Bringing in primary sources, such as oral histories to supplement the textbook is essential, and oral histories are a particularly valuable tool for cultivating historical empathy and nurturing a sense of caring among students.
Did you realize the humanities understood as the study and interpretation of languages, history, literature, jurisprudence, philosophy, comparative religion, history of art, and culture along with the fine and performing arts are considered worthy of support by two federal agencies?
Mission US is a multimedia project that immerses players in U.S. history content through free interactive games.
In Mission 2: “Flight to Freedom,” players take on the role of Lucy, a 14-year-old slave in Kentucky. As they navigate her escape and journey to Ohio, they discover that life in the “free” North is dangerous and difficult. In 1850, the Fugitive Slave Act brings disaster. Will Lucy ever truly be free?
Frederick Douglass (1818–1895) was a former slave who became the greatest abolitionist orator of the antebellum period. During the Civil War he worked tirelessly for the emancipation of the four million enslaved African Americans. In the decades after the war, he was the most influential African American leader in the nation.
Begin by reading "‘Art [and History] by Lightning Flash’: The Birth of a Nation and Black Protest," which provides important background about the film.
On July 4, 1803, the territory of the United States doubled in size. At the conclusion of negotiations between Napoleon Bonaparte and President Thomas Jefferson, the nation acquired the Louisiana Purchase for $15 million -- approximately 3 cents per acre of land.
Just as the society around us shapes the way we think and act, so did it shape the people of Salem, Massachusetts in the 1600s. Look at the websites listed below, and, on a separate sheet of paper, answer the questions about life in Puritan New England. Note that many of the websites contain interactive images. Click on the images to open them, and mouse-over the image to discover more about it.