Urges that history be based on sound historical scholarship. Suggests that the most important key to good history is provided by well-trained history teachers who understand the dynamic nature of historical inquiry and help students develop a critical perspective of the past. Recognizes that women and minorities have been significant actors in…

Discusses "Seeds of Change," a Columbian quincentenary exhibition at the Smithsonian Institution. Describes the rapid transformation of the Americas after contact with the Europeans. Reports that the exhibit explores the destruction of the native population by disease, war, slavery, the ongoing decimation of the rain forest, and the…

Presents a lesson plan for teaching the history of the southeastern United States from the time of the first Spanish explorations to the time of colonization. Includes preparatory activity for students, a shared reading, suggested questions for classroom discussion, and a session utilizing maps. Discusses decimation of the society and debate…

Discusses difficulties in teaching about the Columbian quincentenary. Suggests ways to approach the subject with sensitivity, such as focusing on Columbus the individual or as a part of western European effort to understand the world. Addresses intercultural contact, women's history, world history, and pre-Columbian American culture. Lists…

Presents a high school lesson plan on the Casco Bay Treaty, an agreement between Native Americans and colonial governments in the pre-Revolutionary War era. Includes student objectives, historical background, and instructional strategies. Provides two primary source documents related to the treaty. (CFR)

Investigates the situations surrounding, and events involved in, the United States's massive western land acquisition from Mexico in 1845 and 1848. Presents a challenging, thorough, and insightful lesson plan that includes numerous background materials, learning activities, maps, and handouts. (MJP)

Reviews representative approaches, issues, and individual works concerning Asian American history from the 1870s to the present. Divides Asian American historiography into four overlapping periods and identifies a number of continuing themes including assimilation, immigration, and discrimination. Notes that most history was written by non-Asians…

Presents a year long plan for teaching about Columbus's voyages and their impact on the Americas. Discusses themes of bias in history, how language can be used to create a certain image, and concepts of heroism, respect, and power. Includes instructions for schoolwide, social studies and history projects with interdepartmental coordination. (DK)

Presents a two- to three-day teaching unit examining the collective life experience of Filipinos who arrived in Chicago (Illinois) before 1935. Provides historical background on Filipino immigration and their experience in Chicago. Informational handouts include newspaper accounts, cartoons, statistics, and personal accounts, followed by…

Presents a lesson plan that examines the economic, cultural, and ideological factors that influence Korean and African American relations. Discusses how the two groups perceive each other and situates the role of race and class in this relationship. Includes informational handouts and discussion questions. (MJP)