We’re constantly updating DocsTeach.org — the online tool for teaching with documents from the National Archives. Here are some recent highlights. Newly Added Primary Sources Hollywood Ten – We recently added court documents related to the screenwriters, producers, and directors who jeopardized their careers by taking a stand against the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC). Several […]
via Primary Source Highlights on DocsTeach — Education Updates
History is an important window for all students to view the world through. As a child, I learned about American history and ancient civilizations. I was not interested in history as a student until we began to learn about more contemporary events that occurred in the 20th century. As a fifth-grade teacher of social studies […]
Introducing undergraduate students to the importance of archival research and materials by encouraging them to become citizen transcribers for the National Archives as part of their coursework
Our popular teaching website, DocsTeach.org, has a new look and updated features!
via Introducing the Newly Redesigned DocsTeach.org — Education Updates
Posters and cards distributed on the homefront provide an engaging way to introduce students to World War I.
The Second Amendment might be used to teach plain writing, historical context, and fundamental primary source research.
via Examining the Second Amendment Using Plain Writing and Historical Context — Education Updates
I recently attended our state technology conference. One of the sessions talked about Google and filter bubbles. This was very interesting to me. As a school library media specialist who teaches and promotes information literacy, now I’m learning that some web companies are “filtering” the information for a searcher based on some criteria. Here is a video from TEDTalks that explains “filter bubbles” and the harm it may cause.
http://www.ted.com/talks/eli_pariser_beware_online_filter_bubbles
With all the information available on the internet, how can the user discern the difference between a credible website and a hoax?
Fortunately there are website evaluation checklists and forms that ask specific questions about the website. In addition, there are lesson plans available to teach students how to evaluate websites.
Website Evaluation forms:
Kathy Shrock: http://www.schrockguide.net/critical-evaluation.html
http://library.acphs.edu/PDFs/Website%20Evaluation%20Checklist.pdf
Lesson Plans:
ReadWriteThink: http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/inquiry-internet-evaluating-pages-328.html
Dutchess County Board of Cooperative Education Services (Poughkeepsie, NY) Duchess BOCES
http://www.dcboces.org/saltpointcenter/library/classprojects/websiteevaluation
Pensacola Catholic High School: http://www.pensacolachs.org/webpages/capplications/index.cfm?subpage=417792
Three essential primary sources that every educator show know are: The Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration and the National Park Service. Brief annotation about each source is listed below.
Library of Congress (LOC)
The Library of Congress has thousands of primary sources for the general user and the researcher. Searching through the many collections can be challenging, but the rewards are worth it. Most of the information is digitized, which means the information can be viewed from the computer or mobile device. Some information and/or collections can be seen at the Library of Congress. Information on how to access those files can be found on the website.
Educators can click on “Education” and have access to lesson plans and primary source sets from the Library of Congress collection. These lessons can be searched by the Common Core State Standards or particular state standards. All of the lesson plans and primary sets can be downloaded.
The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)
The National Archives and Records Administration has historical documents for all types of users. This site also has information from the military and some general government documents. Most of the information is digitized and can be viewed from the computer and/or mobile device.
Educators can click on “Teacher Resources” and be able to access thousands of lesson plans and activities using the historical documents from the National Archives. Registration is free and highly recommended.
National Park Service (NPS)
The National Park Service has information on national parks and historic sites of interest to the general user. Educators can click on “Teacher” and be able to access curriculum materials and lesson plans using some of the national parks. Also, Educators can click on “Discover History” and be able to access lesson plans using historic sites designated by the National Park Service. Educators should also click on “Travelers” in the “Discover History” tab, and explore additional national historic sites and landmarks.
I learned about this tool during the summer. This research tool, appropriately named “The Ultimate Research Assistant” does more than list websites on a specific topic. This tool “reads” the information from each website and extracts the main points or themes from each link, and creates a report summarizing the information from each website. Once the report is generated, a student could export the report and begin to write his/her research paper using the results from this report. A word of caution: the report summarizes the information from the website. I would recommend the student visit each website and read the entire content for him/herself.
Advanced searching allows the user to refine his/her search to only internet sites, educational sites, governmental sites, and other subject specific sites.
This tool is free and easy to use and understand.
For additional information on how this tool works, click on this YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6cAx73ISmU
Explore The Ultimate Research Assistant. It can be a useful tool for research.
Lifelong Quest 
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