With support from the University of Richmond

History News Network

History News Network puts current events into historical perspective. Subscribe to our newsletter for new perspectives on the ways history continues to resonate in the present. Explore our archive of thousands of original op-eds and curated stories from around the web. Join us to learn more about the past, now.

National Archives Partners With National History Day For 2012 Competition

The National Archives recently announced the launch of a special web site highlighting activities and documents related to the 2012 National History Day theme – Revolution, Reaction, and Reform in History. Inspiration for National History Day projects can be found in sample documents, suggested topics at www.DocsTeach.org/home/national-history-day.

These online records include photographs, maps, textual records, posters, patent drawings, and video and sound recordings that reflect the 2012 theme and can be incorporated into any of the five National History Day categories.

Teachers can introduce the 2012 National History Day theme with an activity that encourages students to define the terms revolution and reform, and then examine the differences between them by analyzing documents connected to the New Deal. Another activity, entitled Mrs. Jackson’s Letter, illustrates an emotional reaction to ‘Bloody Sunday’ in Selma, Alabama in 1964. In other activities, students can reflect on why some documents are more effective than others when creating a National History Day project.

Using the site’s seven interactive tools, teachers also have the option of creating, modifying, and sharing additional activities connected to the 2012 National History Day theme based upon the students’ skill level.

Read entire article at Lee White at the National Coalition for History