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In the news:
Fall 2008 National History Club Newsletter
Sentinel September 2009
NCSS Atlanta Conference Press Release
NCSS Annual Conference Flyer
DEMOCRACY IN ACTION!!
Thanks to your efforts, we have been successful in preserving accountability for teaching K-3 History and Social Science standards through the Standards Of Learning end of year tests. Thank you to all VCSS and VCSSSCE members, along with parents and friends of Social Studies education, who contacted members of the press, DOE and the state Board of Education. This was a team effort from start to finish. VCSS would like to send a special thank-you to Ken Bassett, President of VCSSSCE, for spearheading this mammoth task!
Make no mistake about this--had you not taken action, the 3rd grade test would have been eliminated--resulting in the virtual elimination of K-3 Social Studies.
Diane Neylan, President
VCSS
Thanks to support from the Virgina Council for Social Studies and other education organizations around the country, the Teaching Excellence and Achievement (TEA) program was able to recruit a fine group of US teachers for the 2009 professional exchange. They have selected 40 outstanding teachers from around the US to receive this year's travel grant, funded by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Exchange (ECA) of the US Department of State.
Their next round of grants will be awarded for travel in either spring or summer of 2011 and have doubled the number of available awards to 80. They have also added math and science teachers to the program.
For more information, please see the program flyer at http://eepurl.com/clfC. Applications are available at the TEA website, http://www.irex.org/programs/tea/tea_us.asp.\
Supreme Court Summer Institute for Teachers
Submit a Presentation Proposal for the 2010 NCSS Annual Conference
Would you like to be part of the 2010 NCSS Annual Conference in Denver? National Council for the Social Studies is soliciting presentations for its 2010 Annual Conference. The 90th NCSS Annual Conference is the major forum for social studies colleagues to share, interact, learn, and develop ideas, skills, and programs that increase their own successes and those of their students. Organized around the theme of “Vistas, Visions and Voices”, the conference will highlight the central role of social studies in our schools—preparing 21st century citizens who have learned from the voices of the past to envision an interdependent global society of the future.
The deadline for proposals is February 16, 2010.
For more information and to submit a proposal, please visit proposals.socialstudies.org
Conference Proposal Reviewers Needed
Help the 90th NCSS Annual Conference be a success by becoming an online proposal reviewer. Your critical input will help shape the conference program to serve you and your colleagues' interests and needs.
How it Works? Early in February 2010, you will receive registration instructions and guidelines about the review process. You will have about two weeks to read and rate between 10 and 15 proposals. All reviews are blind (you will not know who submitted the proposals you read). Multiple reviewers will rate each proposal. Then the Conference Planning Committee will make the final selection.
Reduced Registration: In appreciation for your work, you will enjoy a reduced registration fee for the Denver conference.
To become a Reviewer: Ask Diane Hart for a reviewer application and details: dianehart@mac.com
Professional Development for K–12 Educators
in Southwestern Colorado
Funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities
Stipends Provided to Cover Expenses, Including Travel
Hosted by the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center • Cortez, Colorado
Surrounded by the breathtaking scenery of the American Southwest,
learn how archaeology can help unlock the doors to the past and expose
your students to an intellectually stimulating field of investigation.
Peoples of the Mesa Verde Region:
Connecting the Past with the Present Through Humanities Research
Three-Week NEH Summer Institute
June 27–July 17, 2010
Limit: 25 educators
Seeking the Center Place:
The Mesa Verde Cultural Landscape and Pueblo Indian Homeland
One-Week NEH Landmarks of American History and Culture Workshop
August 1–7 or August 8–14, 2010
Limit: 40 educators per workshop
___________
For more information, go to NEHsummer2010,
call 800.422.8975, ext. 146, or e-mail us.
Application deadline is March 2, 2010 (postmark).
Prospective applicants can access information about
all 2010 NEH Landmark workshops and Summer Institutes, as well
as the online Participant Application Cover Sheet on the NEH Web site.
Exploring the Past: Archaeology in the Upper Mississippi River Valley
Walking beside thousand-year-old burial mounds, flaking raw stone into tools, learning how potsherds tell us about human behavior, and understanding how humans adapt to complex, ever-changing environmentsour 2010 Summer Institute features all this and more.
The Mississippi Valley Archaeology Center at the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse will offer a three-week NEH Summer Institute on July 12–30, 2010. This dynamic learning experience for K-12 teachers will explore how Native Americans and Euro-Americans have adapted to the Upper Mississippi River Valley over the past 13,500 years, and how archaeology leads to an understanding of how human cultures change and adapt through time.
The Institute will feature a one-day excavation experience, field trips to archaeological sites, hands-on laboratory and workshop activities, demonstrations, and classroom activities. Individual projects will help participants tailor the content to their own teaching areas. Participants receive a $2,700 stipend to help offset their expenses.
Application and other information on the Institute is available online at http://www.uwlax.edu/mvac/neh.htm. The deadline for applications is March 2, 2010
The Oklahoma National Memorial and Museum is sponsoring an annual Memorial Essay Contest. The quotations selected for the 2010 Student Essay Contest are from people with a personal connection to the bombing, and highlight the importance of courage, strength and hope in the decisions we make in our lives. Students in grades 5-12 may participate and are eligible to win cash prizes and an opportunity to be recognized at the Oklahoma House of Representatives in February. Information on how to participate in this contest may be found at www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org/secondary.php?section=6&catid=69.
For more information regarding programs or to reserve a traveling Hope Trunk filled with lesson plans and artifacts from the Memorial Archives, please contact Lynne Porter at 405.235.3313, 888.542.HOPE (toll free) or by email at lp@oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org
IT’S NOT TOO LATE TO PARTICIPATE IN THE VIRGINIA MOCK ELECTION!
GO TO THE FOLLOWING SITE FOR INFORMATION:
http://www.informeddemocracy101.org/virginia.html
THE GILDER LEHRMAN INSTITUTE OF AMERICAN HISTORY PRESENTS...
NEW PODCAST
John Demos on Religion and Witchcraft
in Colonial America
John Demos, Professor of History Emeritus at Yale and the author of several books on early America and witchcraft, discusses the role of religion and witchcraft during the Colonial Era. He places the Salem Witch Trials in context and presents a larger picture of how early Americans viewed the spiritual world and their place in it.
http://www.gilderlehrman.org/historians/podcasts/
NEW ONLINE EXHIBITION
John Brown: The Abolitionist and His Legacy
150 years ago, on October 16, 1859, John Brown and a band of followers, black and white, attacked the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. The raid was part of a larger plan to destroy the slave system by freeing and arming slaves, and it was one of the sparks that ignited the Civil War.
To see highlights from John Brown: The Abolitionist and His Legacy, an exhibition of documents and artifacts from the Gilder Lehrman Collection on display at the New-York Historical Society from September 15, 2009 to March 25, 2010, go to
http://www.gilderlehrman.org/collection/online/johnbrown/
Virginia Field Trips Guide is a tabloid formatted newspaper that is published twice each year - Spring and Fall - and distributed to over 1,200 schools in the state of Virginia including private schools and home schoolers. It is designed for Virginia teachers to use as a guide to museums and attractions that would like to host student field trips.
REQUEST Single Copy of current VFTG atwww.virginiafieldtrips.com - editor@virginiafieldtrips.com
2010 EDUCATORS TOUR TO CHINA
The CACBC has recently added a new scholarship program to help teachers who are attending the 2010 Educators Tour (A or B). There are total of three scholarships, $1,500, $1,000, & $500, each offered to a teacher currently teaching in k-12 grade. This Educators Tour is an excellent opportunity open to teachers, educational personnel, family and friends to explore China's art, geography and history. On a personal note it is also a once in a life time opportunity to broadening your own perspective of the world. Act fast, scholarship deadline is December 1, 2009.
For complete itinerary & details, including scholarships to help toward the cost of these two tours please take a look at the links to the left or at our website http://cacbc.org/Educational_Tours/
Jennifer Chan
Program Director
847-902-7229
jc120882@hotmail.com
2010 Educators Tour to China Itinerary A & B Summary
The following is an explanation of our 2010 Educators Tour to China if you have not received the first email. Chinese American Cultural Bridge Center is a non- profit organization since 1992. Offering two, tour A & B educators tour for 2010. Our special Tour B: 12-day journey from July 15 - July 26, 2010 will take educators (including all educational personal), their family and friends to Beijing, Nanjing, Suzhou, Hangzhou, and Shanghai for the all-inclusive price of $2,995. Tour A: 15-day journey from June 29 - July 13, 2010 will take educators (including all educational personal), their family and friends to Beijing, Zhengzhou, Kaifeng, Luoyang, Shaolin Temple, Xian and Shanghai for the all-inclusive price of $3,995.
Contact CACBC
Chinese American Cultural Bridge Center (CACBC)
2809 Embers Lane
Arlington heights, Illinois 60005
www.cacbc.org
National Teach-In on Veterans HistoryWednesday, October 21st, 2009 at 12pm EST
HISTORY ™, together with the Veterans History Project of the Library of Congress, will host a National Teach-In on Veterans History on Wednesday, October 21st, 2009 at 12pm EST. Educators and students nationwide can tune-in and view this LIVE webcast online at www.veterans.com. The webcast will be broadcast live from the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.
A panel of educators and veterans will answer questions from students via video, email, and a live audience. The teach-in will focus on the histories and stories of veterans, and will provide information on how communities nationwide can help preserve the stories of veterans and possibly submit them to the Library of Congress’ Veterans History Project. This event is part of the Take A Veteran to School Day initiative created by HISTORY. The panel features Robert Patrick, Director of the Veterans History Project, Terry Shima, WWII veteran and Executive Director of the Japanese American Veterans Assoc., Prof. Darlene Iskra, a US Navy veteran of Desert Storm and the first female commander of a US Navy ship, and Jonathan Bickel, a teacher from Eastern Lebanon County High School and part of a teaching-team on veterans history at his school. Dr. Libby O'Connell, Chief Historian for HISTORY, will moderate.
This fall, HISTORY will air a 5-part special series presentation entitled WWII in HDpremiering on November 15th. Each school or teacher that signs up for the October 21st webcast will receive a colorful WWII in HD poster and a field kit developed by the Veterans History Project of the Library of Congress. (These will mail in early October and are available while supplies last, so sign up now!) To register for this webcast and the Take a Veteran to School program, visit us at http://www.veterans.com. If you have any additional questions or feedback, contact us at veterans@aetn.com . There is no registration fee -- HISTORY has fully funded this event
Bring Asia to life in your classroom with publications from the Association for Asian Studies. The magazine Education About Asia (EAA) and the booklet series “Key Issues in Asian Studies” are invaluable resources for teachers in numerous subjects. The highly readable, engaging topics and attractive graphics of these publications will appeal to readers of all levels and are particularly appropriate for college-level instructors and secondary school teachers.
More information on EAA can be found at: http://www.asian-studies.org/EAA/index.htm
Arlington, VA - The Bill of Rights Institute is proud to announce the launch of our latest curriculum, Presidents and The Constitution, Volume I.
Victoria Hughes, President of the Bill of Rights Institute said, "We believe that the resources in Presidents and The Constitution will help students understand the powers delegated to the executive branch by the Constitution. Our goal is the development of informed citizens with knowledge of the Constitution, history, and current events."
Spanning over 200 years of history, Presidents and The Constitution, Volume I helps students explore how various presidents understood and exercised their constitution powers.
Each of the 15 lessons is tied to national civics, history, and social studies standards, containing content-rich background essays and research-based teaching strategies. Presidents and The Constitution, Volume I includes a complete answer key, critical thinking questions for students, thematic essays that introduce each unit, and additional educational resources.
This curriculum features an online component (www.ArticleII.org) which includes an interactive version of Article II of the Constitution, original thematic movies covering Federal Power, War, Slavery, Diplomacy, and Elections, and a President Did You Know? section.
Other highlights include:
- Interactive lesson plans full of innovative, hands-on activities
- Strong focus on primary source activities
- Contemporary applications highlighted with an "Issues Endures" portal in each unit
More information may be found at www.BillofRightsInstitute.org/PCPR.
A POWERFUL NEW WAY TO TEACH STUDENTS ABOUT THE WORLD
I hope you might you have heard about the residential Symposium on Slavery we are offering in October. Headed by VCU professor emeritus Phil Schwarz, it is especially oriented towards the needs and interests of Virginia teachers, and I wanted to make sure you knew of this opportunity. It is being funded in part by the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, which helps keep costs very low.
The link below will bring you to our symposium’s web page, which provides a full schedule and application form. I very much hope this will be of interest to you and your colleagues. Thanks very much for helping to spread the word.
TRAINING OPPORTUNITY INVOLVING TECHNOLOGY AND ECONOMICS
The Council for Economic Education (formerly NCEE) has recently launched a series of online training modules. For a limited time, they are allowing teachers to participate in the Virtual Economics module for free. By participating and completing the module, teachers will receive full access to the online module ($150 value), a copy of the VE CD-ROM ($100), and a certificate of completion which you can share with your administrators. The module takes 1-3 hours to complete, and is basically a "how to" on using VE. If you are interested, you can access the module via this link: http://www.councilforeconed.org/training/ve
American Public University and Harpers Ferry National Historic Park are
partnering together in order to recognize the 150th anniversary of John Brown’s raid at Harpers Ferry. The Harpers Ferry NHP will conduct a free, onsite teacher’s workshop July 12th – 14th. Workshop participants will be offered the option to take a three-credit graduate history course John Browns Raid at Harpers Ferry and its implications regarding abolition, the Civil War, and civil rights. This course is specially priced at $105. Registration for both ends on Friday June 26th and class size is limited. For more information and registration details, please visit www.apu.apus.edu/Natl_Park_Service_HF/. Should you feel the following professional development opportunity is worthwhile, please feel free to forward it to any interested parties.
I call on you to act quickly to prevent the exclusion of social studies from 3rd grade accountability measures by:
1. Use the talking points below to email, mail, or call EACH the decision makers through Wednesday, May 27th. (Contact information is attached). All VCSSSCE members are asked to contact 2 to 3 Board members each day over the next week.
2. Copy all of your email to bassetke@pwcs.edu to assist in our tracking/monitoring efforts.
3. Get this email to at least one=2 0other social studies education advocate and encourage them to act. Those present at Monday's meeting in Richmond are asked to share this email with those you committed to contacting.
Talking Points for Opposing the Elimination the 3 rd Grade Social Studies SOL Test
Introduce yourself and your interest in this issue as a social studies specialist, college educator, teacher, museum educator, or concerned citizen.
Provide a brief description of the value of the K-3 Social Studies curriculum:
The K-3 Social Studies standards provide foundational skills and knowledge for introducing students to:
· American heroes like George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Martin Luther King Jr.
· Patriotic symbols (U.S. Flag), principles that unite us as Americans
· Basic geographic concepts like cardinal direction and map skills
· Critical economic concepts like saving, distinguishing between needs and wants, and much more
These are just a few examples.
Key Points:
- If these standards are not tested, they will not be taught with due emphasis.
- Eliminating this test removes 4 years of accountability measurement with one stroke.
- Any decision to diminish the importance of these foundational social studies concepts threatens our civic competency and undermines Virginia’s national reputation as a leader in social studies education.
- Social studies education contributes to improved literacy through the development of academic vocabulary and the use of engaging non-fiction reading.
- Take time to consider fully the far reaching impact of this decision.There is no need to make this important decision hastily. There are other ways to address budget shortfalls that are not as damaging to the overall program.
- The SOLs were just recently revised and no consideration of reduced accountability was considered in the development of the revised standards.
Please attend the Board meeting if your schedule permits. For information on the meeting time and location visit: http://www.doe.virginia.gov/VDOE/meetings.html.
To keep up with the latest news on this effort, visit our new website at: https://sites.google.com/site/vcsssce/ . Take second to bookmark this site please. Expect friendly reminders from me during the next week. Email me with your questions.
Thank you,
Ken Bassett
President, VCSSSCE
Stratford Hall will offer a Symposium on Slavery for Virginia history and social studies teachers October 2-4, 2009. Phil Schwarz, Professor Emeritus in History at VCU, is heading up the program which will include an excellent array of presentations by well-known scholars. Meals and lodging will be provided. Visit their website at http://www.stratfordhall.org/learn/education/slaverysym.php for more information.
Dear Virginia Educators:
My name is Samuel Opechancanoe "Running Deer" McGowan, Mattaponi Tribal Historian. I hope you will take a few moments to review our educational programs focusing on the history of Eastern Woodland Indians. It is my mission to share the rich history of my people with Virgina school children and the public at large.
If you need financial assistance to book a program please look into scholarships from Target at the following link: http://sites.target.com/site/en/company/page.jsp?contentId=WCMP04-031819
Please join us in celebrating the official launch of our website and enjoy discovering our educational offerings and April's Newsletter. http://powhatanspeople.com/newsletter
Facing the Future is pleased to announce the release of Real World Math: Engaging Students through Global Issues. This two-part math resource engages students in learning foundational algebra and geometry through real-world data on global issues. The teacher’s guide and corresponding student workbook contain 15 lessons on topics such as climate change, population, and financial literacy. Each lesson in the teacher’s guide includes:
A complete lesson plan including an activity based ‘hook’ to engage students
Masters for student lesson handouts
Masters for practice worksheets
All lessons were inspired, researched, designed, reviewed, and pilot tested by educators in the field.
Learn more about this resource and download sample lessons.
www.facingthefuture.org
You can now make your travel arrangements for the 89th NCSS Annual Conference in Atlanta!
The Atlanta housing bureau is now accepting hotel reservations for the 2009 NCSS conference. You can go to www.socialstudies.org/conference/hotels and follow the link to make a reservation. We are offering a $30 rebate for all attendees who stay at least two nights at one of the four NCSS contracted hotels. We're also conducting a contest to win a free night at the Omni and Westin. Details about both are available at www.socialstudies.org/conference/hotels
You can also make flight arrangements and take advantage of the low fares now being offered to Atlanta. NCSS has partnered with AirTran, which offers nonstop service to Atlanta from more than 40 U.S. cities, to offer discounted fares during the conference. Go to www.socialstudies.org/conference/travel for details.
The conference will include more than 400 sessions, workshops, and poster presentations covering the latest in social studies education; such notable speakers as best-selling author Greg Mortenson, Lincoln scholar Eric Foner, peace educator and sister of President Obama, Maya Soetoro-Ng; panels with leading experts on teaching about the economic crisis, the Civic Mission of Schools, and international social studies education; clinics at the King Center, Jimmy Carter Presidential Library, and Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta; and tours of the African-American history and urban geography of Atlanta. Keep checking on www.socialstudies.org/conference for more details.
Conference registration opens June 1, 2009. Make plans now to attend the nation's largest and most comprehensive social studies professional development conference.
NCSS is pleased to pass on the information below about grant opportunities for history organizations that are available through the History Channel's Save Our History Grant Program. 2009-2010 Grant Program Announcement: Greetings from the Save Our History Team at History! We are thrilled to announce the launch of the 2009/2010 Save Our History Grant Cycle. The Save Our History Grant Program provides funding to history organizations that partner with schools on a local community preservation project. Since launching the Save Our History Grant Program in 2004, History, formerly known as The History Channel, has awarded over $1 Million Dollars in grants to organizations and schools large and small, urban, suburban and rural, in the northern, southern, eastern, western and central United States. During the 2009/2010 school year, History will again award grants of up to $10,000 to historical organizations to fund hands-on, experiential educational projects that teach students about their local history and actively engage them in its preservation. For guidel ines and criteria, important dates, and to apply, please visit www.saveourhistory.com, and click on grants. Applications are due June 5, 2009. Any questions can be directed to info@saveourhistory.com.
THE BILL OF RIGHTS INSTITUTE SPONSORS NATIONAL HISTORY DAY PRIZE
Students nationwide can compete for the
Constitutional Rights in History prize
Arlington, VA - The Bill of Rights Institute announced their collaboration with National History Day (NHD) today. The Institute is sponsoring the Constitutional Rights in History prize, awarded to an outstanding entry in any category from both the senior and junior divisions which documents and analyzes how individuals have exercised their constitutional rights throughout American history.
The 2009 theme for National History Day is "The Individual in History: Actions and Legacies." Students must demonstrate through their project how their chosen individual's actions had an impact on history.
Bill of Rights Institute President Victoria Hughes comments, "We have long been interested in the outstanding work submitted by students as part of National History Day. This prize enables us to recognize in a special way those entries which do an excellent job of analyzing the enduring importance of Constitutional rights in American history."
Each year more than half a million students, encouraged by thousands of teachers nationwide, participate in the NHD contest. Students choose historical topics related to a theme and conduct extensive primary and secondary research through libraries, archives, museums, oral history interviews and historic sites. The Bill of Rights Institute's prize will be awarded at the National Finals held June 14-18 in College Park, Maryland.
Selection of prizewinners is based on the National History Day Contest Guide judging criteria and the NHD-approved criteria supplied by the Bill of Rights Institute. For more information about History Day, go to http://www.nationalhistoryday.org/.
Summer Institute on Slavery, Civil War, and Reconstruction -- Pamplin Historical Park and Richard Bland College of the College of William and Mary are again hosting a joint summer institute at Pamplin Historical Park. Educators may pick one of three week-long sessions this summer. Housing for traveling teachers is available at near-by Richard Bland College. Teachers may earn three academic credits and will receive copies of course materials. The attached flier provides information on schedules, content and registration. Follow the link to the flier.
Presidential Classroom Scholarship Opportunities for Summer 2009
CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield is offering 20 merit-based scholarships in the amount of $1,000 each to 10 th, 11 th and 12 th grade students from Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia to attend the July 26 – August 1, 2009 Global Health and the Environment educational program in Washington D.C.
Parent Handbook
CareFirst Scholarships Updates
REMINDER: NOMINATE A TEACHER FOR HISTORY TEACHER OF THE YEAR
For the sixth year in a row, the Institute will select and honor the outstanding History Teacher of the Year in the United States. Each state winner receives $1,000 and a large archive of primary historical materials presented to his or her school library. The national winner receives an additional $1,000 and a trip to New York City for the awards ceremony.
Nomination deadlines may vary state to state. Please contact your state coordinator for information. To find the coordinator for your state, visit:
http://www.gilderlehrman.org/teachers/student8.html
Proposal Reviewers Wanted: Help shape the 89th NCSS Annual Conference in Atlanta by becoming an online proposal reviewer.
George Mason University’s Center for Economic Education Presents… Econ Shorts Winter to Spring 2009 Come play with economics in a relaxed setting. You will strengthen your understanding of economics principles and gain strategies and classroom-ready lesson plans. All workshops feature a letter of participation (that you can submit for recertification points), and copies of all lesson plans used in the workshop. The attached flier has all the details on workshops and registration.
Join dozens of educators in the TV studios of WHUT – Howard University Television for a Teacher Training Workshop on teaching Lincoln in the classroom. WHUT and Howard University’s Department of History are hosting this multimedia Workshop and luncheon on Saturday, January 24 from 10 am until 2 pm at WHUT - Howard University ( 2222 4th Street, NW). The workshop is FREE with registration. For additional information, e-mail lincolnwhut@gmail.com or call 202-806-3059.
In addition to the Bartlett Award, you may also be interested in learning more about a few other educational programs at the National Environmental Education Foundation:
Classroom Earth is a new program at NEEF for high school teachers. It is designed to increase the environmental literacy of high school students by providing teachers with a website, http://classroomearth.org, with a searchable Resource Library of environmental information. Classroom Earth also offers the National High School Challenge, a grants competition recognizing the innovative ways teachers include environmental content in their curricula. Environmental Education Professional Development grants are also available. For a list of the 2008 winners and their projects visit http://www.neefusa.org/programs/ce_winners.htm.
NCSS would like to share the attached article "The Civic Standard: An Alternative to No Child Left Behind" by Merle S. McClung that was published in the December 3rd edition of Education Week. Characterizing No Child Left Behind as a fundamentally misguided approach, the article harkens back to the role of public education as seen by the founding fathers and makes the case for a present day education policy centered around renewed commitment to the civic standard as an alternative to NCLB.
The Bill of Rights Institute Announces New Material,
Property Rights In America: Yours, Mine, or Ours?
Arlington, VA - The Bill of Rights Inst itute announces the release of Property Rights in America: Yours, Mine, or Ours?, a new resource that provides teachers with a week of lesson plans to educate students about the foundations and on-going importance of property rights. The 40-page book will help students understand some of the rights that serve as the foundation of so many other rights enjoyed by Americans.
Property Rights in America provides teachers with fresh, exciting materials that connect the Constitution to students' lives. Lesson content focuses on economic philosophy, the Founding documents, Supreme Court cases, intellectual property, and ways technologies like the Internet can challenge property rights.
Students analyze various primary sources, including the Magna Carta, Second Treatise of Civil Government, by John Locke, Property, by James Madison, The Rights of the Colonists, by Samuel Adams, and numerous Supreme Court Cases. These lessons develop the skills necessary for future study and research on the history of America.
The creation of Property Rights in America was made possible through generous grants from the Philip M. McKenna Foundation and the20Aequus Institute.
OKLAHOMA CITY NATIONAL MEMORIAL & MUSEUM
The Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum was created to honor those who were killed, those who survived and those changed forever by the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. The Memorial and Museum are dedicated to educating visitors about the impact of violence, informing about events surrounding the bombing, and inspiring hope and healing through lessons learned by those affected.
Many of today’s students do not remember the 1995 incident, either because they were too young or they were not born yet. Therefore, an integral component of the Oklahoma City National Memorial’s mission is to educate our youth on this important event in United States history. The Memorial has developed many state and national educational programs to assist in teaching students the impact of violence, the senselessness of using violence as a means to effect change, the importance of personal responsibility, and the value of hope.
Oklahoma City National Memorial Essay Contest
The Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum is pleased to announce its eighth annual Student Essay Contest. To coincide with the election of a new president, this year’s quotes will focus on the words of Presidents Washington, Roosevelt, Eisenhower and Reagan on the importance of attitude, reputation and principle in determining the future of our lives and our country. Students in grades 5-12 may participate and are eligible to win cash prizes and an opportunity to be recognized at the Oklahoma Capitol in February. The deadline to submit essays is January 30, 2009. For more details on how to participate in this contest please visit our website at www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org/secondary.php?section=6&catid=69.
The Hope Trunk- An Offering of Positive Education
This traveling trunk is filled with artifacts from the Memorial Archives as well as exercises and lessons to supplement the core curriculum while teaching the lessons of April 19, 1995. There is no cost to receive the Hope Trunk and can be kept for a period of two weeks. To reserve a Hope Trunk, please visit our website at www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org/secondary.php?section=6&catid=190.
Distance Learning:20First Person- Stories of Hope
Bring history alive by scheduling a First Person presentation. Family members, survivors and rescue workers share their remarkable stories of how tragedy was transformed into hope. Students can experience history first hand and have the opportunity to ask these courageous individuals questions through our distance learning program.
For more information regarding these programs, please contact Lynne Porter at 405.235.3313, 888.542.HOPE (toll free) or by email at lp@oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org. Please help us share this information with your colleagues by forwarding this email.
C-SPAN Brings Students Inside the White House During White House Week, December 14-20
WHAT: Teachers can bring history alive for students with C-SPAN’s White House Week, a 7-day television event that kicks off on December 14 with the premiere of a new 90-minute feature documentary, The White House: Inside America's Most Famous Home.
White House Week takes teachers and students beyond the velvet ropes to the private residence sharing exclusive interviews with the First Family, the White House staff and renowned presidential historians. Viewers will see the private rooms of our First Families, such as the Solarium, where President Ronald Reagan recovered from the 1981 assassination attempt, as well as the newly-refurbished Lincoln Bedroom.
Students will learn that as America grew in power and presence, Theodore Roosevelt similarly grew the White House by building the original West Wing. They will also learn how Harry Truman added his namesake balcony, and how Jackie Kennedy began a First Ladies’ tradition of restoring rooms with historical furniture and art.
The latest in a series of original productions from C-SPAN, The White House: Inside America’s Most Famous Home was produced with assistance from First Lady Laura Bush and the White House Historical Association. It provides the kind of educational resource that has made C-SPAN a nationally renowned information source. Recorded in high-definition video to capture the beauty of the White House, this presentation airs on C-SPAN in standard definition and letterbox format.
WEB To complement White House Week, C-SPAN Classroom will offer free resources for
SITE: teaching including lesson plans, worksheets, and discussion questions, addressing:
American History Alive's founder Dr. Bruce M. Venter is proud to announce the winner of 1776: The Special Edition by David McCullough, raffled off at VCSS's 44th Annual Conference in Richmond last month. The lucky teacher was Wendy Hymons of Suffolk Public Schools. Wendy is a lead social studies teacher for K-5 grade levels. Anyone stopping by American History Alive's exhibit had an opportunity to win this book which is loaded with facsimile 18th century documents like letters, maps and handbills. It was a popular prize. American History Alive would like to thank all the conference attendees who stopped by our booth and we look forward to seeing you again at next year's conference.
The NCSS Curriculum Review Task Force has posted a draft of the revisions to the NCSS Curriculum Standards for comment. This document represent the most recent efforts of the task force, and is a work in progress. The task force asks for input from the NCSS membership and other social studies professionals as it continues its work. You can see the latest draft of the work of the Task Force and comment at: http://www.socialstudies.org/standards/taskforce/fall2008draft
The October issue of the Sentinel is now available in both MS Word and Adobe Acrobat formats.
October 24, 2008
National Financial Literacy Challenge
For Your Information:
This fall, the U.S. Treasury Department will again conduct the National Financial Literacy Challenge. The National Financial Literacy Challenge is a 35-question, voluntary test offered to high school students via this web site. It provides an opportunity for teachers to recognize high school students for their financial literacy. As a public service from the U.S. Department of Treasury's Office of Financial Education, it is offered at no charge. For more information on how to participate, please go to National Financial Literacy Challenge.
TIME FOR SCHOOLS TO REGISTER FOR THE 2009 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC BEE
The National Geographic Bee is a school competition for students in any grades four through eight. Excite your students about the world around them and reward those who excel in their knowledge of geography by giving them a chance to compete in a school geographic bee.
Schools registered by October 15, 2008 will receive their contest materials in early November. The final deadline for registration has been extended to December 12, 2008. School level Bees can be held up to January 16, 2009. Go to www.nationalgeographic.com/geographicbee to get complete information and other dates and deadlines.
Principals must register their schools to receive the contest materials necessary to conduct a school level Bee. All we need is a letter on school letterhead, signed by the principal, with the $70 registration fee (check or purchase order made out to National Geographic). The registration is not refundable, so make sure the school registers only once. If paying by purchase order, note that when the school sends payment on the PO it must be clear that the check is payment on a PO that was sent earlier so that the school will not be entered twice in the system.
Mail the registration letter and fee, in the same envelope, to National Geographic Bee, National Geographic Society, 1145 17 th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20036-4688.
We look forward to many more schools giving their students the opportunity to excel and also be encouraged to know more about the world in which we live and share, by participating in the National Geographic Bee.
U.S.-China Teachers Exchange Program
The National Committee on United States-China Relations is now seeking applications for an exchange program for teachers in American and Chinese schools. This is an unusual opportunity for schools and districts wishing to begin or to strengthen Chinese language and=2 0culture programs and for teachers wishing to live and teach in China.
Since the beginning of the program during the 1996-97 school year, we have had American teachers from across the country in “key” (selective) secondary schools throughout China--in Beijing; Chengdu (Sichuan); Dalian (Liaoning); Anqing, Hefei, and Tongling (Anhui); Hohhot (Inner Mongolia); Luoyang (Henan); and Changzhou, Jiangdu, Nanjing, Suzhou, and Yangzhou (Jiangsu). We anticipate continuing to work in some of these cities 2009.
The American teachers in China teach English as a foreign language. The Chinese teachers, all of whom teach English as a foreign language in China, may teach Chinese history, language, and culture, and/or English as a second language at participating American schools.
The National Committee sponsors orientation programs in the United States and in China during the summer before the exchange year. For American teachers this covers “survival” Chinese, the teaching of English as a foreign language, and an introduction to China and its schools. The orientation session for Chinese teachers covers the teaching of Chinese as a foreign language, instruction on American teaching methodology, and an introduction to the United States and its schools.
Those interested in the exchange should write to tep@ncuscr.org or send a letter to the Teachers Exchange Program, National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, 71 West 23 rd Street, Suite 1901, New York, NY 10010, for more information and an application package. The application deadline for the 2009-20010 school year will be March 2, 2009.
The U.S.-China Teachers Exchange Program is funded by a major grant from the Freeman Foundation.
Being An American Essay Contest - Now Nationwide!
High school students - and teachers - nationwide have the chance to win significant cash prizes and a free trip to Washington, D.C. by participating in the Bill of Rights Institute's 2008-09 Being An American Essay Contest that explores the rights20and responsibilities of citizenship.
Easy to include in your curriculum, the essay contest will allow your students to:
- Explore Civic Values
- Describe American Ideals
- Connect with the Constitution
Contest Starts September 2, 2008 and Ends December 1, 2008!
More details on the 2008-09 Being An American Essay Contest, including contest rules, submission details, FREE lesson plans and background information are available at www.BeingAnAmerican.org or call the Bill of Rights Institute at 800.838.7870, ext. 12.
C-SPAN would like to tell you about an opportunity for middle school and high school students (grades 6-12). C-SPAN's "StudentCam" is a national video documentary competition. This year C-SPAN asks students to create a 5 to 8 minute video documentary that addresses an issue of national significance. Students must present more than one point of view and include C-SPAN video in their documentary.
In this historic election year, StudentCam offers a great way for all students, not just those of voting age, to get involved in the presidential election. With this in mind, the theme of this year's competition is: A message to the new President: What is the most urgent issue for the new president to address and why? The deadline is Inauguration Day -- January 20, 2009.
We are awarding a total of $50,000 in cash prizes. The top winning videos will air on C-SPAN, and can be viewed at www.studentcam.org. ; Next spring, the C-SPAN bus will also visit a number of the schools with winning videos.
For more information about C-SPAN's StudentCam, please visit our web site at: www.studentcam.org/. ; C-SPAN also offers FREE resources for educators. For more information about C-SPAN Classroom log on to www.c-spanclassroom.org.
Second Annual American Freedom Essay Contest
Share Your Experience and Let Facing the Future Send You to a Conference
Continue your professional development by sharing your knowledge of social studies and sustainability education with other teachers – and have your conference costs reimbursed! As a Facing the Future Peer Educator, you will join a community of educators and present workshops about your teaching experiences using Facing the Future curriculum resources.
"The conference went very well and the teachers were extremely impressed . . . I was very proud to support Facing the Future and the work that you do. It was wonderful to see the teachers’ faces light up."
-Michelle Balfe-Keefer, Peer Educator, Tillamook, OR
Facing the Future is a nonprofit organization dedicated to educating young people to think critically about global issues, sustainability, and positive solutions. A goal of the Peer Educator program is to provide more teachers with the opportunity to learn about global issues and sustainability education by mobilizing the knowledge and skill of teachers experienced with Facing the Future curriculum resources.
Peer Educators present workshops about their experiences using Facing the Future curriculum resources to other teachers at education-related conferences and professional development meetings at schools and districts. In return, Facing the Future will reimburse registration and pre-approved travel costs for conferences, provide a toolkit with resources for conference applications and presentations, and furnish materials for Peer Educators to give to attendees.
First Freedom Student Competition
Virginia Holocaust Museum Teacher Education Workshop
We would like to call your attention to an article and six-part video interview with Holocaust survivor Alexander Lebenstein, who lives in the Richmond area. Mr. Lebenstein, the only Jewish person from his hometown of Haltern am See, Germany, to survive the Holocaust, once felt such hatred for his homeland that he fantasized about bombing it. But in recent years, after a new generation of students reached out to him, he has developed a healing relationship with the town. Now, he's about to return to Germany to be made an honorary citizen of Haltern, where a school is being named after him. Times-Dispatch special correspondent Alberta Lindsey and photographer/videographer Alexa Welch Edlund interviewed Mr. Lebenstein at length about his experiences, and we think the result is something that many teachers and students, particularly in history classes, would be interested in. Here is a link to the video series and online version of the story: http://www.inrich.com/cva/ric/news/holocaust.html
The Patrick Henry Legacy program recently helped sponsor the production of a documentary, Liberty or Death, about Patrick Henry and the American Revolution. Through the generosity of our donors, we are now able to provide a DVD copy to teachers who can make use of them in their classrooms - absolutely free of cost or obligation. For more information, please visit our Liberty or Death web page at
http://www.patrickhenrycenter.com/pages.aspx?pageid=22
or contact Samantha Hagan, Program Director at samanthaphc@aol.com or 703-691-2301.
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