Best Practices | TeachingHistory.org

Welcome to Best Practices

What is the key line in Franklin D. Roosevelt's second inaugural address? Historian David Kennedy gives his answer.

FDR's Second Inaugural Address

In Examples of Historical Thinking

Photo, Final Day, April 11, 2005, *styler, Flickr

National History Day identifies secondary sources along with suggestions for their use.

Secondary Sources: What Are They?

In Using Primary Sources

Photo, Is Anybody Home?, 2006, Pink Sherbet Photography, D Sharon Pruitt, Flickr

Excite students by introducing them to primary sources that answer questions they have—not just questions you pose to them.

Primary Sources as Windows into the Past

In Examples of Historical Thinking

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

Paintings About Segregation

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

Creative Memo on Lay's Products

Potato chip marketing—how a luxury item became an everyday U.S. food.

Women's Suffrage Cartoon

How does a political cartoon use popular beliefs about women to make its [...] »

The Election of 1932: Photographs of FDR

What can a photograph of Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932 reveal? Donald A. [...] »

The Salem Witch Trials

Absolving the guilty and punishing the innocent. Historian Elizabeth Reis [...] »

Teaching in Action

Teachers demonstrate promising teaching practices

Integrating Language Arts and History

Elementary teacher Karen Eanes hooks her students with engaging historical [...] »

Students in the Community

Is a school an island? James Liou talks about working to integrate schools [...] »

Using Primary Sources

Strategies for analyzing primary sources

Evoking the Past

When visiting historical sites, sometimes you need a visual/emotional "hook [...] »

Making Sense of Documentary Photography

Textbook illustrations are often overlooked as historical evidence.

Teaching with Textbooks

Techniques for promoting historical inquiry

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 I: Language Analysis

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

Opening Up the Textbook

Make the most of your textbook—engage students in close reading and analysis [...] »

Building a Conversation between Textbooks, Students, and Teachers

Class discussion and personal inquiry builds an interactive relationship [...] »

Learning Menus: Textbooks a la Carte

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