In the 1930s, suffragist and women's rights activist Maud Wood Park "had the happy idea of dramatizing a series of episodes from Lucy Stone's life." This idea resulted in the publication, in 1938, of a 162-page nine-act play, "Lucy Stone: A Chronicle Play," based on a biography of the abolitionist and suffragist by her…

From statues to picture books, the depictions of suffragists do not always do justice to the complexity of the issues and activists who fought for the 19th Amendment, which provided that "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex." This…

The annual "National Council for the Social Studies" (NCSS) Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People list often contains picture books that profile citizen role models--people who worked to change society for the better. In 2018 the list includes beautiful, thoughtful biographies of people who chose "doing good" over…

An inquiry framed around the experience of an enslaved woman, highlighted in a recent film, offers an opportunity for meaningful student engagement with the history of American enslavement.

An examination in the classroom of well-chosen tweets not only illustrates how social media engages citizens in participatory democracy, but can spark enriching debates on current events.

The use of testimony in teaching about the Holocaust has long been a practice, relying on resources such as memoirs, diaries, and audio recordings. Having first-person accounts provides a window into the experience of those who lived the historical events that now fill the pages of text. As we mark the 70th Anniversary of the end of World War II…

In November 1959, John Howard Griffin, a white novelist from Texas, struck up a conversation with a black shoeshine man near the French Quarter in New Orleans, Louisiana. The two men were acutely aware of the chasm that separated races in the Jim Crow South, but their relationship would soon change. Griffin, who wanted to obtain a deeper…

Abraham Lincoln was the most experienced trial lawyer Americans have ever placed in the White House. While more than half of the United State's presidents have been attorneys, none possessed Lincoln's extensive courtroom experience: approximately 3,800 known cases, litigated during a quarter century at the Illinois bar. However, the law's…

Biographies, which are popular among young people, can stimulate interest in the past when students investigate the historical contexts in which individuals lived. Creating biography webs offers students structured opportunities to investigate how other people and groups influenced the personal development of specific individuals (NCSS Strands II,…

In this article, the author goes beyond Supreme Court decisions to investigate the upbringing and personalities of three Supreme Court justices who left their mark on history: Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., Thurgood Marshall, and Sandra Day O'Connor. His interviews with their biographers, G. Edward White for Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., Juan Williams…

In teaching about Latin America and the Caribbean, bringing a human dimension to the study of the region is essential. Texts on the region can be dull and lifeless or even biased and skewed. Introducing students to the region by exploring prose, poetry, and picture books helps to illustrate the rich diversity found throughout Latin America and the…

Describes the life and extensive work of the American sculptor, Daniel Chester French, whose statues have come to symbolize the spirit of America. His works include the Lincoln Memorial and the Minute Man. (AM)

Merrill Hartshorn, for three decades the driving force behind the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS), died in 1985. This tribute, written by a former NCSS president and longtime friend of Hartshorn, describes Hartshorn as "the torchbearer of a social studies tradition." (RM)

In-depth investigations of individuals or groups, for instance, Harry Truman, Martin Luther King, Jr., or American Indians, provide stimulating teaching material to help youngsters move to higher levels of moral reasoning. (JH)

How the novel "1984" evolved out of Orwell's mind and experience is examined. The novel was meant to be much more than an attack on the Soviet Union and communism. The real target is the deadly combination of advanced technology and unbridled exercise of power over the individual. (RM)