Spotlight on Elementary Education

History has been shaped and influenced by the out come of ancient trials—such as the Trial of Socrates in 399B.C.—to Rosenberg Trial in the 1950s. This site offers a comprehensive look at 50 prominent court trials throughout history and its resources can be used to give young learners an introduction to the history of the modern judicial system.

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Website Reviews

Find quality websites & primary sources
Still Going On: Celebrating The Life and Times of William Grant Still
Gelatin Silver, Portrait of William Grant Still, 1949, Carl Van Vechten, LoC

Learn about famous composer William Grant Still through this online exhibit [...] »

Daguerreotype Portraits and Views, 1839-1864
Daguerreotype, William Cassiday Cattell, holding large Bible, 1848-1860, LoC.

Examples of early photographs preserve the likenesses of cities, famous [...] »

Illinois Digital Archives
Photo negative, Playing with the pet cat, Dec 1942, Jack Delano, LOC

Primary sources on Illinois history with an emphasis on residential and [...] »

History Quiz

Test your history knowledge
Exploration and Innovation

Crossing vast oceans required specialized tools and knowledge. Discover more [...] »

Who Won the War (of 1812)?

How do textbooks from different countries treat the War of 1812?

[...] »
Dance, But Not That Way . . .

Do you know how to dance the Sleigh Bell Polka? Learn the proper way to [...] »

Beyond the Textbook

Question textbook narratives
Panic of 1873
Panic as a Health Officer Cleaning the Streets

Beginning in Europe, the Panic of 1873 quickly spread to the United States [...] »

20th-century Jewish Immigration
Dry plate negative, approx. 1920-1930, Jewish colonies and settlements, LOC

Divided into two waves of immigration by textbooks, the continuity of [...] »

The Tet Offensive
Eddie Adams, Vietcong shooting prisoner cropped

American historians have depicted the Tet Offensive as the turning point for [...] »

National Resources

Federal teaching resources
Team Ships

Learn the basic steps to building and commissioning a Navy vessel.

[...] »
National Museum of the American Indian

Make sure that your students know not all Native Americans lived in tipis or [...] »

U.S. Army
Photo, The 101st Airborne troops move out of Bastogne. . . , 1944, U.S. Army

Increase your knowledge of the people, past, and technology of the United [...] »

Ask a Historian

Supreme Court Nominations
Reagan and his nominee Sandra Day O'Connor

How many "yeas" and "nays" on the path to being a Supreme Court justice?

[...] »