Social Studies – a Potpourri of Links

Flag Game - Guess The Nation
http://www.flw.com/flaggame/login.php
The Flag Game to allows the player to guess the name of the country based on clues including; capital, continent, neighbors, map outline, currency & anthem. Login as guest and give it a shot. A nice way to peak student interest in geography. Project on a the wall and play as a class, or play on individual computers. Quick and simple interface; but tough game!

History Detectives (PBS)
http://www.pbs.org/opb/historydetectives/
History Detectives is devoted to solving historical mysteries, searching
out the true facts (and falsehoods) behind local folklore, family
legends and interesting objects. Using traditional investigative
techniques, modern technologies, and plenty of legwork, the History
Detectives team of experts discovers that artifacts, buildings and
stories can give us new (and sometimes shocking) insights into our
national history. The History Detectives site includes highlights from
the televised investigations. This year it will also feature one story
per week in detail as a Case File. Visitors can study the techniques
used by professional investigators; learn how to conduct their own
historical investigation; or get to know the History Detectives' team of
experts. The site also provides a number of interactive features and
learning activities. Classroom Resources include lesson plans and other
tools to reinforce concepts from the programs, and develop student
interest in the study of history, science, and other core subjects.

K-12 Resources for Food History Lessons
http://www.gti.net/mocolib1/kid/food2.html ...a fun site to use in support of social studies; includes a food timeline, food customs, and a whole lot more!

Election Lessons http://www.cyberbee.com/election/election.html
...a series of well-done lessons to teach about election history, campaign buttons, and much more; the links include one for teachers and online resources to support extension activities

Ancient China (British Museum) http://www.ancientchina.co.uk/menu.html
The site is divided into five 'chapters' which address themes or topics relevant to ancient China. Within each 'chapter' there are three sections: Story (narratives), Explore (pupil controls the order in which they access the information) and Challenge (historical, analytical, mathematical, or observational activities). Main topics include Crafts and Artisans; Geography; Time (how time was kept in ancient China; Tombs and Ancestors; and Writing (nature and uses of writing in ancient China).

Legends of Tuskegee (National Park Service) http://www.cr.nps.gov/museum/exhibits/tuskegee/ Who are the Legends of Tuskegee and what do they have in common? This three-part web exhibit highlights the achievements of Washington, Carver and the Tuskegee Airmen. Booker Taliafero Washington, George Washington Carver and the Tuskegee Airmen all came to Tuskegee and created their own legends. Tuskegee was a bold experiment and a site of major African-American achievements for over 100 years. "Tuskegee Airmen" refers to all who were involved in the so-called "Tuskegee Experiment," the Army Air Corps program to train African Americans to fly and maintain combat aircraft. The Tuskegee Airmen included pilots, navigators, bombardiers, maintenance and support staff, instructors, and all the personnel who kept the planes in the air. The Tuskegee Airmen overcame segregation and prejudice to become one of the most highly respected fighter groups of World War II. They proved conclusively that African Americans could fly and maintain sophisticated combat aircraft. The Tuskegee Airmen's achievements, together with the men and women who supported them, paved the way for full integration of the U.S. military.

Eduweb (Musee McCord Museum) http://www.mccord-museum.qc.ca/eduweb
The McCord Museum web site offers numerous resources for exploring Canadian history, including Keys to History, a database of 90,000 images (2,000 of which are fully documented), and virtual exhibitions. EduWeb presents diverse ways of using Web resources in secondary-level history classes. The site includes 50 thematic tours about major events and everyday life in the past. There are activities; mainly observation games, quizzes, and inquiries into the past. These activities are described in a pedagogical guide entitled ClioClic. The site permits
visitors to produce their own visual presentations in the form of Web tours, where they can add their own images drawn from external sources. Requires Flash.

dMarie Time Capsule
http://dmarie.com/timecap/
A simple tool to help locate news headlines based on the date you enter. Quick Page will automatically generate a Time Capsule page for you. Advanced Page will lead you through a "wizard" that allows you to select specific headlines, birthdays, songs, TV shows, toys, and books for your selected date. You can edit the information, or even add your own
information to the final page! When you're through, you'll be presented with your own customized page that includes all the information you've chosen, plus typical consumer prices from that year, Academy Award winners that year, etc. Currently has data for the years 1800 through 2002. From dMarie Direct Inc.

For Teachers: National D-Day Museum New Orleans
http://www.ddaymuseum.org/education_teacherslesson.html
Resources and Teaching Materials from The National D-Day Museum: Student Fact Sheets (D-Day History, Women in World War II, Enigma, African-American Involvement, SHAEF, What does the "D" in D-Day Mean?, Pearl Harbor, Home Front, Higgins in New Orleans). The Education Department at The National D-Day Museum offers these guidelines to help
teachers focus on the main themes of D-Day and WWII. The Museum offers a number of Lesson Plans, which you may download or print from this web site for classroom use free of charge. Each lesson comes complete with directions, Louisiana education benchmarks, and reproducible handouts. (Adobe Acrobat Reader required). Quiz at
http://www.ddaymuseum.org/education_studentsquiz_0804.htm and puzzle:
http://www.ddaymuseum.org/ddaycrossword.htm

Rendezvous with History: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt
http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/projects/fdr/
This website includes an interactive SiteMap of the Franklin D.
Roosevelt National Historic Site which allows you to "tour the grounds"
and the mansion. There are also 360 degree panoramic tours, Stories,
Photographs, and a Timeline. A great resource from the Poughkeepsie
Journal. Requires Flash.

Invasion of Iraq (PBS)
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/invasion/
Invasion of Iraq takes viewers behind the scenes of the allied invasion on Baghdad. Through interviews with key commanders and soldiers -- U.S., British, and Iraqi -- as well as Iraqi civilians, the documentary offers a rare battlefield perspective on the war, as told in first-hand
accounts of those who lived it. The website offers interviews, chronology, analysis, links to further readings, an FAQ, video excerpts from the TV show, and a teachers guide with lesson plans. From PBS.

Meet the Wright Brothers
http://www.pocanticohills.org/wright/wright.htm
A project created by a 2nd Grade class at Pocantico Hills School, Sleepy Hollow, NY; this site demonstrates what can be done and serves as a resource for other early elementary students. Topics covered include: Meet the Wright Brothers, Timeline of Flight, At the Turn of the
Century, Wright Brothers Quiz, Experiments: Flight, Why Kill Devil Hills, What is wing warping?, Wright Brothers Poetry, Activities, Wright Photo Gallery, Glossary, Links to More Information, and Books About the Wright Brothers.

Colosseum: A Gladiator's Story (Discovery)
http://media.dsc.discovery.com/convergence/colosseum/colosseum.html
A multimedia extravaganza which includes a virtual trip through Rome's "Arena of Death," Colosseum through time slideshow, and an animated video fly-through of the Colosseum as it looked 1,900 years ago including a gladiator's battle! Also includes an onlne quiz. Requires
Flash.

Community in History http://community.rice.edu/ ...this site provides resources for
teachers and students, as well as completed examples, for the use of local history and community studies as "the best way for students to gain a holistic sense of the role of history in understanding the world around them"

Picturing a Canadian Life: L.M. Montgomery's Personal Scrapbooks and Book Covers
http://lmm.confederationcentre.com/
L.M. Montgomery's novels are famous world-wide; most of the titles have remained in print since their first publication and many of them have been translated into other languages. Part of Montgomery's genius lies in her creation of everyday life in turn-of-the-century and early
twentieth-century Canada. An avid record-keeper, Montgomery kept personal scrapbooks that included photographs, fabrics, souvenirs and clippings. These collections are housed in four different locations and are fragile. Thus, these rarely-seen materials could not be widely
accessible for study or enjoyment except through this digital exhibition. This site is extremely rich and includes a variety of materials including book covers, information about Montgomery's writing, importance of images in her writing, creating your own scrapbooks,
changing role of women, chronology,

The site index is useful for getting a broad overview of what's on the site http://lmm.confederationcentre.com/english/site-index.html

The Mascot Dilemma: Pride or Prejudice? http://www.coe.missouri.edu/~etp1083/mascot/
A WebQuest for 11th-12th grade (Language Arts/ Social Studies) designed by Manny Rios. Many professional sports teams have Native American mascots and names. The same is true with schools all across our country. A national debate is raging over the appropriateness of these mascots. In this WebQuest, you take on the role of presenting the issue to the
Board of Education. All necessary materials including evaluation rubric are contained in this webquest.

Anglo-Apache Conflicts http://www.historyglobe.com/apache/
This website provides an interactive map, summaries, biographies, and
primary documents about major conflicts. Unusual format allows users to
select "people" or "conflicts" and then the year. An interactive map
displays locations. Limited amounts of information make is useful for
younger students. Short quizzes are built-in. Created by History Globe.

Asia for Educators http://afe.easia.columbia.edu
Featuring a variety of lesson plans, curriculum units, and other
teaching materials categorized by subject area and time period, Asia for
Educators (AFE) is designed to serve faculty and students in world
history, culture, geography, art, and literature at the undergraduate
and pre-college levels.

Language of Native American Baskets from the Weaver's View (Smithsonian)
http://www.nmai.si.edu/exhibitions/baskets/ Baskets accompanied Indian people throughout their lives. Babies were carried in baskets, meals were prepared and cooked in them, worldly goods were stored in them, and people were buried in them. Today, baskets serve as markers of cultural pride and inheritance. Basketry is a living art. To help illustrate continuity from past to present, each weaver chose four baskets from the Smithsonian collections and paired them with baskets from their own or other Native basket-makers’ contemporary works. These juxtapositions and the weavers’ thoughts on what they tell us, are presented in “The Weaversí View.” Links on the top navigation bar and side navigation bars lead to a wealth of information and lots of images of baskets. From the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian.

Lesson Plans from Historic Jamestown
http://historicjamestowne.org/learn/lesson_plans.php
Each lesson plan has been designed for a specific grade or two, but in the hands of a good teacher, any of these lesson plans can be adjusted for other grades to use. Archaeology is a fascinating tool to use with your students, and they have included enough background information for you to feel comfortable using these lesson plans. There is also a short power point "Archaeology 101" for teachers to use. This site complements the earlier interactive modules designed for Jamestown Rediscovery,

Interactive Exercises http://historicjamestowne.org/learn/interactive_exercises.php

The lessons themselves are downloadable pdf's aligned to National Standards.

The Presidential Race
As Election Day approaches, many Americans are paying close attention to the issues that affect them as individuals and as a nation. This month, the MarcoGram presents activities and lessons to help students understand the roles and responsibilities of the president and other elected officials, as well as the democratic process that gets them into office. Use the warm-up activities below to introduce your students to the issues surrounding this year's election, then scroll down for more links and resources on this topic.
http://www.marcopolo-education.org/MarcoGrams/Oct2004.html

e-Mission: Operation Montserrat http://emissionhq.com/
e-Mission: Operation Montserrat is based on a real historical event. The volcano on the normally tranquil island of Montserrat has come to life. As flaming pebbles and lava begin their devastation, emergency response teams learn a hurricane is approaching. Using real-time hurricane and seismic data, teams of student specialists assist Mission Control in saving the residents from certain destruction. Students to apply their science and math skills to an authentic crisis situation. During the two-hour e-Mission, student specialists serve as members of a team: volcano, hurricane, evacuation, or communication. You must apply and be selected to participate in the actual e-Mission. Doesn't say how many are selected; but there are enough resources on the site to make it worthwhile.

Ottomans
http://www.theottomans.org/english/index.asp
www.theottomans.org aims to become the leading information portal
regarding the history, military, culture and arts of the Ottoman Empire
that has once dominated a large territory from Egypt to Russia, from
India to Austria. The site contains a chronology, maps, glossary,
history, military history, biographical info, art and cultures.
Theottomans.org is written and edited by Mr. Korkut Ozgen, born in
Istanbul and a graduate of History Faculty at Bogazici University,
Istanbul. His primary interest is on the non-muslim communities of the
Ottoman Society in general, Jews of the Ottoman Empire in particular.
Graphics are often small, and unfortunately, can't be made larger for
closer inspection.

Maps of the World (Map Zone)
http://www.map-zone.net/
A clean, simple interface makes this one a winner. Find maps using the interactive world map, go directly to one of the 7 Regional maps, or use the alphabetic index of countries. Portions of the site are based on the CIA World Fact Book. Once you zero in on a map, you will also be given
the official name, Capital, area, water, land, location, geographic coordinate, comparative info, land boundaries, border countries, coastline, terrain, and elevation extremes in a basic table format.

Rise and Fall of Jim Crow (PBS)
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/index.html
Rise and Fall of Jim Crow explores segregation from the end of the civil war to the dawn of the modern civil rights movement. Lynchings and beatings by night. Demeaning treatment by day. And a life of crushing subordination for Southern blacks that was maintained by white
supremacist laws and customs known as "Jim Crow." Site includes an interactive timeline, personal stories, inactions of the three branches of the federal government, interactive maps, activities, and standards-based lesson plans http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/education_lessonplan.html for grades 6-12.

American Centuries...view from New England (Memorial Hall Museum Online)
http://memorialhall.mass.edu/home.html
American Centuries features a digital collection of approximately 1,800 objects and transcribed document pages from Memorial Hall Museum and Library. It includes a large library of primary resources, curricula, and interactive student activities. The classroom lessons cover the
elementary, middle, and secondary levels and were written and tested by classroom teachers. Activities are designed for independent and cooperative learning. With the click of the "Add to My Collection" button available on each Item Page, a user can compile a virtual
collection drawn from the museum’s Digital Collection. This "collecting" can be done just for fun or as part of a user’s research project. My Collection can be printed out in its own format and can be placed on any of several themed chonologies to create a customized Chronology. The
page on "How to Read Old Documents" provides an interesting look at Primary versus Secondary sources with questions that can be discussed.

Anatomy of a Refugee Camp (Canadian Broadcasting Company)
http://www.cbc.ca/news/iraq/presentations/refugees/refugee.html
This Flash-based interactive map of a refugee camp in part of a large site created by The Canadian Broadcasting Company. The Flash version uses a small compass to maneuver through the overhead view of the refugee camp. There is also a drop-down menu at the top. A text
counterpart is located at: http://www.cbc.ca/news/iraq/presentations/refugees/text_only_print.html
Just about every aspect of a refugee camp is covered: where to put them,
length of stay,gates & security, reception center, shelters, minimum
space recommended per person, water, food storage and distribution,
malnutrition, role of women, health, Cholera, latrines, lighting,
school, and more.

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