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
Hope for America

Do you want to use humor to your advantage in the classroom? Hope for [...] »

D-Day
Title graphic, American Experience: D-Day

Did you know that the gear a paratrooper had to carry could weigh as much as [...] »

Say it Plain: A Century of Great African American Speeches

Hear 12 renowned speeches by African Americans, including Marcus Garvey's [...] »

History Quiz

Test your history knowledge
Which Witch?

Words constantly evolve and change over time. What did "witch" mean to these [...] »

Pre-Modern Pop Music

Before "pop" music reigned supreme, jazz and ragtime amassed great public [...] »

The Great Black Hope

These African American athletes drew crowds with their skill and [...] »

Beyond the Textbook

Question textbook narratives
Coal and the Industrial Revolution
Photo, At the close of the day, January 1911, Lewis Hine, Library of Congress

How can the story of coal help students understand the nature of today's [...] »

Slavery
Photo, "An ex-slave," 1897, New York Public Library Digital Gallery

What was it like to be a slave in 19th-century America? Accounts contrast. [...] »

Causing the Civil War
Postcard, Train Load of Cotton for Export, South, 1902-1903, NYPL

Did King Cotton cause the Civil War? Or should you look further?

[...] »

National Resources

Federal teaching resources
Federal Emergency Management Agency
Silkscreen, Disaster Broadcast. . . , 1941-1943, Edward T. Grigware, LoC

When the weather's not on our side, FEMA's there to lend a hand.

[...] »
National Air and Space Museum
Cigarette card, Imaginary A plane, c. 1957-1958, NYPL Digital Gallery

Fly me to the moon became a famous Frank Sinatra line. NASA also made this a [...] »

U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum

Commemorate the lives of the millions of people murdered during the [...] »

Ask a Historian

Quebec City Fire
Detail of lithograph copy of John Murray, View of Quebec City, 1845

Were the great fires of 1845 the result of arson or accident?

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