Sewall-Belmont House Museum Collections

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Annotation

The Sewall-Belmont House is a National Woman's Party-run museum on women's equality movements in the U.S. A portion of their collections are now searchable online.

Using the site's search engine, you can easily find printing blocks for the newspaper the Suffragist, as well as cartoons by Nina Allender. Other items may be a bit more difficult to find, but the collection includes keys, voting cards, a jail door pin (worn by suffragists jailed for their activism), and more.

If you aren't sure what to look for, try either Click and Search or a selection of Random Images. Each time you access the images, a different set will be pulled from the collection. As for "click and search," you can choose a letter for any of an object's data fields (object type, creator, subject, etc.), and browse through corresponding drop-down lists. Select anything that catches your eye, and the site will bring you to that particular artifact's page.

Among these three ways of accessing the site content, you should be able to uncover a treasure trove of women's rights sources to share with your classroom.

Center on Congress

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Annotation

The Center on Congress, led by former U.S. Representative Lee Hamilton, exists to help the public better understand the role of Congress and the public's relationship to it. Their audience includes the general public, teachers, and journalists.

Your first thought as an educator may be to click on Teacher Resources. However, this section is more of a gateway to content in Learn About Congress than a section unto itself. That said, Classroom Resources does include a tool for paring down the site's educational materials to the appropriate grade level and topic, as well as best practices videos of lessons in action.

Learning About Congress has the widest variety of content useful to the K-12 educator. Resources include approximately 8 interactive modules, more than 20 short animated videos, a collection of live-action video clips of "insider views," more than 30 brief audio presentations on issues ranging from disaster relief to bilingual education, and a variety of relevant reading material. The spoken narration on the interactive modules tends to be dry, and would more than likely only be of use in the higher grades. However, the animated videos are enthusiastically narrated, making them more appropriate for a wider range of viewers. A free Citizen's Guide helps to connect daily life to the actions of Congress. The guide is not unlike a textbook in terms of language and graphic design. As such, its format should be readily accessible and familiar to the average student.

Depending on your computer access and comfort with online activities, you may also be interested in the Virtual Congress where your students can create members of Congress, move their avatars through digital recreations of key locations, and participate in a "multi-player" setting proposing legislation. Another option is Teaching with Primary Sources, a joint effort between the Center on Congress and the Library of Congress, providing separate entry points for teachers and students. These offerings require free registration.

Other items of interest on the site include results of public and political scientists' surveys on Congress' function, beginning in 2002; a blog concerning topics relevant to current Congressional issues; and Congressional FAQs. Teachers can also apply for the American Civic Education Teacher Awards.

Divided Allegiance

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Question

How can a person born in the U.S. to one U.S. citizen parent and one non-U.S. citizen parent (divided allegiance) be defined as a 'natural born citizen?'

Shouldn't a 'natural born citizen' be defined as being born with allegiance to the U.S. only?

Answer

Throughout the history of the United States, there has been a consistent evolution of who a citizen is and how a citizen is defined, as the United States Constitution has been both decided upon and modified on various occasions to expand the definition of who is a citizen and guarantee equal rights for all individuals. In the late 18th century, a citizen was defined as a white, male landowner, and African Americans could legally be held as slaves. The 1857 Dred Scott v Sandford Supreme Court case affirmed this definition. The Oyez Project (2005–2011) puts forth that in this case the Court found that "no person descended from an American slave had ever been a citizen." Six years subsequent to this decision, President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared "that all persons held as slaves within the rebellious states are, and henceforward shall be free."

The 14th Amendment guarantees that a person born in the United States is thereby a citizen, even if both parents are illegal immigrants.

This change was reflected in the Constitution of the United States in the 14th Amendment (1868), which states "All persons born or naturalized in the United States . . . are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside," as well as the 15th Amendment (1870), which puts forth that "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude." However, the next half century still saw roughly half of the country's population without full citizenship rights, as it was not until 1920 that the 19th Amendment was passed that granted women suffrage. To answer the particular question posed above, simply put, the 14th Amendment guarantees that a person born in the United States is thereby a citizen, even if both parents are illegal immigrants. However, this is not without controversy, and it has become a political issue, as citizens born to illegal immigrants have derisively been referred to as "anchor babies." For more on this issue, try searching the New York Times using the phrase "anchor babies." However, American children of foreign parents can be dual citizens depending in part on the rules of the other country. This status is conferred when "an individual is a citizen of two countries at the same time." The website newcitizen.us describes potential benefits to being a dual citizen; among them are "the privilege of voting in both countries, owning property in both countries, and having government health care in both countries." However, the U.S. Department of State puts forth that the U.S. government "does not encourage" dual citizenship "because of the problems it may cause," particularly that "claims of other countries on dual national U.S. citizens may conflict with U.S. law, and dual nationality may limit U.S. Government efforts to assist citizens abroad." To answer the initial question in regards to allegiance, allegiance may be more the way a person feels rather than actual law. On this topic the U.S. Department of State notes that "where a dual national is located [where the citizen resides] generally has a stronger claim to that person's allegiance."

Bibliography

Newcitizen.us. "Dual citizenship." 2011 (accessed on April 8, 2011).

U.S. Supreme Court Media. "Dred Scott v. Sandford," 60 U.S. 393 (1857). The Oyez Project (accessed on March 31, 2011).

U.S. Department of State. "US Department of State Services Dual Nationality" (accessed on April 8, 2011).

U.S. Immigration Support. "US Dual Citizenship." 2010 (accessed on April 8, 2011).

Divining America: Religion in American History

Teaser

Use this essay on Jewish immigration to flesh out a unit on the Civil War or immigration.

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Description

In this essay, authors Jonathan D. Sarna and Jonathan Golden of Brandeis University explore the impact Jewish immigration had on American history and culture.

Article Body

While the story of Jewish immigration to America often begins in the late 1800s, this rich story dates back to the beginning of the nation. We have included this essay in the lesson plan review section because it clearly identifies lesson topics, briefly presents teachers and students with a rich and nuanced overview of Jewish history, and provides resources to further explore the topic. The authors of this essay, Jonathan D. Sarna and Jonathan Golden of Brandeis University, explore how the evolution of Jewish customs and practices in America can be examined under the broad lens of assimilation. One scholarly debate summarized in this essay concerns the role of Old World and New World influences in shaping the distinct Jewish tradition that evolved in America. For teachers wishing to develop a historical inquiry lesson around the topic, this is a useful and flexible framework. In addition to viewing the Jewish experience in America through the broad lens of immigration, this resource also connects the Jewish experience with specific events across American history. One of the additional resources for instance, provides primary documents discussing the roles of Jews during the Civil War. Rather than a ready-to-go lesson, this resource is a great collection of the pieces needed for building lessons: background information, potential topics, inquiry questions, and links to primary sources. While the site links to many promising primary document collections, teachers will need to spend time identifying, selecting and modifying these documents. For additional information on adapting documents look to this guide. Use this essay to organize your thinking about Jewish Immigration or more specifically as the basis for a lecture or overview. For those teachers looking to teach this topic through documents, the essay includes key questions for students to explore using primary sources and links that make great starting points to find documents. And be sure to explore the other essays in this “Divining America: Religion in American History” series that offers more than thirty of these rich essays on key topics.

Topic
Jewish Immigration
Time Estimate
Varies
flexibility_scale
1
Rubric_Content_Accurate_Scholarship

Yes
Extensive bibliography provided.

Rubric_Content_Historical_Background

Yes
Centerpiece is rich background essay.

Rubric_Content_Read_Write

No

Rubric_Analytical_Construct_Interpretations

Yes
Includes questions that require interpretation.

Rubric_Analytical_Close_Reading_Sourcing

Yes
However, only yes if students read documents in the “additional resources” section.

Rubric_Scaffolding_Appropriate

Yes
Complex history succinctly explained for busy teachers.

Rubric_Scaffolding_Supports_Historical_Thinking

No

Rubric_Structure_Assessment

No

Rubric_Structure_Realistic

Yes
Provides several entry points into a curriculum (e.g. this lesson could be part of a unit on immigration or the Civil War).

Rubric_Structure_Learning_Goals

No