Monday, January 26, 2009

A Conversation with Lincoln (2/27/09)

Celebrate Lincoln's Bicentennial by attending A Conversation With Lincoln at the Northwest Career and Technical Academy on Friday, February 27th from 5:00-8:00 PM. The program's theme is "Lincoln and Equality" and is open to the public. The celebration will include:
  • President Lincoln re-enactor
  • Lincoln scholar presentation by Bob Nylen (Nevada State Museum)
  • Civil War soldiers
  • Civil War artifacts, music, food
  • Student art, essays, documentary films
  • Opportunities to have photos taken with Lincoln
Tickets are $3.00 at the door. For more information, contact Jeff Hinton.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Teaching Primary Sources—A New Blog

Teaching Primary Sources is a new blog dedicated to teaching methods for using primary sources and providing information about primary source learning opportunities in Southern Nevada. The site will include primary source sets, primarily using the Library of Congress resources.

Battleground Nevada—The Lincoln Bicentennial and Nevada

Presented by the Nevada Council for History Education
with support from the Library of Congress (Teaching with Primary Sources) and University of Northern Colorado and The College of Southern Nevada


This conference will prepare teachers to use primary sources available through the Library of Congress website to engage in students in history instruction. Activities include investigating the Library of Congress website and developing Lincoln activities for your classroom. The conference will offer lectures on Lincoln and Nevada as well as appearances by Civil War re-enactors (including President Lincoln).

Date: Saturday, February 28, 2009
Time: 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Location: College of Southern Nevada—West Charleston Campus (New Library Building I-101)
Limit: 28 participants
Participants Receive: One-half credit from the Nevada Department of Education for re-certification, teaching materials, and lunch
Registration Ends: February 1, 2009
Registration Process: Email the below information to Dr. Linda Miller, State Coordinator for the Nevada Council of History Education


Preliminary Schedule of Events

8:00 Registration/Get in Groups
8:15 Welcome/Introductions (Dr. Linda Miller, Nevada Council for History Education State Coordinator)
8:30 Encountering Primary Sources/Project Overview (Dr. Keeler)
8:45 Examining Primary Sources using the Library of Congress Website (Jeff Hinton)
9:30 Interpreting Library of Congress Materials—Nevada Focus (Dr. Miller)
10:00 Break
10:15 Interpreting Primary Sources/Pony Express and Nevada Statehood (Robert Nylen)
11:00 Lunch/Paired project discussions (Determine inquiry question)
11:45 Civil War Tents Observation (Nevada Civil War History Association)
12:30 Senator Stewart Chautauqua (Robert Nylen)
1:15 President Lincoln Chautauqua (William Peck)
2:00 Break
2:15 Integrating Primary Sources/Work on Projects (Dr. Keeler)
4:00 Present Projects
4:45 Evaluations

Monday, January 5, 2009

TerraCycling: Recycling in the Classroom

TerraCycle collects trash that would otherwise find its way to a landfill and, instead, uses those items to create new products. By mailing recyclables to the company (preferably in used containers), schools can earn approximately $0.02 per item. Some of the items they collect include:
  • Drink Pouches (e.g., Capri Sun)
  • Cookie Wrappers (e.g., Oreo)
  • Corks
  • Yogurt Containers (i.e., Stonyfield Farms)
  • Plastic Bottles (e.g., Coke)
  • Chip Containers (e.g., Wheat Thins)
This sounds like a great way for schools to teach eco-friendly concepts while making money.

Schools sign-up to participate and are sent shipping labels and sometimes boxes in which they can mail the items to TerraCycle.

Gilder-Lehrman Institute of American History Summer Seminars for Teachers (Applications due 2/15/09)

The Gilder Lehrman Summer Seminars are designed to strengthen participants' commitment to high quality history teaching. Public, parochial, independent school teachers, and National Park Service rangers are eligible. These week-long seminars provide intellectual stimulation and a collaborative context for developing practical resources and strategies to take back to the classroom.

Seminars participants receive:
  • Room and board
  • Books and teaching resources
  • Stipends of $400 (international seminar stipend of $500)
Seminars are limited to thirty participants by competitive application with preference given to new applicants.

To apply, visit http://gilderlehrman.org/teachers/seminars1.html.

Application Deadline: February 15, 2009