pointed out that for teachers and students the Library of Congress “represents a source of discovery and learning unlike any other. Last week when I joined twenty-seven K-12 educators at the second of five 2012 Summer Teacher Institutes in Washington, D.C., I did indeed witness nonstop discovery and learning in a unique and awe-inspiring setting.