It may not feel much like fall in most of the U.S., but even in the absence of autumn leaves, school doors are opening and educators are preparing for--or beginning--a new year of teaching.
In that spirit, we'd like to welcome you to another year of teaching using primary sources from the online collections of the Library of Congress! The Library offers millions of primary sources for free to all on its Web site, loc.gov, and its education program supports teachers as they use these powerful items effectively in the classroom.
Just like my colleagues I have a number of favorite items within the collections. However, instead of focusing on one item I'm going to focus on a question: "What makes a quilt pretty?"
I am a folklorist in the American Folklife Center and I catalog and describe unpublished ethnographic collections from our Archive, so they can be found and explored by users.
The Library of Congress has the locks of many famous and not so famous Americans within its collections. To me, hair is so personal and individual--literally, a part of you--that you can really imagine a living, breathing person attached to it rather than a historical figure
One of the advantages the Library of Congress offers is the range and diversity of its collection. Thus, the inherent value of a manuscript collection is enhanced by collections of a comparable nature in the Manuscript Division and other custodial divisions.
Kate Stewart wants to encourage teachers to incorporate oral histories and interviews to teach recent history. It may be easier to analyze photographs and text, but I think listening to someone tell a personal story can be so much more memorable and engaging.
