Category: Education – Children
It isn’t really news to those of us in the history field that schools today are cutting back on history lessons in favor of the math and reading skills that appear on standardized tests. But I was happy to see this issue get some national mainstream exposure on CNN’s “Perry’s Principles” in an article called “Subject Matters: Why students fall behind on history“. (more…)
Scary numbers of people know very little about the events surrounding the American Revolution. For those of us in the history world, this probably does not come as a huge shock. But in light of the cuts being made to history and social studies programs across the nation in favor of subjects on the standardized tests, this information is starling and worth discussing. (more…)
Well, it’s that time of year, when ghosts and goblins roam the streets. Thanks to hit television shows like Ghost Hunters and Ghost Adventures, ghosts are enjoying extreme popularity these days. As Halloween nears, many historic sites and towns offer ghost tours. I took a ghost walk around Historic Annapolis last Saturday night, and my companion and I both felt it was a wonderful way to learn the history of that historic town. (more…)
I am taking history courses right now to earn a second bachelor’s degree in history, and even in the 100 level classes, they are having us do history research online. We have had to find sites that are acceptable for collegiate research and sites that are not acceptable. (more…)
Here is an example of an online exhibit based around one specific concept that works very well. The HerStory Scrapboook catalogues articles from The New York Times’ coverage of the women’s suffrage movement of the early twentieth century. The site provides summaries and links to the articles about the movement, divided by years (1917, 1918, 1919, and 1920) as well as providing both a prologue and epilogue with additional links. (more…)
So I admit that I am not the most qualified person to voice an opinion on this, which is why I’d love to hear your opinions. This New York Times article from last month talks about the Texas Board of Education and their vote to make their history curriculum standards much more conservative. This affects not just the children of Texas, but the children of the nation, as Texas is a large state and a large purchaser of textbooks. This means that textbook companies will tailor their book content to Texas’s standards. (more…)
I worked as a docent at Homewood Museum last weekend and had the opportunity to interact with what I hope is a future historian. A little girl came to the house museum with her father, and I approached them to see if they had any questions.
“Yes,” the little girl said earnestly, “I do. How old is this house?”
“How old do you think it is?” I asked her.
“Really really old,” she replied. (more…)
Last weekend, I was once again reminded what an important role living history can play making an event both exciting and educational. “The Redcoats Are Coming” was a weekend-long encampment of both British and Continental soldiers on the grounds of Jerusalem Mill Village in Kingsville, MD. We had crowds of about 650 each day (which allowed us to cover our expenses and make some profit too!). Visitors could wander the camps and talk to the re-enactors – the soldiers, as well as their wives, and children. Craftsmen were also on hand to demonstrate their trades. Kids and adults alike learned how to fence and march in line, did laundry by hand, played checkers, helped to cook to stew over the fire, browsed through the sutlers’ colonial wares, and exclaimed over straw mat beds inside each soldier’s tent. (more…)
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