History on Tap

First we’d like to welcome everyone back!  We hope you had a restful winter break!

Second, the professional development schedule for the 2nd semester is now online.  Please visit http://www.pps.k12.va.us/uploadedFiles/Teacher_and_Staff/Staff%20Development%20Guide%20Second%20Semester.pdf and check that out.  Don’t forget to RSVP to Mrs. West if you plan on attending a workshop. 

Third, I have information for another summer institute.  The Institute of International Education and the Korea Foundation have posted their application for the 2009 Korean Studies Workshop for American Educators.  This is the workshop I attended this past summer.  You must be a secondary social studies teacher, so only those who teach grades 6-12 are eligible.  It was a wonderful workshop and I enjoyed it immensely.  It is a fully funded trip-I only needed spending money.  For further information and to access the application, check out http://www.iie.org//Admin/Website/WPreview.cfm?CWID=768.  And if you have any questions about the trip, please don’t hesitate to ask!  I love to talk about my trip!

I have info for two new summer institutes.  The first is with Colonial Williamsburg, and is a week long institute, usually in July.  There is a scholarship to apply for, which will cover meals and lodging, though you are responsible for getting to Williamsburg.  You also receive a $200 stipend.  I attended this institute  last summer, and it was wonderful.  If you have any questions about it, please ask!  The application can be found at http://www.history.org/history/teaching/tchsti_scholarship.cfm.

The second institute is with the Virginia Geographic Alliance.  (Sarah went to Ecuador with this group this past summer, and two teachers from Simonsdale went to England with this group.)  They will have a trip from June 29th-July 16th that begins in New England, and goes through Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, and Quebec.  Check out http://www.geography.vt.edu/worldlandscapes/2009/ for more information.

The Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation is excited to announce its 2009 Summer Teacher Institute!  Information on the Institute and the application process is available at http://historyisfun.org/teacher-institute.cfm.  Lodging, meals, a transportation stipend and materials are provided at no charge to participating teachers.

Participants will demonstrate 17^th- and 18^th- century skills in costume while interacting with visitors, take part in interactive SOL correlated sessions, receive a kit of reproduction artifacts to use in the classroom, develop lesson plans and earn up to 35 certification points! 

If you have questions about the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation 2009 Summer Teacher Institute, or need more information, please call Heather Hower, Assistant Director of Outreach Education and Special Services, at (757) 253-4454 or e-mail at teacher.institute@jyf.virginia.gov.

The Ashbrook center is offering free week long summer institutes for teachers at Ashland University in Ashland, Ohio. 

There are many institutes to choose from, all dealing with American history.  All meals and housing will be provided by Ashland University.  At the conclusion of the institute, teachers will receive a stipend for $500. 

Applications are on-line, and are due by March 1, 2009.

For more information, check out http://teachingamericanhistory.org/institutes/.

The National Endowment for the Humanities has posted their list of 2009 Summer Seminars.  They range from 2-6 weeks and participants receive a stipend to assist with travel costs based on the length of their seminar. 

Most seminars take place at universities within the United States.  Several are international seminars.  You can request information for as many seminars as you wish, but you may only apply for 1. 

Applications are due by March 2, 2009.  Visit http://www.neh.gov/projects/si-university.html for more information.

Seminars are limited to thirty participants by competitive application. Preference is given to new applicants.

Questions? E-mail seminars@gilderlehrman.org or call 646-366-9666.

 The Goethe-Institut coordinates a two week institute to Germany during the summer.  K-12 Social Studies educators are eligible to apply. 

Travel expenses, some meals, and lodging are paid for by partners of the Goethe-Institut.  Participants are responsible for other charges (such as those that occur during free time, and incidental hotel costs.) 

The application is due in February.  It must be received by the Goethe-Institut by February 12, 2009.  Applicants will be notified of their status by mail during the latter half of March.

According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  They host a summer institute for teachers every year in Cleveland where they show you how to incorporate music into your lesson plans.  Unfortunately I am not posting to tell you how to apply for an all expenses paid trip to the summer institute. 

I am posting to tell you that they have many lesson plans on line from previous institute participants.  There are 47 total, many of which could be used in the Social Studies classroom.  Lesson 1 for example, is entitled “Keep on Pushing:  Popular Music and the Civil Rights Movement.”  Lesson 19?  “Runaway Slaves.”  Lesson 41?  “Teaching Economics Through Rock and Roll:  Unemployment.” 

The lessons are very detailed and they all are very interesting and something I think students would enjoy.  You might want to share with the English teachers in your building as well.  There are several lessons incorporating music and particular authors or stories. 

I encourage you to check it out.  And although you may not be able to fit these ideas in right now, they might be fun projects to do after SOL’s!  Rock on!

The Keizai Koho Center and the National Association of Japan-America Societies are sponsoring a ten day fellowship to Japan in the summer of 2009.  Teachers in grades 8-12 who teach Economics, Social Studies, and History are eligible. 

Air transportation, accomodations, and some meals are covered.  The itinerary includes time in Tokyo, as well as a visit to one destination outside of Tokyo. 

There is a homestay with a Japanese family during this fellowship!

Applications are due by February 28, 2009 and applicants will be notified in writing by March 31, 2009.

Check out the link above for more information and the appliation procedure and requirements.

Sarada and I in our hanboks.

Seoul Olympic Stadium

North Korean guards watching us at the DMZ