Best Practices | TeachingHistory.org

Welcome to Best Practices

What can a photograph of Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932 reveal? Donald A. Ritchie looks at the people captured in this photograph.

The Election of 1932: Photographs of FDR

In Examples of Historical Thinking

Take a look at artifacts from the past—what might they be? Teachers model questioning objects in this Smithsonian exhibit on inventions.

Smithsonian American Art Museum: "Inventing a Better Mousetrap"

In Examples of Historical Thinking

Photo, Students on Stage at Holton Arms Schoo c. 1920-1950, Library of Congress

A 5th-grade teacher teaches historical context through roleplaying activities.

Historical Context and Roleplaying

In Teaching in Action

Spotlight on Elementary Education

Oral histories and interviews are a unique form of historical documentation. This guide by Linda Shopes offers an overview of the various ways oral history can be integrated into classroom discussions. Though some of the techniques will have to be adapted for elementary students, the ideas Shopes presents are extremely useful. FIND OUT MORE »

Example of Historical Thinking

Scholars, students, and teachers model historical thinking

Scenes in the Life of Harriet Tubman

Can you trust a biography? Historian Tiya Miles analyzes an 1869 biography [...] »

Sourcing a Primary Document

See sourcing in action, as a historian reads a document about the Scopes [...] »

Intertextual Reading of Two Primary Documents

A student demonstrates thinking aloud reading two documents.

Pockets from the Past: Daily Life at Monticello

What do the contents of pockets say about their owners? TAH teachers model [...] »

Paintings About Segregation

Textbooks describe segregation in a few pages, but these artists share [...] »

Teaching in Action

Teachers demonstrate promising teaching practices

Using Maps as Primary Sources

A 4th-grade teacher shows strategies for encouraging and supporting student [...] »

Of the Student, For the Student, By the Student

Sixth graders in Prince William County film their interpretations of the [...] »

Using Primary Sources

Strategies for analyzing primary sources

Critically Analyzing Information Sources

This source from Cornell University's Olin and Uris Libraries includes [...] »

Thinking Like a Historian

Learn how to teach your students historical thinking with this informative [...] »

Teaching with Textbooks

Techniques for promoting historical inquiry

The Grammar of History Textbooks, Part I: Language Analysis

The language of history textbooks challenges English language learners and [...] »

Children’s Voices from the Civil War

Help students identify with the past via children who lived through the [...] »

Using Historiography to Analyze the Mexican-American War

Allow students to see that history as we know it is interpretation, [...] »

The Grammar of History Textbooks Part II: Questioning the Text

Turn your textbook into a conversation by scanning its language for biases [...] »

Learning Menus: Textbooks a la Carte

Turn your students into 'master chefs' by using learning menus that allow [...] »