Pre-colonial, Colonial
"Beyond Pilgrim Hats and Turkey Hands: Using Thanksgiving to Promote Citizenship and Activism"
--Erica M. Christie and Sarah E. Montgomery
The authors share four strategies to help teachers reinvigorate their Thanksgiving lessons with rich social studies content aimed at promoting citizenship and activism.
Historic Sites and Your Students
--William E. White
Field trips to historic sites, such as to the house in Colonial Williamsburg of Revolution-era scholar George Wythe, offer students a tangible and physical connection to the past.
The Dutch are Missing in the American Curriculum
--Anne Claunch
The Dutch contribution to America’s economic system and cultural fabric was highly significant, yet history textbooks barely mention their early seventeenth-century influence on America.
Tracking a Hurricane: A Mapping Exercise in Real Time
--Donna Kay Mau
A classroom activity (in geography/history/current-events) for September of any year. Other items recall the "mighty storms" of Galveston (1900) and St. Croix (1772)--which a young islander, Alexander Hamilton, witnessed and wrote about (see Handout p. 16).
This URL downloads all 16 pages of Middle Level Learning as a black-and-white pdf of about 3.0 MB: --> read more »
Yellow Fever in Philadelphia, 1793
--Sandra W. Moss, M.D.
Book review of "An American Plague" by Jim Murphy. Also in this issue: Handouts and teaching ideas, such as handout/graph "On the Trail of an Epidemic: Yellow Fever in New Orleans, 1845-1860" and "Connect-the-Dots: Making Meaning from Historical Evidence" by Chris Edwards, which discusses smallpox and the Columbian Exchange. --> read more »
Venture Smith’s Autobiography and Runaway Ad: Enslavement in Early New York
--Alan J. Singer
Students compare primary sources (included as handouts) to validate historical information. The ad is from the "New York Gazette," April 1, 1754, published in the slave-holding colony of New York.
This URL downloads all 16 pages of Middle Level Learning as a pdf of about 1.2 MB:
* http://members.ncss.org/mll/28/MLL28.pdf
American Revolution:Three Lesson Plans for Critical Thinking
--Stephanie Wasta
Three lessons that bring good resource material into the classroom and engage students in thinking critically about history and historical sources. Includes handouts and instructions for playing the Colonial Era children's game "Skin the Snake."
This URL downloads all 16 pages of Middle Level Learning as a pdf of about 1.0 MB:
* http://members.ncss.org/mll/25/MLL25.pdf
Ben Franklin’s Evolving View on Race and Ethnicity
--Steven S. Lapham and Drew Saunders
A wise man observes, learns, and grows. Also includes a related classroom activity about Ben's interesting personality: "Will the Senate Confirm 'Karl B. Fennin'?" by William E. Amburn.
This URL downloads all 16 pages of Middle Level Learning as a pdf of about 1.0 MB:
* http://members.ncss.org/mll/22/MLL22.pdf
State v. Tribe: How the Indian Gaming Controversy Began
--William L. Hewitt and Barbara Beaucar
This theme issue also includes related items -- "From Furs and Wampum to Slot Machines and Megadollars," "Does Gaming Hurt or Help?", and "The Streets are Paved with Silver," etc.
This URL downloads all 16 pages of Middle Level Learning as a pdf of about 1.0 MB:
* http://members.ncss.org/mll/18/mll18.pdf
