Broadly defined, digital moviemaking integrates a variety of media (images, sound, text, video, narration) to communicate with an audience. There is near-ubiquitous access to the necessary software (MovieMaker and iMovie are bundled free with their respective operating systems) and hardware (computers with Internet access, digital cameras, etc.).…

Part of the "How to Do It" series available from the National Council for the Social Studies, 3501 Newark Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20016, this booklet describes how to involve intermediate-grade through high school students in reconstructing biographies and discovering history by using local primary source documents. (JDH)

A naturalistic inquiry study of sixth grader's response to literature-based history was influenced by their "need to know," their desire to explore broader areas of human experience, the emotional impact of the historical narratives used and by the teacher's ability to encourage a critical analysis of multiple data sources in seeking historical…

Focuses on what students read in social studies classrooms. Illustrates the manner in which literature supports students, even young children, in grappling with the dilemmas and choices that people have faced throughout history. (MG)

This article reports on a pilot study on the development of historical understanding of elementary school children. Historical fiction was shared with second, fourth, and sixth grade children who retold the story and answered questions. Results are evaluated and suggestions for history instruction at the elementary level are discussed. (Author/MT)

Contrasts Piagetian based research with psychological research of script knowledge-based and domain-specific knowledge restructuring theories. Suggests that a cultural framework incorporating script and domain specific ideas would be more effective for studying historical understanding than Piagetian theories. Concludes that children can…

Through the use of history resource folders containing literature and primary source materials, elementary teachers can involve children in historical issues. Discusses how to design and construct the resource folders and provides suggestions for themes, source materials, and learning activities. (RM)

This paper reports on a study that represents a new approach to understanding early and middle grade children's development of historical time awareness. The study sought to embed children's time awareness in a sociocultural framework, and to move beyond linguistic symbol systems to incorporate visual data sources. The researchers began with three…

Presents a review of research literature that was undertaken to determine the extent to which research about teaching and learning history supports the current reform movement. Examines history's status in the schools, surveys recent trends in the history curriculum, explores how teachers use textbooks, and questions the appropriateness of history…

This study investigates middle graders' understanding of significance in United States history through open-ended interviews with 48 students in grades 5-8. Students were presented with a set of captioned historical pictures and asked to choose the one important enough to include on a timeline of the last five hundred years, and to explain their…

In order to investigate elementary school students' understanding of historical time, this study conducted open-ended interviews with 58 children in kindergarten through sixth grade. The students were asked to place nine illustrations from various periods of American history in chronological order and to talk about the reasoning behind the order…

Argues that historical knowledge is socially constructed, dependent upon the interplay of past, and current accepted theories and research. Maintains that history instruction should both reflect and promote this through the inclusion of multiple points of view, student centered instruction, and experiential learning. (MJP)

Reports on the results of an experiment testing 58 elementary school students tasked with chronologically ordering a set of nine historical pictures and thinking aloud about their efforts. Provides increased evidence regarding the kind and sources of children's historical knowledge and how they deploy that knowledge. (MJP)

Criticizes the National Commission on Social Studies in the Schools' report, "Charting a Course: Social Studies for the 21st Century," for its poor use of available social studies curriculum research and lack of citations of research sources. Argues that report views teachers as passive recipients of curriculum and fails to address…

This book offers a unique perspective on history instruction in the elementary and middle grades. Through case studies of teachers and students in diverse classrooms and from diverse backgrounds, the text shows children engaging in authentic historical investigations, often in the context of an integrated social studies curriculum. The authors…