Whether students are interested in examining a historic revolution, exploring social reactions to a particular event or idea, research the origins of a reform movement, or identify a topic that includes elements of all three Rs, the Library of Congress has online resources to support their 2025 National History Day project.
The Library's vast digital resources offer enormous possibilities— so many that it can feel overwhelming and it can be hard to know where to start. Experienced reference staff and subject specialists at the Library create research guides that address a variety of topics to help patrons find what they are looking for.
Today in History, a resource from the Library, offers teachers essays about historic events in combination with related digitized primary sources from the Library’s online collections. Entries also include additional resources and search strategies for discovering more in the collections.
Analyzing two different versions of "You're a Grand Old Flag" allows students both to hone their listening skills and to consider how music changes over time and how word choice may shift depending on historical and cultural contexts.
Many of the online collections at the Library of Congress include expert guidance about what researchers, including student researchers, might find in the collection, including a summary, collection scope, highlights, and rights and access. Taking a moment to explore those expert resources can help students decide whether or not to further examine the collection, reducing frustration and improving search results.
Using primary sources related to the women's suffrage movement, the blog includes information literacy strategies for understanding how persuasive arguments are constructed.
In the March/April 2025 issue of Social Education, the journal of the National Council for the Social Studies, our “Sources and Strategies” article highlighted a political cartoon that appeared in the September 22, 1909, issue of Puck Magazine. The image, “Lights and Shadows”, contains a wealth of opportunities for students to explore connections between the environment, politics, economics, and public health.