Describes a lesson plan for a classroom activity in which students research the causes that prevented the usefulness of early nineteenth-century schools. Discusses the project, a town meeting in which students play roles of community members. Includes instructions, follow-up activities, roles, and materials for use in the project and evaluation.…

Describes student development and production of a documentary film honoring local Vietnam veterans. Suggests that forming partnerships for learning is beneficial and successful and that using modern technology is the key to student motivation. Recommends student involvement in instructional television as a means of inspiring learning activities.…

Shows how studying sources of popular music and instruments help students understand historical patterns of immigration and geography. Presents lessons and materials for exploring origins of popular musical instruments and music that developed in the United States from other cultures. Includes several related classroom activities, recommended…

Presents a lesson plan that utilizes the study of Asian Americans in Hawaii to help students to develop the critical faculties needed to detect stereotyping and bias. Students create presentations on popular images of Hawaii. Later, they produce more critical and better researched presentations on the island and its inhabitants. (MJP)

Suggests group learning in the secondary social studies classroom increases student involvement and builds competencies in analysis, research, organization, and evaluative skills. Presents sample activities on the John Marshall Supreme Court decisions and the 1945 Yalta Conference. Includes discussion topics, questions, and handouts. (NL)

Utilizes case studies of two southern Indiana local history projects to illustrate methods of conducting local history. The studies examined local voting patterns and researched the legends surrounding a local Civil War colonel. Includes suggestions for planning successful student research projects. (MJP)

Maintains that personal and family history assignments in an Asian American history course allow for an effective balance between scholarly inquiry and personal discovery. Describes the experiences and reactions of several undergraduate classes that used this approach. Discusses the benefits and problems inherent in studying oral histories and…

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)