| Date |
Topic |
| January 19, 2006 |
The Great Depression
This chat was a collaboration between the Social Studies Forum and
the Library of Congress. Special Library guest, Susan Mordan from
LOC Exhibitions, shared the beautiful Bound for Glory Exhibition.
Participants engaged in a document analysis activity using the famous
Migrant Mother image. A new Primary Source Set on the Dust Bowl was
shared, as well. |
| December
15, 2005 |
Music in America
Collections of sound recordings, primary source song sheets, sheet
music and special content for educators were shared. Participants
learned about the Song of America Tour and the Teacher Institutes
within these tours. They were pleased to find resources in the new
Civil War Music primary source set that they could share in their
classrooms. |
| September
15, 2005 |
We the People
Participants discussed their teaching plans for the requirements of
Constitution day. Library of Congress primary source content to support
this teaching was shared. To the delight of chat participants, a Primary
Source Set with downloadable documents, images, and sound files was
introduced. |
| June 16, 2005
|
The Environment
Library of Congress resources about the environment were shared. Participants shared some excellent resources, as well. Discussion of an environment lesson led to further talk of found poetry.
|
| May 19, 2005 |
Literature and Poetry
Participants shared strategies for teaching poetry and literature with
primary sources, such as: Book Backdrops, Hyperlinked Poetry, and Found Poetry.
In addition, unique resources from the Library's web site were shared. |
| March 17, 2005 |
Her Story: Women's History
Participants considered how history can be taught in a manner that includes
all participants in its making - regardless of their gender, age or ethnicity.
Resources that share women's perspectives and the roles they played in shaping
the events of our nation were shared, as were lesson plans and other materials
of particular use to teachers and students. At the end of the chat, a new Learning
Page activity, Pages from Her Story,
was shared. |
| February 17, 2005
|
Civil War
Participants considered the idea of a divided nation and discussed issues
that divide the U.S. today. Primary source material on the Civil War was shared,
as were lesson plans and other materials of particular use to teachers and students.
|
| January 20, 2005
|
Civil Rights
Consideration of the broad topic of "civil rights" in today's worldwide
political environments led to thought provoking exchanges. Many primary source
resource materials about the African American quest for equality were shared with
participants. |
| December 16, 2004
|
Music in America
As primary source song sheets, sound recordings and related content were
shared, participants discussed the special role that music has in our lives. It
was agreed that music is central to the lives of students. Participants were pleased
to find resources they could share in their classrooms. |
| November 18, 2004
|
Political Cartoons
Participants discussed the nature of political cartoons as well as the
merits of using them with students. All agreed that establishing background knowledge
and developing visual literacy skills are prerequisites to the use of political
cartoons in classroom curriculum. Numerous cartoon-related Library of Congress
Web pages were shared. |
| October 21, 2004 |
Elections
This chat focused on Library of Congress historical resources to enhance teaching
about elections in the United States. Participants shared student perceptions
and teaching realities about the heated presidential election in this pre-election
month, as well. |
| September 16, 2004
|
Labor in America
In a pre- presidential election period, when issues and trends about the American
workforce are being discussed nationally, this chat proved timely. Participants
reflected upon lessons from the past and made comparisons to today's shifting
realities for the U.S. labor force. Many resources from the Library of Congress'
Web site were shared. The links in this chat transcript allow you to visit these
shared web resources on your own, at your pace. |
| June 17, 2004 |
Summertime
Vacation-ready educators discussed how and when they enjoy leisure time. Resources
from the Library of Congress about leisure time and summer activities were shared.
An interesting discussion about the tensions between "high stakes" teaching/testing
and making education an enjoyable experience for teachers and students ensued.
The links in this chat transcript allow you to visit these shared sites on your
own, at your own pace. |
| May 20, 2004 |
War and Peace
In this chat, we discussed the special significance of this topic at this time
in history. We agreed that students are full of questions and have a great need
to talk about what they see and hear about today’s war-torn world. Resources
from the Library of Congress' collections were shared in rapid-fire fashion. The
links in this chat transcript allow you to visit these shared sites on your own,
at your pace. |
| April 15, 2004 |
Exploration and Explorers
Discussions about how best to use the Library's resources with young
students, about linking literature and the social studies, about the needs of
teachers and students and how online resources can meet those needs, made our
time together fly! Shared resources from the Library of Congress' many web sites
sparked this lively exchange. Use the links in this chat transcript to visit these
sites on your own, at your leisure. |
| March 18, 2004 |
Her Story
This lively and interactive session focused on resources about Women's
History through the sharing of Library of Congress Web sites of special interest
to educators and their students. The questions and comments posed by this group
of enthusiastic participants may be of particular interest to other educators
who use the Library of Congress Web sites. |
| February 19, 2004 |
Civil Rights
Our special guest was Kahlil Chism, an Education Specialist
with the National Archives and Records Administration. Resources for teaching
about Civil Rights were shared – from both the Library of Congress Web sites
and from the Web sites of the National Archives. |
| January 22, 2004 |
Branding of America
This session focused on Library of Congress resources for themes and
topics relating to advertising. The Branding of America collaborative
activity was shown, and participants were invited to participate with the Library
in this project. |
| December 18, 2003 |
Science and Invention
"Mystery Images" prompted a discussion of how to guide student
observation when using engaging, but often puzzling, primary sources. A guided
tour of resources to teach about science and invention wrapped up the chat. |
| November 20, 2003 |
The People ... Native Americans
Resources from the Library's Web sites were shared, precipitating an exchange
of of ideas and strategies for teaching about the treatment of the Native American
in the United States. |
| October 16, 2003 |
Immigration
The lively discussion included consideration of how to "do" history
and the sharing of resources from the Library's Web sites. Participants were invited
to "Make History with the Library of Congress" by participating in collaborative
activities on the Learning Page. |
| September 18, 2003 |
From Fantasy to Flight
The chat was cancelled due to connectivity issues caused by Hurricane
Isabel. Resources for flight are available in the Community
Center. |
| August 21, 2003 |
Baseball...As American as Apple Pie
Resources from the Library's many Web sites were shared. We considered
why and how baseball reflects America's cultural values. |
| July 31, 2003 |
Lewis and Clark
Educational specialists from the Learning Page and Exhibitions shared
primary source materials from the Library's online exhibition as well as the Learning
Page. The lively chat included a discussion of WebQuests under development by
ND educators, and an online, collaborative project in development by a CA educator.
Links to all resources discussed in the chat can be found in this transcript. |
| July 16, 2003 |
What's New for YOU at the Library of
Congress?
While participating in the Tapped IN Summer Festival, Library staff shared recent
additions to the Library's Web sites. All mentioned links are included in this
transcript. |
| May 15, 2003 |
War and Peace
Our special guest was John Fitzgerald - teacher of 32 years, awarded combat veteran
of the Vietnam War, and co-author of, "The Vietnam War: A History in Documents."
The chat moved from sharing primary source documents from the Library of Congress
to teach about wars past, to a discussion of recent wars and how we can help our
students grapple with the critical but sensitive issues of war and peace - past,
present and future. |
| April 17, 2003 |
We the People
This session was joined by special guest Don Ritchie, author and Associate Historian
of the U.S. Senate. The focus was the teaching of civics, government, and the
history of America's constitutional tradition. Internet resources, with information
both historic and current, were shared. |
| March 20, 2003 |
Her Story
This session focused on the roles played by women throughout American history.
Resources from the American Memory collections, America's Library, Library of
Congress Exhibitions, the Prints and Photographs Division of the Library, and
the Learning Page were included. The transcript contains the URLs for the sites
visited in this chat session. |
| February 12, 2003 |
Civil Rights
This session was hosted by Michael Hutchinson, The Social Studies Forum, with
Leni Donlan, The Learning Page. Special guests included Jackie Glover, producer
of the HBO documentary, Unchained Memories; and Bennett Singer, Time Classroom,
who created an educator's guide and teaching materials to accompany this documentary.
The discussion focused on African-American history, giving special attention to
slave narratives and other resources from The Library of Congress. The transcript
contains the URLs for the sites visited in this discussion. |
| January 16, 2003 |
Branding of America
This session focused on advertising. A new interactive activity, based on a variety
of products from around America, was introduced. The transcript contains the URLs
for the sites visited in this discussion. |
| December 5, 2002 |
America the Beautiful
This session focused on sharing the online map resources of the Library of Congress.
Several types of maps were discussed and samples were shown. The transcript contains
the URLs for the sites visited in this discussion. |
| November 7, 2002 |
Holidays
Discussion initially focused on participants sharing their stellar ideas for observing
holidays in schools, then shifted to a showing of the resources offered in the
Holiday section of the Community Center. |
| October 17, 2002 |
Immigration
Discussion included the changes observed in immigration patterns over the years,
as well as collaborative thinking about what we want students to understand about
immigration. |
| October 3, 2002 |
Immigration
Discussion centered around an introduction to the Community Center and the sharing
of specific resources on the topic of Immigration. |
