History on Tap

My copy of Smithsonian Magazine arrived in the mail yesterday, and it focuses on the 150th anniversary of the Civil War.  So I decided to see what kinds of online resources they had that might be of use in a classroom.

If you visit their website, they have a timeline which is organized by year, as well as collections from the portrait gallery on various Civil War related topics.  Each topic includes a photo as well as relevant information.  There is also a link to the National Postal Gallery, which has some information on Civil War letters.  The portrait gallery collections I think would be useful to share with students, especially since it includes all of the information you’ll need for each piece.

Just a reminder that tomorrow, June 8, at 4:15pm we’ll have a “What’s New” workshop for grades 3-6 to introduce curriculum changes that will be in effect next year.  We’ll meet at Wilson High School in the library.

These guys have great workshop.  There is a list of sample lesson plans, although I only included the ones relevant to USI.   There were many more designed for USII.  Registration information is at the bottom of the post. 

OLD DOMINION UNIVERSITY CENTER FOR ECONOMIC EDUCATION

People’s choices have consequences that lie in the future.  Can teaching about US History using economic theory help our students to make better choices in their futures?  In the country’s future?  Absolutely!

 Focus: Understanding Economics in US History: Grades 6-12

Saturday, April 10, 2010  9:00am – Noon

Virginia Beach Higher Education Center

Mysteries abound in U.S. history.  Students, acting like detectives, solve these mysteries by searching for clues and sifting through evidence in an effort to gain new insights into familiar subjects.  Using the interactive lessons from Focus: Understanding Economics in US History, students use economic reasoning to engage and learn.  These 39 lessons use a unique mystery-solving approach to teach U.S. economic history to your high school students. The activity-based lessons will give you a new, refreshing way to meet your U.S. History content goals, and infuse eye-opening economics material at the same time.  Lessons are correlated to the Virginia Standards of Learning. Each participant will receive the curriculum guide with 39 lessons, a $60.00 value, FREE.   Worth three recertification/professional development hours.  Registration information at the bottom of this email.  

 A sampling of some of the 39 lessons in the curriculum.

Lesson 5: Indentured Servitude: Why Sell Yourself into Bondage?

Lesson 6: Specialization and Trade in the Thirteen Colonies

Lesson 7: The Costs and Benefits of American Independence

Lesson 8: Problems Under the Articles of Confederation

Lesson 9: The US Constitution: Rules of the Game

Lesson 11: How Did Cotton Become King? The Economics of Cotton and Everything Else.

Lesson 12: Francis Cabot Lowell and the New England Textile Industry

Lesson 16: Andrew Jackson and the Second Bank of the United States

Lesson 17: Free the Enslaved and Avoid the War

Lesson 18: Why Did the South Secede?

REGISTER ONLINE at the Virginia Council on Economic Education’s workshop page http://www.vcee.org/workshop/home and search by SPONSORING CENTER (ODU) for more information and to register for the workshops. *If you do not immediately receive a confirmation email then your registration did not go through.   Try again, or email Ruth Cookson ASAP at rcookson@odu.edu.

A couple of workshops through ODU…

Old Dominion University Center for Economic Education

 NEW REGISTRATION PROCEDURE:  REGISTER ONLINE at the Virginia Council on Economic Education’s workshop page http://www.vcee.org/workshop/home and search by SPONSORING CENTER (ODU)  for more information and to register for the workshops. *If you do not immediately receive a confirmation email then your registration did not go through.  Try again, or email Ruth Cookson ASAP.

 Recession Economics: Basic Lessons for Helping to Understand the Current Crisis

Wed., March 24, 2010 4:30 – 6:30pm 

Virginia Beach Higher Education Center

Should we worry about inflation? What should the role of government be?  How does fiscal policy work?  This session will demonstrate basic lessons to help your students better understand current economic events.  Lessons will focus on Civics and Govt. topics such as monetary and fiscal policy, the role of the Federal Reserve and unemployment, and inflation.  Each participant will receive classroom materials and lesson plans.  For Teachers Grades 6-12. Free.  Refreshments provided.

 Focus: Understanding Economics in US History: Grades 6-12

Saturday, April 10, 2010  9:00am – Noon

Virginia Beach Higher Education Center

        Help your students to not just understand “what happened” but “why it happened” using active- learning lessons from the Council on Economic Education.  These 39 lessons, ranging from early Native Americans property rights to the economic problems faced in the 1970’s, use a unique mystery-solving approach to teach U.S. History to your high school and middle school students. Lessons are correlated to the Virginia Standards of Learning. Each participant will receive the curriculum guide Focus: Understanding Economics in US History – a $50.00 value – FREE.  Registration is limited to 25 teachers. This program made possible with support from the CEE with funding from the U.S. Dept of Education Office on Innovation and Improvement and the Virginia Bankers Association Education Foundation.  Coffee and danish provided.  USI.1, USI.5, USI.6, USI.7, USI.8, USII.1, USII. 4, USII.6, USII.9, VUS.1, VUS.2, VUS.3, VUS.6, VUS.8, VUS.9, VUS.10, VUS.15

The 6th grade content review workshop will be held on Tuesday, March 23rd, at 4:15pm.  It will be in the library at John Tyler Elementary.  I need an RSVP from everyone attending by Friday, March 19th.  There are some materials I need to purchase this weekend, and I need a head count.  I will only have materials for those who RSVP.  Send your RSVP to mary.jones@pps.k12.va.us.

I uploaded two powerpoints to my Slideshare account.  (http://www.slideshare.net/sita0519/presentations)  One contains photos of Williamsburg and Jamestown, the other one contains photos of Yorktown.  I took these pictures during the Colonial Williamsburg Teacher Institute a couple of years ago.  I know it’s not timed very appropriately, but you can download the powerpoints and save them for review.  There is a brief descriptor in the notes section of the powerpoint for each photo, telling you what the photo shows. 

Since the files are large, I can’t email these out.  I’m also not going to embed them in the blog, since I don’t want to slow it down.  But you can download them to your desktop or a jump drive.  Hope they’re useful!

Diana Davenport shared this interesting link with me.  It’s a virtual tour of the White House.  The site shows you a floor plan, with certain rooms highlighted, providing more information on that room.  Some rooms (such as the Oval Office) also offer a 360 degree panoramic of the room.  You can look at the main part of the building, as well as the East and West Wings. 

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30932789/ns/politics-white_house

The Technology Department has been working hard on  Social Studies Resources for the district.  They are now posted in the Y drive on the shared network.  There are resources for grades K-3, and 5-6.   (Sorry 4th grade, you guys had quite a few resources so they concentrated on areas that were lacking.)

To access the materials, go to My Computer on your desktop.  Under Network Drives, click on the Y or Media Drive.  You should then see 2 folders (one for SS, one for Science) and you’ll find all the materials the TRT’s have put together in the SS folder.  If you have a question, or need help finding the drive, contact the TRT in yoru building.  Hope it helps!

Sojourner Truth has become the first African American woman to be honored with a bust in the US Capitol.  The statue was unveiled today. 

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/04/28/sojourner.truth/index.html

This might be a good way to show your students how the things they study in history are still relevant today!

Congratulations to Heather McCormick at James Hurst Elementary!  Heather has been chosen to serve on the 2009 SOL Assessment Review Committee for USI.  This year, the committee will meet in Glen Allen, VA.  Way to go Heather, we’re glad you’ll be there representing Portsmouth!