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Finding Local History Resources
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What Really Happened? Comparing Stories of the First Thanksgiving
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Spotlight on Elementary Education

History is made by those who are unafraid to push the envelope and redefine the society in which they live. Encourage your students to examine the men and women who worked to make America what it is today with this creative activity. FIND OUT MORE »

Lesson Plan Reviews

Evaluate key elements of effective teaching Watch the INTRODUCTORY VIDEO
The Boston Massacre: Fact, Fiction, or Bad Memory

Help students think about where evidence for history comes from.

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Organizing History Through Images

In this lesson, students will organize photographs both chronologically and [...] »

English Language Learners

Instructional strategies and resources for ELL
Using Primary Sources with English Language Learners

Primary source analysis activities can help include English Language [...] »

Uncovering Human Agency
Photography, My Desk, 15 March 2006, Flickr CC

Use this strategy to help students discover historic actors—the people, [...] »

Teaching Guides

Explore new teaching methods and approaches
Structured Academic Controversy (SAC)

Are classroom discussions about winning the argument or about understanding [...] »

Well-behaved Women [and Men] Seldom Make History

Help your elementary school students get more out of historical biographies [...] »

Incorporating 20th Century US Environmental History in the 6-12 Classroom

This guide consists of curated primary and secondary sources to help [...] »

Free Speech Teaching Guide 3: The Problem of National Security Secrets

This guide explores the relationship between secrecy and the First Amendment [...] »

Adapting Documents for the Classroom: Equity and Access

Documents are riddled with difficult vocabulary. Don't be afraid to adapt [...] »

Ask a Master Teacher

Tall Tales: The West as Legend
Lithograph, ...Jesse James, Donaldson Lith. Co., 188-?, Library of Congress

Wrestling bears, surly cowboys, vultures circling lone travelers. . . Find [...] »