Secondary Social Studies/History

Check out these sites for general History and Social Studies resources.

Start out at the Jordan District Social Studies Page. See what is happening right here at home.

UEN — Pioneer and Grade Level Resources

USOE Social Studies Pages

UEN has a wealth of matrials linked directly to Social Studies Core Curriculum. Here you will find USOE Approved Lesson Plans, MarcoPolo Lesson Plans, Educational Links, and Videos. Log on to www.uen.org, and do a search for Social Studies and your grade.

MarcoPolo partner sites for History and Social Studies

  • Edsitement
    Click on History and Social Studies
    Edistement, one of the MarcoPolo partner web sites, provides subject-based access to humanities sites, lesson plans, at-home activities, and additional learning activities.
  • EconEdLink
    EconEdLink provides a premier source of classroom[tested, Internet-based economic lesson materials for K-12 teachers and their students.
  • Expeditions
    Sponsored by National Geographic, this site features geography lessons, activities, and an interactive learning museum, as well as countless black and white maps downloadable for printing.

The American Memory Site from the Library of Congress is amazing but there is so much there is can be overwhelming. Go to The Learning Page for lesson plans, activities, collections, and more.

Weber School District has put together an amazing smorgasboard of history sites. It's defifnitely worth a look.

Blue Web'N contains a large collection of teacher-evaluated web sites. Sites can be searched or viewed by content or grade level.


 

 

 

  

 

US History | World Civilizations | Utah Studies | Government | Geography | General Sites

US History/American History

  • Freedom: A History of US. This site is a partner site with a series of documentaries from PBS. It provides an overview of US History, divided by "webisodes." The following activity is one example of how the site can be used in the classroom:
    • Cultures in Conflict. Students identify cultural conflicts that arose during the Westward movement of the United States by studying Webisode 8. Have students complete a graphic organizer as they gather information. As a final project, students can demonstrate their knowledge with a Power Point slideshow.

  • The Valley of the Shadow Project
    This award-winning site offers a resource of unparalleled depth, complexity, and breadth. Intended for secondary schools, community colleges, libraries, and universities, The Valley of the Shadow Project takes two communities, one Northern and one Southern, through the experience of the American Civil War. The project is a hypermedia archive of thousands of sources for the period before, during, and after the Civil War for Augusta County, Virginia, and Franklin County, Pennsylvania. Those sources include newspapers, letters, diaries, photographs, maps, church records, population census, agricultural census, and military records. Students can explore every dimension of the conflict and write their own histories, reconstructing the life stories of women, African Americans, farmers, politicians, soldiers, and families.

    Select "The Eve of War" after you enter this web site, then click on "Reference Center" in the navigation device and follow the link to "Teaching Concepts for The Valley Project In The Classroom." The lessons listed draw on the resources of The Valley of the Shadow to give students a firsthand sense of the Civil War era.

    Topics and activities include:

    • Women in the Civil War
      Using primary source documents, students create a newspaper article about women in the American Civil War or write an analytical essay focusing on the effects of the war on the daily life of American women.
    • Free Blacks in Augusta County, Virginia, and Franklin County, Pennsylvania
      Through creative writing or composing an analytical essay, students compare the lives of free blacks Virginia and Pennsylvania.
    • German Born Residents of Augusta County, Virginia, and Franklin County, Pennsylvania
      Using census statistics, students sharpen their research skills as they search for information about German immigrants in Virginia and Pennsylvania during the Civil War.
    • Irish-Born Residents of Augusta and Franklin Counties.
      Students search 19th-century census statistics and newspapers in order to compile information about Irish communities in 19th-century.
    • The Story of Daniel Downey
      Using government documents, newspapers, and the family papers of Daniel Downey, students create either a fictional memoir for Downey or write an analysis of the prevailing attitudes toward religion, ethnicity, and crime during the Civil War and Reconstruction.
    • Portraits of Individuals, Families, or Groups in Augusta county, Virginia and Franklin County, Pennsylvania.
      Students create memoirs, genealogical histories, and newspaper articles based on the family papers, census statistics, and government documents of people who lived in Virginia and Pennsylvania during the Civil War.
    • Creating an Individual Biography
      Students create a fictional profile of an individual based on a compilation of government documents.
    • Using a Diary
      Using a diary written by a young 19th-century woman, students write a paper comparing the young woman's experiences at school with that of a late 20th-century student.
    • The Garber Family and Slavery in Virginia
      Using government documents, military records, newspapers, and census statistics, students research the Garber Family and slave owning in Virginia in the 19th-century.

    The Valley of the Shadow Project has teamed up with The Electronic Cultural Atlas Initiative (ECAI) to produce Geographic Information Systems (GIS) data on the Valley project's two counties. Although the Augusta County database is currently not deliverable over the web, they have put together a demonstration of the GIs work to date, as well as an outline of procedures and multiple thematic projects that utilize the database's geographical and statistical information.

Additional Resources:

  • The History Place
    The History Place is a must-bookmark site for all history and social studies teachers. There are a variety of featured exhibits on US topics ranging from Abraham Lincoln to the Irish Potato Famine. Major topics include the American Revolution, Civil War, 20th Century Topics, World War II, Vietnam War, and Presidents of the United States.     (Loads slowly—be patient)

  • The Photography of a Vietnam Veteran

  • American Cultural History: The 20th Century
    This site is both educational and extremely entertaining. For each decade, there is information about art, books, fashion, historical events, music, theater, and more, along with a fascinating assortment of basic facts.

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World Civilizations

 

  • Extensive World Histor web sites can be found at World Civilizations WWW Resources.
  • Holocaust and Resistance
    In this 1-2 day lesson, students reflect on the Holocaust from the point of view of those who actively resisted Nazi persecution. After reviewing the history of the Holocaust, in order to understand the legal and bureaucratic authority with which the Nazis systematically enforced their policies, students debate the options for resistance and the likely outcomes. Working with the archives of the U. S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and library resources, they gather facts about resistance activities during the Holocaust, prepare reports on incidents of rebellion at the Sobibor, Treblinka, and Auschwitz death camps and in the Warsaw Ghetto. Then, writing as relatives or friends of those involved in these incidents, students consider the value and significance of such actions in the context of the Holocaust and of the larger war against Nazi domination. Finally, students gather facts about non-violent forms of resistance to Nazi persecution and reflect in a journal format on their own role in keeping this spirit of resistance alive today.

Utah Studies

  • Utah History to Go
    This collection of resources is from the Utah Historical Society. It offers information about Utah People, Places, History, and Facts to understand the contributions of Native American Indians, Explorers, and Pioneers in Utah’s past and future history. Students can use this website and this Inspiration file to answer questions to create a PowerPoint Slideshow.

  • Surweb
    This site contains image collections from around the state of Utah, as well as media shows that have been created by Utah educators. Teachers and students can create their own media show using the images from this collection.

  • Native American Literature Circles
    This site, created by a Utah Middle School teacher, highlights a novel for each of Utah's Native American tribes. The site also includes additional resources and activities to help students understand the history of Utah.

  • Journey to Topaz
    This site, creaed by a Utah Middle School teacher, was designed to be used in conjunction with "Journey to Topaz" by Yoshiko Uchida. Students should have a copy of the book to reference through this tour.

  • Utah Studies Timeline
    This timeline covers the history of Utah from 1776 - 1920. Several links are included with additional information detailing highlighted events. Quizzes are included for each event.

  • Utah Historical Encyclopedia
    This site provides an online version of the Utah Historical Encyclopedia.

  • Utah Collections
    This online encyclopedia contains videos, historical documents, charts, maps, etc. dealing with Utah.

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United States Government & Citizenship

  • Landmark Cases
    This site provides teachers with a full range of resources and activities to support the teaching of landmark Supreme Court cases, The key issues of each case are emphasized using the following resources:
    • Background summaries and questions.
    • Diagrams of how the cases moved through the court system.
    • Excerpts from the majority (and where appropriate) the dissenting opinions.
    • Links to the full text of the Supreme Court's decisions.
    • Case-specific activities such as moot court activities, political cartoon analysis, continuum exercises, and Web site evaluations.

      This site can be used to help students analyze how civil rights and individual liberties have been impacted through court decisions (Standard 2, Objective 2). Assign each student one case. Students complete this Inspiration file and share the information with the class.

  • The Great Debate and Beyond: History of Televised Presidential Debates
    The Great Debate contains four main sections: 1) Great Debate: Kennedy-Nixon debates of 1960; 2) Televised Debate History 1960-1996; 3) Television: video commentary, essays and other items that highlight the impact of television on politics; 4) Curriculum Resources: lesson plans and activities that promote learning. Produced by The Museum of Broadcast Communications in Chicago, Illinois.

  • Look Who's Footing the Bill!
    This is one of the first WebQuests ever. Look Who's Footing the Bill! uses the national debt controversy to inspire students toward taking democratic action. After exploring the issue from four perspectives, students have to answer the question, "What's so big about a $5 trillion debt?" They can use the interactive Thesis Maker and Online Outliner to begin the persuasive essay they will ultimately send to their congressional representatives.

  • This Nation
    Created by a political science professor, this nation is a guide for students and the voting public, on the US Government. Resources include an online textbook, links to many documents, speeches and constitutions of other nations, self-grading quizzes, and guidelines to find your elected officials.

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Geography

  • "Mystery Island". In this lesson, students use geographic advantages and disadvantages to determine the most appropriate location for starting a settlement.

  • EconEdLinks: Lemonade and Cookies. This online lesson explores how countries trade for goods and services. There are several online lessons addressing economic issues found at Economic Minutes.

  • Expeditions at National Geographic. Lesson plans and online activities that address the U.S. National Geography Standards. The site also includes an atlas for maps made for printing and copying.

  • Geography Blue-Ribbon Websites. The Blue-Ribbon Links were selected as the best destinations online for teaching and learning geography by a panel of geography education experts.

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General Sites

  • Biographical Dictionary
    This massive biographical dictionary contains entries for more than 27,000 people and is searchable by name, birth or death year, position or profession, literary or artistic works, miscellaneous achievements, or other keywords. Entries are clear, concise, and well written.

 
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