Primarily Teaching
A Summer Workshop for Educators on Using Historical Documents in the Classroom
Presented by staff of the National Archives and Records Administration:
- The National Archives Regional Facility, Fort Worth, TX, June 22-26, 2009
- The National Archives in Washington, DC, June 23 - July 2, 2009 *
- The National Archives Regional Facility, Chicago, IL, July 13 - 17, 2009
- The National Archives Regional Facility, Kansas City, MO, July 13 - 17, 2009
- The Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum in Abilene, KS, July 16 - 24, 2009
- The National Archives Regional Facility in Denver, CO, July 20-24, 2009
- The Lyndon B. Johnson Library, Austin, TX, July 27 – July 31, 2009
- The National Archives Regional Facility, Waltham, MA, July 27 – July 31, 2009
- The National Archives Regional Facility, Seattle, WA, August 3 - 7, 2009
What is the National Archives and Records Administration?
The
National Archives and Records Administration preserves and makes available to
the public the permanently valuable records of the U.S. Government. In addition
to the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights,
the National Archives of the United States holds millions of documents, maps,
drawings, photographs, films, sound recordings, and computer tapes that document
the American experience of government from 1774 to the present. The National
Archives comprises the richest record of America's past in the nation. And all
of this material is available to teachers.
What will Primarily Teaching offer teachers?
This workshop provides
a varied program of lectures, demonstrations, analysis of documents, independent
research, and group work that introduces teachers to the holdings and
organization of the National Archives. Participants will learn how to do
research in historical records, create classroom material from records, and
present documents in ways that sharpen students' skills and enthusiasm for
history, social studies, and the humanities. Each participant selects and
prepares to research a specific topic, searches the topic in the records of the
National Archives, and develops a teaching unit that can be presented in his or
her own classroom.
Who should attend?
Teachers of history, geography, government,
civics, sociology, psychology, economics, American studies, literature, and the
humanities from upper elementary through college levels take Primarily
Teaching. Librarians, media specialists, archivists, and museum educators
also find it useful to their work. Primarily Teaching demonstrates
secondary strategies, but educators at all levels can easily adapt them to their
particular needs.
What does the workshop cost?
- The fee for each of the workshops is $100, which includes all materials.
- Graduate credit from a major university is available for an additional fee.
Some comments from past participants:
"I am a critical audience who
is always second-guessing the instructor in courses I take, but if each teacher
of social studies took this . . . , the teaching and learning of history in this
country would be utterly transformed."
"This is the BEST, most VALUABLE class I have ever taken. My vocabulary is insufficient to describe it properly. Thank you!"
"I would highly recommend this workshop to anyone with an interest in research and/or the social studies. There is no better way to earn 3 graduate hours! I hope to come back and do much more work here."
"I gained the confidence and knowledge and information to do my own research in the future."
"An energizing academic experience."
"I thoroughly enjoyed the excitement of discovery. Many thanks to all those who supported us in many ways."
"A wealth of information and documents that will be incorporated in my teaching units."
"I have a renewed sense of enthusiasm for beginning yet another school year."
How do I apply?
Please see the Workshop Overview for an application and more information.
Participation in the Washington, DC, session is limited to 20 members; participation in the sessions at the Presidential Libraries and regional facilities is limited to 10 members each.
Completed applications are due no later than 6 weeks before the workshop.
* The institute in Washington, DC, is longer than the regional sessions due to the size and variety of the holdings. Participants in the DC program will be oriented to the holdings in cartographic materials, still photographs, and motion picture and sound recordings, in addition to the textual holdings in both the National Archives Building in downtown Washington, DC, and the National Archives at College Park, MD. (Shuttle service between the buildings is available.)
