These materials provide narratives about selected topics of cultural importance in the Hispanic world from the pre-Columbian past until after the Spanish conquest. The materials are designed for enrichment of current programs, and can be used in a variety of areas by elementary school teachers. The topics are treated in a story format so that…

Part of an international series of amply illustrated, colorful, small size books designed for children ages 5 to 10, this volume describes why and how castles were built during the Middle Ages and what it was like to live in one. Poetry of the period, village life, tournaments, minstrels, games, and descriptions of the lives of children who lived…

Part of an international series of amply illustrated, colorful, small size books for children ages 5 to 10, this volume describes in text and illustrations various aspects of daily life in ancient Rome. The social life and customs of the people are depicted. How a Roman citizen spent an average day, the dress, food, entertainment, what kind of…

The goal of this handbook is to introduce a way of teaching history that will stimulate student interest and facilitate learning. Trade books, which include both fiction and nonfiction, provide a way to supplement the use of the textbook and allow the teacher to design a program that provides both structure and the freedom to meet the child's…

The focus of this issue is to explore the lives of pioneers who lived during the territorial period (1838-1846). Articles and activities highlight various aspects of pioneer life. "Celebrate 150!" reviews the settlement of the territory and the establishment of a territorial government. Excerpts from actual newspapers and books,…

Over the past few years, there has been a growing trend in the use of primary documents, those original historical documents used by historians, to teach history in high school and even elementary classrooms. This article uses the author's experience of designing a web-based history education project, "The Great Unsolved Mysteries in Canadian…

Characterizes Mexico as a nation of divergent cultures and indicates how a social science framework has been incorporated into the elementary school history curriculum to reflect this diversity. Provides a brief description of curriculum in grades 1-5. (DB)

Field trips can increase student interest in science and social studies topics. Presents a report of a sixth grade's week-long field trip to Nantacket to study the technology of whaling. (Author/DB)

Summarizes development of QUEST, a family of general purpose data handling computer programs which support existing curricula; demonstrates their usefulness for administrative recordkeeping and in elementary school history and geography courses for managing large amounts of data from varied sources (i.e., census materials); and compares QUEST with…

During the past five years there has been new research into the teaching of history to children. Many educators are advocating once again the teaching of history through concepts. This elementary school unit uses the concept approach to teaching history. The lesson examines the concept of war and wars' impact on the lives of a variety of people.…

Ways to make historical figures come to life through classroom simulations are described. They include: (1) teacher impersonations of time-machine visitors; (2) public-address-system voices from the past; (3) writing about historical personages from different perspectives; (4) mock trials; and (5) role playing by students. (PP)

Describes units on women's history used in second grade classes in honor of "Women's History Week." Students read about famous women in history, interview older female relatives, meet women working in nontraditional jobs, and discuss sex roles and bias. Ideas for women's history activities for upper elementary classes are included. (AM)

Describes the National Park Service's Environmental Living Program for elementary school children in the San Francisco Bay Area, where teachers, parents, and children stay overnight in a historic fort and schooner, experience living in a past age, use candles and oil stoves, and engage in mock military and shipboard activities. (MF)

Explains why it is important for children to learn about racism and genocide, and why literary treatments of these topics constitute an important source of questions and discussions that speak to the heart as well as to the mind. Concentrates on the European Holocaust and the African American experience. (TB)

Discusses the teaching technique, "authentic instruction," in which students learn to analyze historical documents. Describes how to teach elementary students to analyze historical photographs. Explains how teachers can locate historical photographs using the World Wide Web or family photographs. (CMK)