Primary sources have tremendous power to complicate seemingly straightforward stories, and are an essential part of every National History Day project.
While researching an article for the January 2016 issue of NSTA's The Science Teacher Magazine, I ran across a blueprint of R. Buckminster Fuller's Geodesic Dome Home. I was reminded that analyzing drawings and photographs of historic structures can launch an investigation of real-world engineering practices.
Five 2015 Summer Teacher Institute participants reflect on what happened when they brought primary sources and analysis strategies into their own classrooms.
Various national awards celebrate authors in January, and January can also be a great time to learn more about hundreds of writers and their work by exploring videos of author talks from past National Book Festivals offered by the Library of Congress.
Jefferson's search for a tool to measure distances he traveled in a horse-drawn carriage was just one of his many efforts to quantify and logically describe the natural world. He also wrote a report on weights and measures, kept copious weather records, and created a chart detailing the fruits and vegetables sold at a vegetable market throughout the year. A closer look at Jefferson’s notes about odometers presents a range of possibilities for engaging students in mathematical reasoning and problem solving.
Most of us know Thomas Jefferson as the primary author of the Declaration of Independence. Fourteen years later, on July 4, 1790, Jefferson followed up with another revolutionary document, a report on weights and measures.
On Monday, January 4th, the Library of Congress announced Gene Luen Yang as the 2016-17 National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature. The position raises national awareness of the importance of young people’s literature as it relates to lifelong literacy, education, and the development and betterment of the lives of young people.