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Posted by: Stephen Wesson
Part of the power of teaching with primary sources comes from their immediacy—eyewitness accounts of historic events can have an emotional impact that secondary sources might lack. This is especially true of primary sources relating to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
Posted in: Contemporary United States (1945-present), Culture and Folklife, Lesson Ideas
Posted by: Sara Suiter
Challenge your students to seek out the other side of the story -- select primary sources that represent multiple perspectives.
Posted in: Lesson Ideas, Teaching Strategies
Posted by: Sara Suiter
Hook your students with historic sights and sounds that are close to home: Primary Sources by State.
Posted in: Lesson Ideas, Teaching Tools
Posted by: Stephen Wesson
Can science teachers use primary sources? They certainly can. One approach is to use primary sources to examine how scientific discoveries were treated in popular culture.
Posted in: Lesson Ideas, Science Technology and Math
Posted by: Stephen Wesson
"O, fatal day. O, noble victim. Treason has done its worst. The President has been assassinated." This hand-written diary entry, dated half past 10 o'clock PM, April 14, 1865, concludes simply, "I have just come from near the scene, it is too True."
Posted in: Civil War and Reconstruction (1861-1877), Lesson Ideas, Presidents
Posted by: Stephen Wesson
Learn more about the "Battle Hymn of the Republic".
Posted in: Civil War and Reconstruction (1861-1877), Fine and Performing Arts, Lesson Ideas
Posted by: Stephen Wesson
Want to incorporate newspapers into your classroom activities? Look no further than Chronicling America.
Posted in: Lesson Ideas, Teaching Tools
Posted by: Sara Suiter
Planning to use the Primary Source Analysis Tool? Find and share strategies for activating students' prior knowledge.
Posted in: Lesson Ideas, Teaching Strategies
Posted by: Stephen Wesson
Students can explore Thomas Jefferson's rough draft of the Declaration of Independence to think about the story behind the edits.
Posted in: Government and Law, Lesson Ideas, Revolution and the New Nation (1764-1815)