History labs invite students to examine primary and secondary source documents related to an essential question. The sources used in a history lab should represent multiple perspectives so that students are aware of the varying accounts of and opinions about historic events. By being exposed to multiple perspectives, students also learn about…

On an April morning in 1775, seventy-seven Lexington farmers took a stand on their town common and started a revolution. Generations of townspeople have honored these yeomen soldiers--the Battle of Lexington is re-enacted at dawn every April 19th--and generations of schoolchildren have learned the story of Lexington and Concord. Perhaps because of…

Paterson, New Jersey, was established in the 1790s to utilize the power of the water that cascades through the Passaic River Gorge. Massive brick mill buildings lined the canals that transformed the power of the falls into energy to drive machines. These mills manufactured many things during the history of this industrial city. In the late 19th…

Provides a lesson centered on excerpts from a 1675 letter from the bishop of Cuba, Gabriel Diaz Vara Calderon, to Queen Mariana of Spain that describes life in Spanish Florida missions. Includes a list of questions and excerpts from the letter. (CMK)

Presents a lesson about frontier life in Texas and is based on the National Register of Historic Places registration file "Castolon Historic District" and other source materials about Castolon and ranching in the Big Bend region. States that the lesson could be incorporated into units on westward expansion or U.S. geography. (CMK)

This educational packet contains information about Wilson's Creek National Battlefield (Republic, Missouri), the site of a bitter 1861 struggle between Union and Confederate forces for control of Missouri. The packet contains the following materials: (1) Educational Group Reservation Form; (2) Wilson's Creek National Battlefield Movement Maps (six…

This educators' guide deals with preparation for and a visit to the historic location of Wilson's Creek National Battlefield (Republic, Missouri), the site of the struggle on August 10, 1861, between Union and Confederate forces for control of Missouri. The guide contains the following materials: Educational Group Reservation Form; Educational…

This educational guide is organized to help elementary grade students make the most of their study of and visit to Wilson's Creek National Battlefield (Republic, Missouri), the site of an August 1861 struggle between Union and Confederate forces for control of Missouri. The packet is divided into the following sections: (1) Educational Group…

Encountering the U.S. Civil War on a smaller, human scale makes the conflict more approachable, vivid, and real. Rivers Bridge State Historic Site (South Carolina) offers a glimpse of the Civil War on such a scale. The small area allows visitors to comprehend the entire battlefield, its tactics, and to see how veteran troops near the end of the…

In 1777, out of the confusion, fear, and chaos of battle, soldiers of the Continental Army forged a victory over professional British and German soldiers near Saratoga (New York). The two battles fought there changed the course of the American Revolution and insured the independence of the former British colonies that became the United States of…

At the First Battle of Manassas (Virginia) in 1861 many Union doctors fled the battlefield in fear. Those who remained found themselves without adequate medical supplies or ambulances for their patients. As the U.S. Civil War progressed and casualties mounted, military surgeons became more adept at caring for the wounded. By the Battle of…

"Teaching with Historic Places" is a program administered by the National Park Service's National Register of Historic Places that identifies ways teachers can share the stories that historic places have to tell. The program creates classroom-ready educational materials based on properties that are listed in the National Register of…

This educational packet for grades 7 and 8 is organized to help students study about and/or plan a visit to Wilson's Creek National Battlefield, the site of a struggle between the Union and Confederate forces in August 1861 for the control of Missouri. The packet contains the following materials: (1) Educational Group Reservation Form; (2)…

By 1860 much of the beauty of St. Anthony Falls in Minneapolis (Minnesota) had been destroyed, as mills on both sides of the river used the power of the falls to turn millions of bushels of wheat into flour. Steel rails linked bonanza farms hundreds of miles to the west to the mills. The mills, the farms, and the railroads depended on each other…

When friends and family visited the Douglas family at Brucemore in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, they had the opportunity to enjoy the beauty and grace of the mansion's public places. On its 33 acres, Brucemore had a duck pond, swimming pool, tennis courts, and large formal gardens, besides its 21 extravagant rooms and furnishings. Domestic servants were…